Georgia Democrats want an investigation after they said a state audit surfaced questions about whether Gov. Brian Kemp’s administration circumvented state contracting requirements, potentially for political gain.
It’s not immediately clear which state or federal agencies might lead the probe, and Democrats said they haven’t formally requested an investigation.
Read the full story
Education Secretary Miguel Cardona refused to define what a woman is during a committee meeting this week.
“I’m here to talk about the budget and if you’d have a question about the budget, I’d be happy to respond,” he said, in part.
Read the full story
A federal judge has granted a motion to dismiss a challenge to Georgia’s citizenship verification process, state officials said.
On Thursday, U.S. District Judge Eleanor Ross granted Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger’s motion to dismiss.
Read the full story
The Democrat challenging Fulton County Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee claimed the incumbent is under “tremendous” pressure due to the Georgia case against former President Donald Trump brought by District Attorney Fani Willis.
Robert Patillo, the former executive director of the Rainbow PUSH social justice group started by Reverend Jessee Jackson who is now challenging McAfee, made the remarks in a Wednesday interview with WSB-TV.
Read the full story
A Wednesday report reveals the Department of Justice (DOJ) admitted to “inconsistencies” in how Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis used federal grant money.
A DOJ official admitted this to The Washington Free Beacon regarding a $448,000 federal grant dispersed to Willis’ office.
Read the full story
The campaign to reelect President Joe Biden announced it hired new staff and a series of new offices in Georgia last week. The decision to expand Biden’s political operation in Georgia comes as former President Donald Trump continues to poll ahead of the Democrat in surveys of Peach State voters.
Biden’s campaign reportedly confirmed the addition of seven new offices and nine new full-time campaign workers in Georgia, according to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. The outlet reported a Biden spokesman claimed “the seven offices will be open by mid-April.”
Read the full story
While the discussion continues following the collapse of Baltimore’s Francis Scott Key Bridge, several opportunities to improve operations and processes have emerged.
Officials at Georgia’s and South Carolina’s ports have vowed to help however they can.
Read the full story
A co-defendant of President Donald Trump in the Georgia election case brought by Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis demanded her resignation on Thursday.
Harrison Floyd, who remains a defendant in the Georgia case against Trump, posted to X a screen shot of an Atlanta Journal-Constitution article that reports Willis’ office recorded a phone call with his Maryland-based attorney.
Read the full story
A Glynn County resident, sentenced to 20 years in federal prison as part of Operation Ghost Busted, pled guilty to trafficking the drugs responsible for two overdose fatalities.
32-year-old Jon Dillon Screen of Brunswick, Georgia, pled guilty to trafficking drugs, including the fentanyl that killed Screen’s girlfriend and a man from Brunswick.
Read the full story
A Georgia Public Service Commission hearing officer has ruled a railroad can take private land from several Sparta property owners, saying its proposed rail spur “serves a legitimate public purpose.”
The Sandersville Railroad, a Class III short line railroad that has served the area since 1893, petitioned the PSC on March 8, 2023, to condemn land for a proposed 4.5-mile-long spur. The railroad subsequently moved to condemn additional land.
Read the full story
Georgia lawmakers have passed legislation that ostensibly bans “foreign adversaries” from owning agricultural land or property near a military base or airport, but one expert said it’s not clear the measure can stand up to judicial scrutiny.
Proponents say they crafted Senate Bill 420 in response to a Department of Agriculture report from 202 that found that China had roughly 384,000 acres of agricultural land across the country, a 30% increase from 2019 to 2020.
Read the full story
The disciplinary trial of Donald Trump’s former DOJ official Jeffrey Clark wrapped up on Thursday with the D.C. Bar’s disciplinary panel making a nonbinding preliminary determination that Clark was culpable on at least one of the two counts against him.
For drafting a letter that was never sent to Georgia officials advising them of their options in dealing with the 2020 election illegalities, he was charged with engaging in conduct involving dishonesty, fraud, deceit, or misrepresentation, and engaging in conduct that seriously interferes with the administration of justice, Rules 8.4(c) and (d) of the Rules of Professional Conduct.
Read the full story
Former special counsel Nathan Wade has refused to pay for his estranged wife’s medical treatments and cut off financial support for his children’s studies after he resigned from the Georgia case against former President Donald Trump, a divorce filing by his wife Joycelyn Wade claims.
Joycelyn Wade asked the Cobb County Superior Court to hold her husband in contempt after she asserted he violated their previous divorce settlement, which was announced on January 30, by refusing to pay for her medical treatments.
Read the full story
The second and final week of the disbarment trial of Donald Trump’s former DOJ official began to wind down on Wednesday with more testimony from operations security expert Harry Haury. Clark, who is also a defendant in Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis’ RICO prosecution, is being disciplined for drafting a letter that was never sent to Georgia officials after the 2020 election advising them of their options for dealing with the election illegalities.
The trial is expected to wrap up on Thursday with closing statements.
Read the full story
Georgia Republican Party (GAGOP) Chair Josh McKoon on Wednesday confirmed rumors he requested the resignation of the party’s 1st vice chairman, Brian Pritchard, following the revelation he violated the state’s election laws by illegally voting despite being on probation for forgery.
McKoon wrote in a post to the social media platform X that he requested Pritchard’s resignation before making the request public.
Read the full story
The disbarment trial of Donald Trump’s former DOJ official, Jeffrey Clark, continued into its second and final week on Tuesday, featuring testimony from three witnesses for him.
Clark, a defendant in Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis’ RICO prosecution, is being disciplined for drafting a letter never sent to Georgia officials after the 2020 election advising them of their options for dealing with the election illegalities.
Read the full story
Garland Favorito, who leads the election integrity group VoterGA, said the recent series of election integrity bills passed by the Georgia General Assembly create “landmark features” and will serve as an example to states looking to secure their voting procedures.
A press release by VoterGA highlights legislation, passed by lawmakers, which bans “unverifiable QR-coded voting and improve election transparency by making physical ballots public record.”
Read the full story
The second week of the disbarment trial of Donald Trump’s former DOJ official, Jeffrey Clark, resumed its second week on Monday. Clark, who is also a defendant in Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis’ RICO prosecution, is being disciplined for drafting a letter that was never sent to Georgia officials after the 2020 election advising them of their options for dealing with the election illegalities.
Read the full story
Georgia’s chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) declared on Friday it will sue the state if Governor Brian Kemp signs a bill, already approved by lawmakers, to strengthen election integrity in the state.
The legislation, SB 189, removes the Secretary of State from the Georgia Board of Elections, creates new conflict of interest provisions for election officials and private individuals involved with the election process, revises the process for challenging presidential electors and creates new chain of custody requirements for mail-in ballots.
Read the full story
Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis invoked race in her first public speech since Fulton County Judge Scott McAfee cautioned her about invoking race during a previous speech delivered from the pulpit of an Atlanta church.
The district attorney made the remarks about race at the South Fulton Women of the Shield Awards on Friday, stating, “It’s hard out here always having to prove yourself two and three times.”
Read the full story
Georgia lawmakers signed off on the fiscal year 2025 budget in the final hours of this year’s legislative session but did not pass a bill to allow sports betting.
Lawmakers gave the nod to a more than $66.8 billion state budget for fiscal 2025, which starts July 1. The spending plan, which anticipates $36.1 billion in state money and $19 billion in federal taxpayer funds, includes pay raises for public school teachers and state law enforcement officers.
Read the full story
The Georgia Association of Educators is advancing far-left gender ideology, Critical Race Theory, and social justice activist curriculum for members of its organization.
The Georgia Association of Educators (GAE), an affiliate of the National Educators Association (NEA), promotes racial justice education materials from various sources, including those offered by NEA, whose organization claims that racism is “systemic” and “is so deeply rooted in our history, culture and institutions that there’s no escaping it.”
Read the full story
The Georgia Senate passed a bill protecting women’s sports by 33 to 21 on Tuesday that would prevent biological males from unfairly competing in women’s and K-12 girls’ sports. The bill awaits transfer to the House for continued discussion.
HB 1104 seeks to safeguard “students from harm” and maintain “competitive fairness” in school sports by requiring athletes to compete in activities based on the gender listed on their birth certificate. The bill states that local schools may have “separate teams for members of each sex where selection for such teams is based upon competitive skill, competitive fairness,  student safety or the activity involved is a contact sport.”
Read the full story
Two protesters representing the “Stop Cop City” movement were arrested at the site of the future Atlanta Public Safety Training Center on Wednesday after police say they chained themselves to a crane and unfurled a banner with the words “Drop Cop City,” indicating their opposition to the training center.
The Atlanta Police Department (APD) confirmed a the incident in a post to the social media platform X.
Read the full story
Georgia Lt. Governor Burt Jones on Tuesday celebrated the passage of legislation he championed to restrict property tax increases and offer property owners a chance to appeal decisions about how much they pay.
Jones said in a statement that HB 581, the Save Our Homes Act, “limits increases in property taxes years to year, reforms the appeals process, and allows for more transparency in our taxation procedures.”
Read the full story
A bill to strengthen immigration enforcement and accountability passed the Georgia Senate by a vote of 33-18 last Thursday. HB 301 would remove funding from sanctuary cities refusing to follow immigration laws within the state. The bill awaits transfer to the House for further consideration.
The measure aims to hold officials accountable and allow local “governing bodies” to lose eligibility for “certain state and federal funds” when “the prohibition on immigration sanctuary policies” is violated.
Read the full story
Former Fulton County prosecutor Christian Wise Smith confirmed on Monday he will launch a primary challenge against District Attorney Fani Willis, and promised to focus on “victim-centered prosecution” if he successfully unseats Willis.
Wise Smith on Monday confirmed in a statement that he is “committed to competing in the May primary against Willis,” according to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. The former candidate for Georgia Attorney General previously filed paperwork to run against Willis, but said he was “weighing his options” and would reach a formal decision in “the coming weeks.”
Read the full story
The attorney who revealed the affair between Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis and former special prosecutor Nathan Wade predicted on Monday the latest appeal to disqualify the district attorney will take up to six months, likely eliminating the possibility of the Georgia election case against former President Donald Trump going to trial before November.
Attorney Ashleigh Merchant said during a Monday appearance on Fox & Friends that she does not see “any way” Willis could receive a final confirmation she will not be disqualified from the Trump case in Georgia before the November elections.
Read the full story
The Georgia Senate approved a measure Wednesday to lower the state’s income tax to 5.39% from 5.49%.
The state Senate voted 40-12 in favor of House Bill 1015, sending the measure to Republican Gov. Brian Kemp, who is expected to sign it.
Read the full story
Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis denied she is “embarrassed” by the disqualification proceedings against her and claimed her reputation was undamaged by the public questioning of her decision to appoint her former lover, Nathan Wade, as the special prosecutor overseeing her case against former President Donald Trump.
The district attorney delivered the remarks to CNN on Saturday while attending an Easter giveaway in Fulton County.
Read the full story
Georgia’s February unemployment rate remained unchanged from the revised January rate, labor officials said Thursday.
State officials said the Peach State’s 3.1% unemployment rate is below the national rate of 3.9%. Last week, state officials said Georgia’s January unemployment rate dropped to 3.1%, the first drop in more than a year after holding at 3.2% in 2023.
Read the full story
Georgia State Election Board (SEB) member Edward Lindsey is up for reconfirmation before the state House amid new revelations that he has voted on cases involving counties for which he is a lobbyist.
Lindsey, who was appointed to the SEB position on Jan. 7, 2022, is a lobbyist for both Cobb County and DeKalb County, according to the Georgia Government Transparency and Campaign Finance Commission. The two counties are among the top five most populous in Georgia, which has 159 counties.
Read the full story
Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis is reportedly seeking to begin the Georgia trial of former President Donald Trump before voters head to the polls in November.
After Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee determined that Willis could stay on the Trump case so long as she parted ways with her former lover and special prosecutor Nathan Wade, CNN reported that multiple sources close to the district attorney claim she intends to take the former president’s case to trial soon as possible.
Read the full story
A bill placing sharp limits on the foreign ownership of Georgia farmland passed the State House by a vote of 97-67 Thursday. SB 420 would restrict certain nonresidents and business entities from purchasing farmland or land near military bases in Georgia. The bill now goes back to the Stae Senate for further consideration.
The bill specifies that certain individuals and business entities from a country “designated as a foreign adversary by the United States” would not be permitted to acquire “agricultural land or land within a ten-mile radius of any military base, military installation, or military airport.”
Read the full story
The father of Laken Riley addressed the Georgia State Senate on Wednesday with a call for lawmakers and Governor Brian Kemp to “declare an invasion” following his daughter’s murder.
Invited to address the legislators by Senator Colton Moore (R-Trenton), Jason Riley called on lawmakers and the governor to recognize the severity of the illegal immigration crisis in Georgia and “protect citizens from this illegal invasion.”
Read the full story
Some private Georgia schools continue to promote diversity, equity, and inclusion resources, featuring materials on white privilege, social justice, and racism that are made available to students, faculty, and parents.
Despite the recent backlash in Georgia public schools for using Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) content in classrooms, some private schools continue promoting books, articles, websites, workshops, and guest speakers in what many now call Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Belonging (DEIB) programs.
Read the full story
Fulton County Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee on Wednesday determined former President Donald Trump and eight of his co-plaintiffs may appeal his decision against disqualifying District Attorney Fani Willis from her election case against the former president.
McAfee wrote in his decision that the question of impropriety between Willis and Nathan Wade, her former lover who she appointed as special prosecutor and paid more than $650,000 in taxpayer money, “is of such importance to the case that immediate review should be had.”
Read the full story
A number of Latino and Hispanic organizations in Georgia signed a Monday letter to the University of Georgia (UGA) president to demand action against alleged “hateful rhetoric and fear mongering” they claim started following the murder of nursing student Laken Riley on the university’s campus. Police say Riley was slain by Jose Ibarra, an illegal immigrant from Venezuela.
Sent by the GALEO Impact Fund and signed by over 100 organizations and individuals, the letter claims “the community in Athens has been plagued by hateful rhetoric and fear mongering,” with “some Latino students” allegedly “afraid to walk to class alone” following Riley’s death.
Read the full story
A new report shows schools nationwide, including in Georgia, have trouble filling teacher positions, with low salaries being a primary cause.
An analysis from MyElearningWorld.com found that — even accounting for inflation — new teachers nationwide earn nearly 20% less than they did about two decades ago. Georgia’s findings align with the national findings, with Peach State teachers earning 20% less.
Read the full story
Georgia Attorney General Chris Carr on Thursday announced he is leading a coalition of 10 attorneys general in opposition to a new rule requiring publicly traded companies to create annual climate change reports.
Carr leads a coalition that includes attorneys general serving Georgia, West Virginia, Alabama, Alaska, New Hampshire, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Wyoming and Virginia in a petition for the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals to review whether the newly-enacted rule should remain.
Read the full story
Georgia Lt. Governor Burt Jones on Friday issued a statement celebrating the “courage” of Riley Gaines and the other plaintiffs in the lawsuit against the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and a number of Georgia universities.
Jones commended the athletes “for their courage” and demanded the NCAA apologize and reverse course in a statement.
Read the full story
The Georgia Senate has passed a measure to reform Georgia’s certificate of need laws.
Lawmakers passed House Bill 1339 by a 43-11 margin. The House overwhelmingly passed the measure last month, and the amended version returns to the House for consideration.
Read the full story
The federal government is sending more than $210 million for projects across the state, from building a park over downtown Atlanta’s Connector to removing a flyover ramp in Savannah.
The largest project is a $157.6 million Reconnecting Communities and Neighborhoods Grant award to jumpstart the first phase of construction of the Stitch, a four-acre park over Interstates 75 and 85.
Read the full story
The Georgia House of Representatives passed the Georgia Promise Scholarship Act on Thursday.
This act will give parents school vouchers of up to $6,500 per student. The vouchers would help students in low-performing districts receive funds to expand school choice options or purchase curricula for homeschooling.
Read the full story
Representative Jim Jordan (R-OH-04) revealed on Thursday he sent a letter expressing his intention to hold Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis in contempt of Congress if she does not comply with a subpoena from the House Judiciary Committee by the end of March.
A press release detailed Thursday the U.S. House Judiciary Committee has threatened to hold Willis in contempt over her alleged refusal to comply with a subpoena issued more than a month ago.
Read the full story
According to a report on refugee resettlement, more refugees from the Democratic Republic of Congo have been resettled in Georgia than from any other country since October of last year, following a trend among other states.Â
According to the report, of the 1,469 refugees resettled in Georgia over the past five months, 267 have come from the Central African country that is both war-torn and one of the poorest in the world.Â
Read the full story
Governor Brian Kemp made public remarks about electric vehicle manufacturer Rivian Automotive announcing plans to pause work on its $5 billion plant in Georgia in a Tuesday press event.
Kemp, whose support for the Rivian deal helped generate $1.5 billion in tax incentives for the company, called the situation “no doubt disappointing” in a press conference.
Read the full story
Fulton County officials on Monday claimed records that reportedly show special prosecutor Nathan Wade was paid using funds from confiscated property are a “clerical error” on behalf of the county government.
Multiple Fulton County spokesmen, including a member of Willis’ office, offered explanations to Newsweek when the publication asked about records it obtained that showed Wade was paid using the county’s confiscated property funds.
Read the full story
Tax collections in Georgia decreased by about 4 percent in February. The change was driven by sharp decreases in the state’s income tax revenues following Republican-led tax cuts, though Georgia simultaneously saw increased revenue from sales taxes and taxes on corporations.
A press release from the office of Governor Brian Kemp notes the state’s tax revenues fell 4.3 percent in February while the year’s tax collections are down 3.1 percent to date.
Read the full story
John Mozena hopes that one day he can stop saying “I told you so” about corporate welfare in America.
However, Mozena, president of The Center for Economic Accountability, won’t be able to make such a declaration after Rivian Automotive paused its $5 billion plant in Georgia.
Read the full story