The usually secret Georgia Freedom Caucus is hosting a news conference at the state Capitol on Thursday to protest the recent indictments of former President Donald Trump and 18 co-defendants.
A flyer for the event also says “Special Session Now,” presumably referencing a call by a Trump loyalist and freshman GOP backbencher — state Sen. Colton Moore — to convene the Legislature out of regular session. He advocates for defunding Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis’ office in retaliation for the prosecutions.
But it’s not clear how many takers he’ll get after he made a few choice words about his Republican colleagues to the John Fredericks’ radio show last week. Only a handful have signed on to his petition for a special session.
“It’s hard to soar like an eagle when your colleagues are acting like a bunch of buzzard cowards flying around the land looking for every dead-end excuse not to do anything,” he told Fredericks.
Much to the consternation of his fellow lawmakers, he also told listers they should call his “RINO” GOP colleagues to demand action.
Credit: Michael Blackshire
Credit: Michael Blackshire
The Republican from Trenton was outside the Fulton County Jail last Thursday talking to reporters before Trump surrendered to authorities. He criticized Gov. Brian Kemp and said a special session should happen soon.
Remember, even pro-Trump Republicans have said Moore’s call for a special session is going nowhere. State Sen. Russ Goodman, R-Cogdell, is no fan of Willis — he accused her of seeking “political retribution.” But he noted that such a call needs a three-fifths majority and bipartisan support.
“Senator Moore put his letter out and pasted it all over social media and did interview after interview while using the issue to raise money online,” Goodman wrote to supporters.
“He never once called anyone in the Republican caucus to discuss his letter. I’ll be perfectly frank: I think what he is doing is disingenuous and I’m not going to purposely mislead y’all.”
***
Credit: Fulton County Sheriff's Office
Credit: Fulton County Sheriff's Office
MUG MANIA. Donald Trump’s booking photo at the Fulton County Jail is the mug shot seen around the world.
Already, there are signs that the scowling photo of the former president will live up to iconic photographer David Hume Kennerly’s prediction that it will be the “most published photograph ever taken.”
So far, the picture has turned into a financial bonanza for his comeback bid, with Trump’s campaign reporting more than $7.1 million in contributions since he was booked last week in Atlanta.
His campaign has taken to sending releases identifying him as “No. 2313827″ — his booking number.
The photo has also become a consequential symbol of political resistance. Consider the scene at the Beltline this weekend, where artist Chris Veal’s mug shot mural fast became a must-see.
Credit: Screen shot via Instagram
Credit: Screen shot via Instagram
***
TRUMP BOBBLEHEAD. The Trump campaign is hawking plenty of mug shot merch, from shirts to hats and coffee mugs to beer koozies. The former president hasn’t completely cornered the market, though.
The National Bobblehead Hall of Fame and Museum is creating its own mug shot novelty item. The Trump bobblehead will be available for sale in the hall’s online story and is expected to ship in January. The cost is $38, including shipping charges.
“Whether you are a Donald Trump backer or detractor, the first mug shot of a former president is a historic moment that deserves a bobblehead,” National Bobblehead Hall of Fame and Museum co-founder and CEO Phil Sklar said.
The bobblehead museum is located in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and opened in February 2019.
***
Credit: Stephen B. Morton for The Atlanta Journal Constitution
Credit: Stephen B. Morton for The Atlanta Journal Constitution
FISH FRY. The annual fish fry in Perry is one of the key events on the GOP calendar. Republicans gather each year to pay homage to one of the birthplaces of the party’s modern renaissance — and cast ahead to the next election cycle.
The meeting in middle Georgia over the weekend also served as a reminder of the simmering tensions still dividing Republicans in the Donald Trump era.
Gov. Brian Kemp drew warm applause as the featured speaker at the Georgia National Fairgrounds & Agricenter, but off-stage drama showed the limits of the bonhomie.
Videos circulated of security officials blocking entry to pro-Trump activists wearing shirts advocating for paper ballots. And a high-ranking Georgia GOP official posted footage of Kemp bristling at a question about the security of voting machines.
Meanwhile, several paper ballot activists shared a picture of them posing with another top Republican: Lt. Gov. Burt Jones, a Trump-aligned politician likely to run for governor in 2026.
***
RACIST ATTACK. On the same day that thousands gathered in Washington, D.C., to celebrate the 60th anniversary of the March on Washington, a gunman who left behind a racist manifesto entered a store in a Black neighborhood in Jacksonville, Florida, and opened fire.
Three people, all of them Black, were killed, the AJC’s David Aaro reports.
The shooting also came at the same time Jacksonville was commemorating the 63rd anniversary of Ax Handle Saturday, a day when a group of white men attacked Black people participating in anti-segregation sit-ins.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, a presidential candidate who has made efforts to limit how Black history is taught in schools, was jeered when he spoke at a vigil Sunday for the victims.
Aaro reports that once the crowd quieted down, DeSantis announced that Edward Waters University would receive new financial support for security. The gunman is alleged to have stopped on the school’s campus before heading to the nearby discount store where the attack occurred.
Jacksonville Mayor Donna Deegan joined Democrats in the U.S. Congress and Florida’s legislature in calling for an end to racial violence and more gun control. The assailant, who took his own life during the attack, used a legally purchased assault-style rifle.
“A despicable tragedy, driven by hate,” U.S. Sen. Raphael Warnock, D-Ga., wrote on social media. “I am praying for the victims of this unabashed racism, and those mourning their loss. Rampant gun violence is not the cost of freedom — it is the cost of blind obstinance.”
President Joe Biden announced Sunday that a federal civil rights investigation is underway. He also said the government is treating the shooting as a possible hate crime and an act of violent extremism.
“Even as we continue searching for answers, we must say clearly and forcefully that white supremacy has no place in America,” Biden said in a statement. “We must refuse to live in a country where Black families going to the store or Black students going to school live in fear of being gunned down because of the color of their skin.”
***
Credit: Curtis Compton/AJC
Credit: Curtis Compton/AJC
CANCER DRUGS. Nine members of Georgia’s congressional delegation have asked the Food and Drug Administration to provide information regarding a shortage of cancer treatment medication.
The shortage is partially due to a shutdown of a large manufacturing plant in India and could cause doctors to change patients’ treatment plans, the lawmakers’ letter said, according to a report by the AJC’s Ariel Hart.
“Providers at cancer centers have started to alter treatment programs and delay preferred therapies due to limited drug availability,” the letter states.
The letter was signed by a bipartisan group of legislators: U.S. Sen. Raphael Warnock, D-Ga., and U.S. Reps. Rick Allen, R-Augusta; Sanford Bishop, D-Albany; Buddy Carter, R-Pooler; Hank Johnson, D-Lithonia; Barry Loudermilk, R-Cassville; Lucy McBath, D-Marietta; Rich McCormick, R-Suwanee; and Austin Scott, R-Tifton.
***
Credit: File photos
Credit: File photos
KEEP UP. Former President Donald Trump and the 18 others indicted in the Georgia election interference case surrendered to Fulton County authorities ahead of last Friday’s deadline.
With all the moving parts, we’ll keep you updated every morning with the latest developments. Our AJC colleagues filed these stories over the weekend:
***
TODAY IN WASHINGTON:
- President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden will visit a local middle school to greet students on the first day of classes.
- The August recesses in the U.S. House and Senate are almost over. The Senate resumes Sept. 5; the House returns to session Sept. 12.
***
Credit: Stephen B. Morton for the AJC
Credit: Stephen B. Morton for the AJC
UNIONS ELECTRIFIED. The Hyundai electric vehicle assembly plant under construction near Savannah is America’s newest labor union battleground — and President Joe Biden is being drawn into the fray.
The New York Times reports a coalition of labor unions and civic groups will launch a marketing pressure campaign later today to demand the Biden administration bring union jobs to Hyundai EV facilities in Georgia and Alabama. The automaker plans to manufacture EVs at its existing factories in West Point and Montgomery, Alabama, as well as the facility due to open in 2025 near Savannah.
Hyundai’s U.S. workforce is not unionized and the labor groups hope to leverage the EV manufacturing incentives outlined in Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act to spur action.
In a letter to Hyundai’s chief executive of U.S. operations, José Muñoz, the coalition wrote, “These facilities will transform our communities, and we are faced with a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to ensure that this transformation is for the best.”
***
Credit: Courtesy photo
Credit: Courtesy photo
DOG OF THE DAY. Most 3-year-olds are not heavy news consumers and Millie Haisty is no exception.
We’re informed that this high-energy border collie is an inconsistent Jolt reader at best. She’d rather play fetch or go for a swim and let her owner, AJC subscriber Maggie Haisty, fill her in on everything she missed in #GAPOL. We don’t blame you one bit, Millie. See you when you’re 18!
Send us your dogs of any political persuasion and location, and cats on a cat-by-cat basis, to patricia.murphy@ajc.com, or DM us at @MurphyAJC.
***
AS ALWAYS, Jolt readers are some of our favorite tipsters. Send your best scoop, gossip and insider info to adam.vanbrimmer@ajc.com, patricia.murphy@ajc.com, tia.mitchell@ajc.com and greg.bluestein@ajc.com.
