The Buckhead Coalition lunch, which took place at the St. Regis Hotel Thursday, regularly gathers Atlanta’s most influential civic, corporate and political leaders.
This year’s lunch was no exception, as Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens, Atlanta Police Chief Darin Schierbaum and Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis were all on hand to promote the city’s focus on fighting crime, including new efforts to crack down on gang offenders and more speedily bring cases to trial. Buckhead Coalition chair Eric Tanenblatt also highlighted a dip in crime rates.
The lunch unfolded hours before Gov. Brian Kemp issued an executive order declaring a State of Emergency in Georgia, including the authority for Kemp to activate up to 1,000 National Guard Troops, following violence in downtown Atlanta last weekend.
Although the order specifies the “protests turned violent” last weekend as the impetus for the emergency, the governor’s aides also described it as a precautionary measure following news of charges Thursday against five former Memphis police officers involved in the beating death of Tyre Nichols during a traffic stop.
Unlike the strained relations between state leaders and former Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms during violence in Atlanta in 2020, Dickens has worked to reset city-state relations between City Hall and Gov. Brian Kemp, Lt. Gov. Burt Jones and House Speaker Jon Burns.
That reset will be crucial over the next few weeks, as both Kemp and Dickens assure their constituents that their safety is their highest priority.
Credit: Arvin Temkar/AJC
Credit: Arvin Temkar/AJC
On Thursday afternoon, Dickens told the Buckhead Coalition, “Atlanta is a city that I consider to be a group project. Our relationship with our counterparts in the state government remains just as important to me as it did in the very beginning.”
He continued:
“We work well together. We speak early. We speak often. And when we disagree, we go about that. But we also double down on the things we agree on. We partner with the state on many matters of public safety, including targeting gangs, drugs and illegal guns, as well as human trafficking.
“We don't have to sit on the same side of the aisle or the political scale to see eye-to-eye to work together. We have proved that time and time again."
So far, the strategy has paid off. Kemp and other GOP leaders aren’t lobbying for a Buckhead revolt. And Jones, who endorsed the split last year, gave Dickens solid reviews in an interview with the AJC.
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LISTEN UP. The Friday edition of the Politically Georgia podcast is ready in your feeds now. We wrap up the busy week of a National Guard authorization, state Capitol Democrats and Republicans laying out their agendas, U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene taking her spot in the halls of power, and much more.
Listen at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, or Stitcher.
***
Credit: Casey Sykes for the AJC
Credit: Casey Sykes for the AJC
UNDER THE GOLD DOME:
- As promised by the famously early calendar this year, the state House and Senate are out of session. Action resumes Monday.
***
Credit: Alyssa Pointer/AJC
Credit: Alyssa Pointer/AJC
MADAME CHAIR. We’ve told you that this is the most diverse General Assembly in history. Now more of its leaders are diverse, too.
This week, the bipartisan county delegations chose their chairs to speak for their counties on important local issues. Among Georgia’s largest counties, Fulton chose state Sen. Sonya Halpern, Gwinnett tapped state Sen. Nikki Merritt, and DeKalb named state Sen. Kim Jackson — all Democrats and all women of color.
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PRESIDENT KEMP? We preface this by saying we’re in very early days, however two national outlets are floating Gov. Brian Kemp as a potential 2024 candidate — speculation that the second-term Republican’s allies are eager to stoke even if they don’t see him taking the plunge.
Credit: Emily Haney/AJC
Credit: Emily Haney/AJC
Over at the Cook Political Report, Amy Walter noted Kemp’s 62% approval rating in the latest Atlanta Journal-Constitution poll as she lauded his “understated but incredible political skill.”
“The best place to be at this point is under-the-radar but also in the public eye,” Walter wrote. “When the others wilt, wobble or whiff, this person looks like an attractive alternative. That’s why I’m watching Gov. Brian Kemp very closely these days.”
And New York Magazine’s Ed Kilgore echoed Walter’s assessment. He wrote that, while he is no fan of Kemp’s, the governor’s “political performance in 2022 was simply dazzling” and that his track record of winning over Donald Trump supporters could serve him well in a national race.
The glowing appraisals will also surely attract negative attention. Last week, Florida’s lieutenant governor took a shot at Kemp for traveling to Davos, Switzerland — presumably to boost her 2022 running mate, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, who is a likely 2024 hopeful. Others could follow.
Our take? Kemp seems far more likely to run for U.S. Senate against Democrat Jon Ossoff in 2026 than dive into presidential waters in 2024. But we also suspect he’s likely to be vetted as a running-mate for a non-Trump contender this cycle. Buckle up.
***
TODAY IN WASHINGTON:
- The U.S. House is in session today; the Senate has adjourned for the week.
- President Joe Biden is headed to Camp David for the weekend.
***
Credit: TNS
Credit: TNS
CDC CURE? The Washington Post editorial board writes this morning that, “The time has come for a major reset for the CDC.”
With a “demoralized” staff, a COVID-battered reputation, and clunky data, contracting, and finance processes, the board says Congress needs to put life-saving measures for the Atlanta-based agency at the top of its list of priorities.
A Center for Strategic and International Studies report, “warns that the CDC has entered a ‘moment of peril.’ If repaired and bolstered promptly, the CDC will be better able to tackle the real peril: disease and illness.”
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Credit: Al Drago photo
Credit: Al Drago photo
LOW MARKS FOR CONGRESS. Two out of every three Georgia voters say they have lost confidence in the ability of Republicans and Democrats in Congress to work together, according to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution’s latest poll.
Only about 3% of respondents said they had a lot of confidence that the two parties will be able to work together in a bipartisan way over the next two years. An additional 28% said they had some confidence. Sixty-seven percent said they had no confidence.
Republicans and Democrats are currently divided over how to move forward as the nation reaches its borrowing limit.
Slightly more than half of Georgia voters polled, 54%, have an unfavorable opinion of Congress.
***
Credit: Nathan Posner for the AJC
Credit: Nathan Posner for the AJC
EMPTY SHELVES. U.S. Sen. Jon Ossoff, D-Ga., wants the pharmaceutical industry to explain why a shortage of children’s medicines persists in Georgia and beyond.
Citing an Atlanta Journal-Constitution article from December about the scarcity of over-the-counter cold and flu medicines Children’s Tylenol, Advil and Motrin, as well as the prescription antibiotic amoxicillin, Ossoff is asking drug makers to explain the issues and work to boost production.
“It is extremely scary for a parent to hold a sick child, unable to provide the medicine that child needs to feel better or lower a fever,” Ossoff wrote. The letters were sent to GlaxoSmithKline (now known as Haleon), Johnson & Johnson and Perrigo.
He asks them to respond within two weeks to a series of questions about the shortages.
***
Credit: Steve Schaefer/AJC
Credit: Steve Schaefer/AJC
MORE COMMITTEES. Members of Georgia’s congressional delegation are announcing more committee assignments as the session begins to take shape.
- U.S. Sen. Jon Ossoff has nabbed a spot on the Intelligence Committee. The Democrat will also continue to serve on the Rules, Homeland Security, and Judiciary committees.
- U.S. Sen. Raphael Warnock, a Democrat, has been reappointed to the Agriculture, Banking, and Commerce committees, as well as the Special Committee on Aging.
- U.S. Rep. Barry Loudermilk, R-Cassville, will serve as vice chairman of the Subcommittee on Financial Institutions and Monetary Policy.
- U.S. Rep. Nikema Williams, D-Atlanta, has been newly appointed to the Financial Services Committee.
Warnock’s position on the Agriculture Committee will become even more relevant as Congress reauthorizes the all-important Farm Bill.
***
Credit: Stephen M. Dowell/TNS
Credit: Stephen M. Dowell/TNS
CPAC IS BACK. Despite the sexual harassment allegations faced by its organizer, the Conservative Political Action Conference, the annual gathering of hard-right activists, is moving ahead.
The conference will be held March 1-4 just minutes away from the U.S. Capitol in National Harbor, Maryland. U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene is among the confirmed speakers.
Earlier this year, a former campaign aide to U.S. Senate candidate Herschel Walker alleged that Matt Schlapp, the chairman of the political organization that hosts CPAC, groped him during a campaign visit to Georgia. Schlapp denied the allegations, and the accuser has since filed a lawsuit accusing Schlapp of battery, defamation, and conspiracy.
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Credit: Ben Gray for the AJC
Credit: Ben Gray for the AJC
PERSONNEL NEWS. Former state Rep. Terry England, long the Georgia House’s top dog on budget issues, has joined the firm started by former Gov. Nathan Deal and his top aide Chris Riley as a consultant. England will serve in a consulting capacity for the firm.
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MURPHY HONOR. U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene is taking the lead on an effort to rename the federal courthouse in Rome after a long-standing judge who recently died.
U.S. District Judge Harold Murphy, died Dec. 28 at age 95. Although he retired from active service in 2017, he held senior judge status and continued to preside over cases until his death, the Rome News-Tribune reported.
Credit: Alison Church/The Fulton Daily Report
Credit: Alison Church/The Fulton Daily Report
Murphy was known for being tough but benevolent, Greene said during remarks on the House floor Thursday.
“He is the only judge that was known to receive Christmas cards from inmates in prison that Judge Murphy himself put away,” she said. “He was so excruciatingly fair and impartial, that, during one case, he even talked a defendant out of a guilty plea.”
Among his most notable rulings was a decision in a case alleging racial disparities in Alabama’s funding for public universities. The decision led to additional resources for two historically Black colleges, including Alabama State University. In 2014, ASU renamed its graduate school after Murphy in recognition of his service.
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AS ALWAYS, Jolt readers are some of our favorite tipsters. Send your best scoop, gossip and insider info to patricia.murphy@ajc.com, tia.mitchell@ajc.com and greg.bluestein@ajc.com.
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