Erick Erickson has a knack for timing for his political conventions.
Back in 2015, the RedState Gathering convention he organized drew 10 GOP presidential candidates who appeared in Atlanta to make their pitches — the largest parade of White House hopefuls that Georgia had seen in decades.
But that year’s convention drew more attention for rescinding his invitation to Donald Trump after the future president’s controversial comments about Megyn Kelly. A Twitter fight ensued.
Erickson, a WSB radio host and GOP pundit, changed the name to The Gathering, but kept the event going. It still draws some of the nation’s top Republicans and 1,500 or so activists. And this year, it’s set to be held on Aug. 18-19.
Trump won’t be getting an invite to Erickson’s confab, but he could be in Atlanta anyway if Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis decided to charge Trump and his allies for interfering with Georgia’s 2020 election. The Gathering happens to be scheduled within the window when Willis could announce her charging decision.
You can expect the Georgia case to be the center of attention at the Gathering, regardless of whether Willis has made her decision public by then.
Most other presidential hopefuls have been invited, including Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, former Vice President Mike Pence and ex-U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley. U.S. Sen. Tim Scott and Vivek Ramaswamy have confirmed they’ll speak.
Also expected at center stage is Gov. Brian Kemp, whom many still see as a “break-the-emergency-glass” candidate if the other non-Trump candidates continue to falter.
Erickson also wants to influence the GOP vision of the future. He listed broader ideological and policy questions he hopes the presidential contenders and other conservative stars will address that delve far beyond Trump’s MAGA rhetoric.
“What does it mean to be a Republican? How do we find common ground as conservatives? What path should we embrace for the future, and how should we deal with China, Russia, Ukraine, technology, and more?”
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Ryan David Brown/The New York Times
Ryan David Brown/The New York Times
RFK JR. FOR LIFE. As long as you’ve got your calendars out, mark Life University’s September Life Vision Extravaganza as Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s first Georgia appearance since announcing he’s challenging President Joe Biden for the Democratic nomination for president in 2024.
A news release from the Marietta-based chiropractic school announced Kennedy as the closing speaker at the annual event, which will be held at the Cobb Galleria. It said the session would include “a chance for a unique dialogue on the current healthcare crisis in the country and his thoughts on changes that would be required for Chiropractic to play an integral role moving forward.”
Along with his role as an environmental activist, Kennedy has infuriated his family, scientists, and Democrats by long questioning the safety of vaccines.
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GREENE MACHINE. Former President Donald Trump may not be coming to Atlanta in August for the Erick Erickson event, but he drew a crowd in the tens of thousands to tiny Pickens, South Carolina — population 3,300 — over the July 4th weekend.
The show of force happened on the home turf of two of Trump’s White House rivals, U.S. Sen. Tim Scott and former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley.
Among the warmup acts for Trump was his loudest Georgia cheerleader and perennial Trump event speaker U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene. It’s a reminder that although Greene angered many in the GOP base by supporting House Speaker Kevin McCarthy’s debt ceiling deal with President Joe Biden, she’s still in with the Trump crowd and the former president himself.
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LAST CALL. Famous-turned-infamous Georgia attorney Lin Wood has left the Bar, the AJC’s Alan Judd reports.
Wood relinquished his law license with a letter dated July 4 (Independence Day) and promised never to practice law again in Georgia or any other jurisdiction. His decision came as the Georgia Bar Association was working to have Wood disbarred for his conduct in and out of the courtroom related to former President Donald Trump’s bogus efforts to overturn his 2020 Georgia election loss.
Alyssa Pointer/AJC
Alyssa Pointer/AJC
Wood rose to prominence in the 1990s when he defended Richard Jewell from accusations that he had been the Centennial Olympic Park bomber. He went on to defend some of the most high-profile cases in the country, but his combative tactics and eventual commitment to conspiracy theories in defense of Trump were the law straw for his fellow attorneys at the bar.
In a message on the Telegram social media site, Wood wrote that “lawfare” is a “tool of the devil.” In a separate message, he added, “Stay tuned and press on. … The best is yet to come.”
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Arvin Temkar/AJC
Arvin Temkar/AJC
REPUBLICANS SUE. The Fulton County Republican Party is suing the Fulton Commission after the commission rejected the nomination of an election denier to join the Fulton elections board, our colleague Mark Niesse reports.
The lawsuit asks a judge to order the commission to seat nominee Jason Frazier to one of the two spots on the board reserved for Republicans. Frazier has challenged the eligibility of thousands of registered voters.
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Arvin Temkar/AJC
Arvin Temkar/AJC
SIXTH PLUS ONE. U.S. Rep. Rich McCormick might be in a safe Republican district. But Cobb Commissioner Jerica Richardson is exploring a possible challenge to the Marine-turned-emergency room. doctor next year after Republicans pressed to draw the prominent Democrat out of her county commission seat. Read more here.
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Arvin Temkar/AJC
Arvin Temkar/AJC
COUNCIL CONDEMNS. The Atlanta City Council voted unanimously to adopt a resolution condemning the swastika-flag waving neo-Nazis outside of two Georgia synagogues last month.
The resolution authored by Councilman Amir Farokhi says the council is an “unrelenting ally to the city’s Jewish residents” and called on police to maintain their “vigilance against bias-motivated demonstrations.”
“It is incumbent on the Atlanta City Council to join this chorus, decry these shameful actions, and stand united against antisemitism in all its forms,” the resolution read.
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TRANSGENDER MINORS. Georgia’s new law banning certain treatments for transgender minors will remain in effect while a legal challenge begins to unfold.
YouTube
YouTube
The AJC’s Maya T. Prabhu writes that U.S. District Judge Sarah E. Geraghty wants to give attorneys time to iron out a “reasonable” timetable for court proceedings.
Geraghty questioned the plaintiffs seeking to overturn the law about why they waited until hours before it took effect Saturday to file their lawsuit, since Gov. Brian Kemp signed the measure in March.
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TNS
TNS
TODAY IN WASHINGTON:
- President Joe Biden will tour the Flex LTD manufacturing plant in West Columbia, South Carolina, and discuss new jobs coming there that he says are a result of his economic policies.
- The U.S. House and Senate are out for a two-week recess for the Fourth of July holiday.
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Georgia Department of Economic Development
Georgia Department of Economic Development
NEWS OF THE WEIRD. It’s been exactly one year since unknown vandals demolished the mysterious Georgia Guidestones outside of Elberton in an overnight explosion.
WXIA-TV reports that curious tourists continue to trek to the site of what used to be “Georgia’s Stonehenge,” which is now just gravel and grass, and that the crime remains unsolved.
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Zachary D. Porter
Zachary D. Porter
IN MEMORIAM. Marvin S. Arrington, Sr., a former Atlanta City Council president and retired Fulton County Superior Court judge, died Wednesday, his family announced. He was 82.
His son, Marvin Arrington Jr., currently serves on the Fulton County Commission.
Arrington Sr. was one of two students who became the first Black graduates of Emory University Law School in 1967. The chambers where the Atlanta City Council meets are named after him.
The AJC’s Wilborn Nobles has more about Arrington’s life and legacy.
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Courtesy photo
Courtesy photo
DOG OF THE DAY. Since it’s July 4th week, let’s meet two Yankee Doodle doggies, Augie and Beau Page, pictured here with the stars and stripes.
Formally known as St. Augustina of Douglas and Beaufort, but more casually called “Augie the Doggie” and Beau, these two call Dr. Robert Page and his wife, Tracy Bosworth Page, their people. After much canine cajoling, Dr. Page retired as provost for South Georgia State College in Douglas at the end of June.
Congratulations to the Pages, who are also loyal AJC subscribers, on Dr. Page’s retirement and their newfound time for spending with The Jolt and these two characters, our Dogs of the Day.
Send us your dogs of any political persuasion and cats on a cat-by-cat basis to patricia.murphy@ajc.com, or DM us on Twitter @MurphyAJC.
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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.
