Yes, it’s an institution with distinctly Democratic leanings. An ancient portrait of John F. Kennedy, clouded by decades of cigarette smoke, hangs over the bar. But even most Republicans would agree that Manuel’s Tavern, the most famous political bar in Atlanta, ought not fall victim to COVID-19. From Maria Saporta over at the Saporta Report:
Manuel's has been hit hard by the coronavirus pandemic with business down an average of 62 percent. It has had limited take-out service and space for outdoor seating, which is less and less available because of the wintery weather.
“The likelihood of closing Manuel's is significant at this point," said Brian Maloof, who owns the restaurant and is the youngest son of its namesake – the late Manuel Maloof. “I would imagine it would be permanent."
The tavern opened in 1956 at the same location as Harry’s Delicatessen, a longtime neighborhood deli that served beer following the end of Prohibition. It was owned by Manuel Maloof, the longtime DeKalb County CEO.
Manuel’s Tavern was just coming out of a facelift when the pandemic took hold and was officially been listed on the National Register of Historic Places as of May 29. Manuel’s is located only a short distance from the Carter Center, and back in the day, former President Jimmy Carter and Rosalynn Carter could often be found at one of the tavern’s tables.
Innumerable political campaigns have debuted in the space.
Angelo Fuster, a veteran of the Maynard Jackson administration, has started a GoFundMe page to save the place.
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If the “Stop the Steal” rally in a leafy Alpharetta park had attracted just a handful of gawkers, it would have been easy to dismiss its organizers as another fringe group with a sketchy following.
But the gathering headlined by disgraced former Trump attorney Sidney Powell drew hundreds of participants -- indeed, it was one of the biggest Georgia GOP rallies one of your Insiders has attended this year that didn’t feature President Donald Trump.
And they were treated to baseless lies and unsubstantiated claims of voter fraud - and pleas to stay home in the Jan. 5 runoffs.
Powell was greeted with ravenous applause by a crowd packed into an equestrian ring. But it was attorney Lin Wood who drew the attention -- shoveling false claims of voter fraud and baseless broadsides at top GOP officials.
Just after soon-to-be-ex (Democratic) state Rep. Vernon Jones urged the audience to vote for Sens. Kelly Loeffler and David Perdue, Wood swiped the mic back.
“They have not earned your vote. Don’t you give it to them. Why would you go back and vote in another rigged election for God’s sake? Fix it .You gotta fix it,” he said -- underlining GOP fears that claims of a rigged presidential contest fueled by Trump and echoed by the likes of Wood and Powell, could dampen Republican turnout in Georgia’s crucial runoff contests for U.S. Senate.
From former House speaker Newt Gingrich this morning, via Twitter:
Lin Wood and Sidney Powell are totally destructive. Every Georgia conservative who cares about America MUST vote in the runoff. Their dont vote strategy will cripple America
Not long after the Wednesday rally in Alpharetta, the secretary of state’s office confirmed a graphic floating around social media that showed Wood was a frequent Democratic primary voter, including in the 2018 primary. And conservative media outlets, including Breitbart, quickly published stories detailing his past contributions to Democrats.
While state elections officials debunked Wood’s claims, Gov. Brian Kemp took a different tack. Appearing on Erick Erickson’s WSB Radio show, he said he had no apologies for ignoring Trump’s demands that he somehow overturn the election.
“I know it’s been frustrating for people but that’s the way our system is set up,” he said. “And I took that oath to follow the laws and the Constitution and that’s what I’m going to continue to do.”
And yet all were undercut by a video issued by a defeated president. The lede paragraph from the Associated Press:
Increasingly detached from reality, President Donald Trump stood before a White House lectern and delivered a 46-minute diatribe against the election results that produced a win for Democrat Joe Biden, unspooling one misstatement after another to back his baseless claim that he really won.
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State senators will hold two hearings at the Capitol today to examine the topic of absentee ballots and Georgia election law. Testimony is anticipated to be restricted – and based on notarized statements.
The Senate Committee on Government Oversight meets at 9:30 a.m. A Senate Judiciary subcommittee meets at 1 p.m. They are chaired by Bill Heath, R-Bremen, and William Ligon, R-Brunswick, respectively. Both declined to run for re-election last month. Their terms expire in January – which is significant. Both hearings will be livestreamed.
Meanwhile, WSB-TV has discovered something for state lawmakers to talk about beside Andrew Yang, the former Democratic presidential candidate who sparked GOP fears of an influx of temporary Georgia residents – who move here solely to vote. To wit:
A Florida attorney is at the center of a new state investigation after elections officials say he recently attempted to register to vote in Georgia and instructed other Florida Republicans on how to do it .
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There are times when it salves the ego to see one’s name on the front page of the New York Times. For U.S. Sen. David Perdue, embroiled in a hot runoff with Democrat Jon Ossoff, this isn’t one of them:
An examination of Mr. Perdue's stock trading during his six years in office reveals that he has been the Senate's most prolific stock trader by far, sometimes reporting 20 or more transactions in a single day.
The Times analyzed data compiled by Senate Stock Watcher, a nonpartisan website that aggregates publicly available information on lawmakers' trading, and found that Mr. Perdue's transactions accounted for nearly a third of all senators' trades reported in the past six years. His 2,596 trades, mostly in stocks but also in bonds and funds, roughly equal the combined trading volume of the next five most active traders in the Senate.
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Lindsey Graham, Tim Scott and Todd Young are hosting a fundraiser tonight in Atlanta for their two Georgia colleagues locked in U.S. Senate runoffs, with a “special appearance” promised by Majority Leader Mitch McConnell. The tickets for the Georgia Battleground event start at $2,800 a pop, while dinner will cost $25,000 a couple. A spot as a co-host will run donors $41,100. The exact site is being kept under wraps, disclosed only to those who write checks.
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Already posted: Former President Barack Obama will headline a virtual get-out-the-vote rally on Friday with U.S. Senate candidates Jon Ossoff and Raphael Warnock to mobilize Democrats – and urge them to volunteer – ahead of the start of early voting on Dec. 14.
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Georgia’s four newest U.S. House members are participating this morning in the time-honored tradition of selecting their new Washington office space via lottery. The coronavirus pandemic led to changes in the normally spirited exercise: members participated via WebEx and watched House staffers dip their hands into the bowl to determine their fate.
Among U.S. Reps.-elect Carolyn Bourdeaux, Andrew Clyde, Marjorie Taylor Greene, and Nikema Williams, we believe that it was Williams who drew the highest number and therefore will have the best chances at securing office space in the most desirable location. She will select at No. 8 among more than 50 freshmen.
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Georgia’s newest congressman, Kwanza Hall, will be sworn in this afternoon after the state worked quickly to submit to Washington the results of Tuesday’s runoff. He will be able to immediately participate in House votes, which are expected through the weekend and could continue into next week.
Hall will serve out the remainder of the late U.S. Rep. John Lewis’ term, roughly a month, before passing the seat to Nikema Williams in January.
