James March-April 2024 online - Flipbook - Page 7
Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis belatedly
admitted a romantic relationship with Nathan Wade,
her top prosecutor on the county’s 2020 election interference case. Yet she claims there’s no conflict-of-interest that merits removing her or her office from prosecuting former President Donald Trump and 14 other
co-defendants. Since the admission the embattled DA is
accused of lying, committing various crimes including
misusing taxpayer money, and is the subject of subpoenas and investigations. Sinking . . .
It was known for a while that Atlanta would host several matches during the 2026 FIFA World Cup, yet it was
still good news when those games were confirmed by
FIFA officials. Mercedes-Benz Stadium will host eight
matches during the summer of 2026, featuring group
stage games and two knockout games, including a
semifinal. Atlanta has indeed become a premier American soccer city between the success of Atlanta United,
securing the new headquarters of U.S. Soccer, and now
as a host of premier international matches in the world
during the next World Cup. RISING . . .
Two-time defeated gubernatorial candidate Stacey
Abrams’ Fair Fight was once a powerful political organization, receiving massive donations while developing
grassroots “get out the vote” operations that helped Democrat candidates. Today? Not so much since the group’s
latest financial reporting revealed it’s $2.5 million in debt
with only $1.9 million in the bank. Amid “restructuring,”
roughly 75 percent of the staff will be laid off. Fair Fight’s
ship appears to be Sinking . . .
It’s not often that all 14 of Georgia’s U.S. House members
and senators agree, but one issue they’re united on is
deepening the Port of Savannah’s harbor (again). While
a $937 million harbor expansion was completed in 2022,
they came together to send a letter to top-ranking House
and Senate committee members asking them to fund
a new study to examine further harbor deepening. The
letter says another round of dredging is needed at the
world’s fourth-busiest port to ensure it can operate at full
capacity as ships get even bigger. A united front from the
Georgia delegation has the harbor project RISING . . .
U.S. Rep. David Scott, D-Ga., is running for his 12th term
in office in the 13th District, encompassing the southwest
part of the Atlanta metro. But as some Democrats have
privately raised concerns about the 78-year old’s fitness for
office, he’s picking up a well known and well funded primary challenger. Marcus Flowers, who raised a whopping
$16 million in his failed 2022 campaign against U.S. Rep.
Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., has thrown his hat in the
ring against Scott. The military veteran brings substantial
fundraising to his primary challenge and some degree of
name recognition, though Scott has a strong incumbency
advantage given his 22 years of service. But Scott’s stiffest
Democratic primary test yet has his odds Drifting . . .
As the 2024 presidential race heats up, Democrats in D.C.
have taken a special interest in Savannah. Vice President
Kamala Harris visited the city as part of her “Reproductive Freedoms” tour where she pushed back on abortion
restrictions. Other Biden Administration officials have
paid visits to the city as well, including Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg and Housing and Urban Development Secretary
Marcia Fudge. Democrat strategists clearly see something in southeast Georgia worth targeting. Savannah’s
importance during election season is RISING . . .
The first new proposed interstate in Georgia since the
1960s got a thumbs down from the state Department of
Transportation, which said it wouldn’t be a good return
on investment. Interstate 14 would run between Augusta and Columbus before continuing west through Texas.
Supporters, including legislators from the central parts
of the state, say it would be a valuable project-- particularly in terms of connecting military bases. But with
high price tag concerns from GDOT officials, I-14’s fate in
Georgia is Drifting . . .
Georgia continues to have a serious staffing crisis at
the Department of Corrections, where close to half of
corrections officer jobs remain vacant despite a fierce
recruitment effort. Legislators plan to add additional
millions of dollars to the budget for another recruitment
push, and corrections officers (like all state employees) received another $1,000 annual raise from Gov. Brian Kemp.
But the shortfall remains, as do problems with recent
prisoner deaths and gang activity within prison walls. It
leaves the state’s corrections system Drifting . . .
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