Athens-Clarke County has never had a tepid political scene. Its mix of college students, progressive townies, college professors and a handful of conservatives, including Gov. Brian Kemp, has shaped the city’s policies and politics.
But in recent weeks, the divisiveness in Athens has taken a sharper turn. It’s not just because of the vitriol over the slaying of Laken Riley, who was killed while on a jog on UGA’s campus.
Credit: Fletcher Page/AJC
Credit: Fletcher Page/AJC
Consider these developments from the last few days:
On Tuesday, Flagpole reported that a self-described rabbi who is a member of a fringe group was forcibly removed from a commission meeting after tearing up a pro-Palestinian sign and denouncing Mayor Kelly Girtz as a “Satan-worshipping, Communist child-trafficking Democrat.”
The same day, Flagpole also noted that commission candidate Stephanie Johnson threatened to take out a restraining order against a local journalist and accused him of stalking and intimidation in the course of reporting on her commission bid.
(The reporter, Chris Dowd, said through an attorney that he hasn’t engaged “in any conduct that can even remotely be characterized as stalking or intimidation” and that her letter was aimed at keeping him from doing his job.)
Credit: Hyosub Shin/AJC
Credit: Hyosub Shin/AJC
In addition, The Red & Black reported that U.S. Rep. Mike Collins, R-Jackson, was repeatedly interrupted by demonstrators during remarks on campus Wednesday regarding conservative crackdowns on illegal immigration after Riley’s death and his support for Israel in the war in Gaza.
On Thursday, Collins used his social media account to blast Girtz over a series of emails he said showed the mayor being too accommodating of immigrants.
It has all enflamed the already tense and grieving community and left locals wondering where the beloved, quirky college town — and its eclectic politics — will go from here.
***
Credit: Bob Andres/AJC
Credit: Bob Andres/AJC
PRITCHARD WATCH. Georgia GOP chair Josh McKoon has sent notice to first vice-chair Brian Pritchard of a hearing to remove him from office, triggering a 32-day countdown until the meeting.
McKoon and other GOP officials have demanded that Pritchard, an avid Trump supporter, step down as first vice-chair after a judge reprimanded him for voting illegally in Georgia while he was serving probation for a felony conviction in Pennsylvania.
Credit: Hyosub Shin/AJC
Credit: Hyosub Shin/AJC
Pritchard, a conservative radio host, has vowed to fight to stay in office. Democrats have pointed out how Pritchard, who has promoted lies about widespread election fraud, was himself an illegal voter.
Until the meeting about a month from now, expect Democrats to crow over the voter fraud unearthed in the GOP’s own leadership.
Credit: Natrice Miller/AJC
Credit: Natrice Miller/AJC
Democratic state Rep. Saira Draper quipped that Republicans passed a contentious new voting measure because of a “confidence problem” with elections.
“I want to know where all my Republican colleagues are at on this issue, because I don’t hear them calling for his resignation. I don’t hear them calling for him to step down,” said the Atlanta attorney.
“But they had plenty to say last week when they wanted to bring confidence back to elections if it meant passing a law that was going to make it harder to vote.”
***
GOING, GOING. Two weeks after she filed a resolution to push out House Speaker Mike Johnson, U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Rome, will finally speak with him today, our pal Jamie DuPree reports.
Expect a tense session, since it will follow weeks of Greene heaping public criticism and conspiracy theories on the GOP Speaker. On Thursday, Greene called Johnson a ‘hypocrite’ for how he is now pressing for extra aid to Ukraine.
“What changed?” Greene tweeted in yet another jab at her party’s House leader. “Who is Mike Johnson working for? It’s clearly not the American people.”
It’s hard to believe that it was just back in late October that a smiling Greene was taking a selfie on the House floor with the new Speaker of the House. Now she’s almost doing all she can to run him out of town, just another example of the dysfunction within GOP ranks on Capitol Hill.
***
Credit: Nathan Posner for the AJC
Credit: Nathan Posner for the AJC
MACON MONEY. The long planned cultural center in Macon to focus on the history of the Muscogee (Creek) Nation in Middle Georgia is one step closer to reality.
On Thursday, U.S. Sen. Jon Ossoff’s office announced that $310,000 of federal funding for the center had been included in the recently passed bipartisan spending bill. Macon-Bibb Mayor Pro Tem Seth Clark called the news “absolutely incredible” and said it will be used to seed a capital campaign to transform Macon’s historic Dewitt-McCrary house into a cultural center and headquarters for the Muscogee (Creek) Nation.
Credit: Brant Sanderlin/AJC
Credit: Brant Sanderlin/AJC
The Center will also be a part of what locals hope will soon be Georgia’s first national park and preserve at the Ocmulgee Mounds, which the Muscogee (Creek) Nation will help manage. The Mounds and the surrounding land were home to the tribe for 17,000 years before the federal government removed them to make way for settlers’ farms and towns. That project is being championed by U.S. Reps. Austin Scott and Sanford Bishop, as well as Georgia’s two U.S. senators.
***
LISTEN UP. Tune in as AJC Editor-in-Chief Leroy Chapman Jr. joins the “Politically Georgia” radio show today as guest co-host. He’ll speak with former Lt. Gov. Geoff Duncan to address the recent No Labels announcement that it won’t field a candidate in 2024. Later, the AJC’s Zach Hansen will join to look at the policy battles over electric vehicles — and how it could affect Georgia’s growing EV economy.
Listen live at 10 a.m. on 90.1 FM, at AJC.com and at WABE.org.
If you missed Thursday’s show, Melita Easters, the executive director of Georgia WIN List, talked about the most competitive districts they’ve recruited Democratic women to run in upcoming elections in Georgia.
Later, Jordan Fuchs of the Secretary of State’s office gave us the backstory of Brad Raffensperger’s letter to comedian Larry David. And she explained the changes Georgia voters can expect when they go to the polls after lawmakers passed yet another package of election law modifications this year.
Listen on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts.
***
NEVER MIND. As we mentioned above, the centrist group No Labels announced Thursday that it won’t field a third-party ticket against President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump in November.
The announcement comes after months of wooing possible contenders, only to be turned down by nearly a dozen potential presidential hopefuls, including West Virginia U.S. Sen. Joe Manchin, a Democrat; former Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan, a Republican; and Georgia’s own former Republican lieutenant governor Geoff Duncan.
In a statement, the group co-founded by former Democratic fundraiser Nancy Jacobson said, “No Labels has always said we would only offer our ballot line to a ticket if we could identify candidates with a credible path to winning the White House. No such candidates emerged, so the responsible course of action is for us to stand down.”
On to November.
***
TODAY IN WASHINGTON:
- President Joe Biden will tour damage to the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore and address plans to rebuild it with federal funds.
- The House and Senate are both out of session for a two-week Easter recess.
***
Credit: Courtesy photo
Credit: Courtesy photo
DOG OF THE DAY. If the term “lucky dog” applies to anyone, it may be Hamlet and Vesper Hogan-Vanegas, two of a group of 31 dogs rescued from an animal hoarder in 2022 — and among the last to be adopted.
Once they did find their forever people, Hamlet and Vesper got to work making up for lost time. Hamlet committed himself to finding cozy spots in his new home for naps and lounging. Vesper set out to solve a local squirrel problem in the backyard with her bark alone. A handy decibel meter measured her bark at the volume of a chainsaw.
These two call the Hogan-Vanegas family their people and lovely, leafy Ansley Park their home base. Did we mention they’re lucky dogs?
Got a pup for PG A.M.? Send us your dogs of any political persuasion, and cats on a cat-by-cat basis, to patricia.murphy@ajc.com, or DM us at @MurphyAJC. Horizontal photos are especially welcome.
***
AS ALWAYS, Politically Georgia readers are some of our favorite tipsters. Send your best scoop, gossip and insider info to greg.bluestein@ajc.com, tia.mitchell@ajc.com, patricia.murphy@ajc.com and adam.vanbrimmer@ajc.com.
About the Authors
