Grandfather of Colt Gray Claims Teen ‘Driven’ to Commit Attack on Apalachee High School by ‘Evil’ Father Colin Gray

Colin Gray (r) and Colt Gray (l)

The maternal grandfather of Colt Gray, who police say killed four and injured nine at the Apalachee High School in Georgia last Wednesday, said on Sunday the teen was “driven” to commit the attack due to a troubled childhood and “evil” father, Colin Gray, who was charged last week in relation to the attack.

Charlie Polhamus told the New York Post on Sunday that Colt Gray was subjected to constant “screaming and hollering” from his father, and suggested spending over a decade in that environment “can affect anybody.”

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Apalachee High School Shooting Suspect’s Family Claim He Experienced ‘Homicidal and Suicidal Thoughts’ Week Before Attack

Family members of Colt Gray, who police say killed four and injured nine at Apalachee High School last Wednesday, have reportedly claimed they tried to warn school officials after the teen reported “homicidal and suicidal thoughts” in the weeks prior to the attack.

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Georgia Court: Wholesale Prescription Medication Distributors Not Liable

The Supreme Court of Georgia has upheld a Glynn County jury’s verdict that found wholesale prescription medication distributors are not liable for damages under the state’s Drug Dealer Liability Act.

A group of 21 family members of drug abusers sued wholesale distributors of prescription medications for damages, arguing that “drug abusers who injured” them were addicted to prescription opioids. The family members accused wholesale distributors of not reporting suspicious orders to Glynn County area pharmacies or stopping the orders’ shipments.

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Alleged Apalachee High Killer Colt Gray Transferred to School Weeks Prior to Attack, Reportedly Spent Two Days on Campus

Accused Apalachee High School killer Colt Gray reportedly only enrolled at the school two weeks prior to the shooting, Barrow County Sheriff Jud Smith reportedly said Thursday, also noting the shooting occurred during Colt Gray’s second day on the school campus.

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Colt Gray Reportedly Was Gifted Gun Used at Apalachee High School by Father, Colin Gray, Months After FBI Tip Prompted Intervention

GBI

Colt Gray, who allegedly killed four and injured nine more at Apalachee High School in Winder, Georgia on Wednesday, reportedly received the weapon used in the attack as a Christmas gift from his father, Colin Gray, who was arrested on Thursday.

It was reported Thursday by The New York Post that Colin Gray admitted to law enforcement he gave his son the rifle used during the attack as a Christmas gift in December last year. The gift occurred just seven months after an FBI tip prompted a visit from the Jackson County Sheriff’s Office in 2023.

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Mother of Alleged Georgia High School Shooter Colt Gray Claimed to Relocate After Years of ‘Almost Constant Domestic Abuse,’ Social Media Suggests

The woman who appears to be the mother of 14-year-old Colt Gray, who police say committed the shooting at Apalachee High School on Wednesday, appears to have claimed on social media she left her husband after years of “almost constant domestic abuse.”

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Fani Willis Shows Up with Nathan Wade During Daughter’s Arrest Months After Pair Said They Split

Kinaya Willis

Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis, who’s leading the Georgia election interference case against former President Donald Trump, showed up with her supposed ex-boyfriend, former prosecutor Nathan Wade, at the scene of her daughter’s arrest last week, according to bodycam footage published Wednesday.

Willis and Wade separately testified that the affair ended in the summer last year.

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Suspect Reportedly in Custody After Casualties Reported in Shooting at Georgia High School

Law enforcement reportedly arrested the person responsible for committing a shooting at Apalachee High School in Winder, Georgia, which is part of Barrow County and about an hour away from downtown Atlanta.

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Georgia Public Service Commission Could Issue Ruling This Week in Railroad Case

Sandersville Railroad

The Georgia Public Service Commission could decide a high-profile case this week that pits long-time property owners against a railroad looking to seize land for a new rail spur.

The Sandersville Railroad, a Class III short-line railroad, petitioned the PSC to condemn land for a 4.5-mile-long spur. Regardless of how the PSC rules, its decision will likely be appealed to Fulton County Superior Court and beyond, possibly even to the U.S. Supreme Court.

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Georgia Officials Tout Enhanced Election Security for 2024 Amid Ongoing 2020 Controversies

Georgia Sec State Brad Raffensperger

As Georgia gears up for the critical 2024 presidential election in November, state officials within the Legislature and Georgia’s State Election Board say they are enhancing security measures at polling stations in response to ongoing concerns stemming from the 2020 election.

Cobb County’s Board of Elections & Registration Director Tate Fall announced new safety protocols – including more instruction on conflict resolution for poll workers and discreet alert badges for managers – aimed at addressing potential threats and ensuring a secure voting environment. This heightened focus on election security comes amid a backdrop of intensified political rhetoric and unrest, underscoring Georgia’s pivotal role in the upcoming election.

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Georgia Lawmakers Could Set Transgender Athlete Policy

Georgia Softball

Georgia lawmakers could take control of the power to set policy for transgender athletes competing in women’s sports at Georgia high schools, removing the authority from a statewide association.

The revelation, which could potentially extend to publicly funded colleges and universities, came during the first hearing of the Senate Special Committee on Protecting Women’s Sports.

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Sen. JD Vance Says End of Trump-Kemp Feud, RFK Jr. Endorsement Prove Republicans Now ‘Big Tent’ Party

Donald Trump, Brian Kemp, JD Vance

Senator JD Vance (R-OH) on Wednesday told reporters gathered at his rally in Erie, Pennsylvania, that the end of the feud between former President Donald Trump and Georgia Governor Brian Kemp, as well as Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s and former Representative Tulsi Gabbard’s recent endorsements of the Trump-Vance ticket, prove Republicans are now the “big tent party.”

Vance’s remarks come after Kemp endorsed Trump earlier this month, despite the former president describing him as “disloyal” in a recent rally. The relationship between the former president and Georgia’s governor first deteriorated publicly as Trump contested the state’s election results in 2020.

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Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp to Attend Atlanta Fundraiser for Trump as Harris-Walz Rally in Savannah

Brian Kemp and Donald Trump

Georgia Governor Brian Kemp will reportedly be in Atlanta on Thursday to attend a fundraiser benefiting former President Donald Trump and Senator JD Vance (R-OH) in their campaign to recapture the White House for the Republican Party.

Kemp’s appearance at the Atlanta fundraiser, revealed on Tuesday, will be the first since he and Trump publicly set aside their feud. It will occur as a Democratic bus tour featuring Vice President Kamala Harris and Governor Tim Walz reaches Savannah.

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Trump Asks Georgia Appeals Court to Toss Election Case in ‘Death Knell’ for D.A. Fani Willis

Donald Trump and Fani Willis in a courtroom (composite image)

The attorney representing former President Donald Trump in the Georgia election case brought by Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis asked a Georgia appeals court, which is currently considering whether Willis should be disqualified due to her affair with former special counsel Nathan Wade, asked the court to toss the case with a new legal filing he argues contains the “death knell” for the prosecution.

Trump attorney Steve Sadow on Monday submitted a 22-page filing which asks the Georgia Court of Appeals to toss Willis’ case against Trump because the former president was “aggrieved” by Willis’ “letter to God” speech from the pulpit of a Baptist church in Atlanta.

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Fulton County Jail Subcommittee Issues Seventeen Recommendations

Inmates talking with corrections officer

A Georgia Senate subcommittee looking into the Fulton County Jail has issued a report with 17 recommendations for improving the facility’s conditions, including a suggestion that Fulton County Superior Court judges should carry full dockets.

The report caps a months-long review by the Senate Public Safety Subcommittee on the Fulton County Jail. The recommendations could guide legislative action when lawmakers return to Atlanta next year.

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Ruling: Cobb County Must Abide by State-Drawn Commission Maps

Superior Court Judge Kellie Hill

Cobb County commissioners are expected to vote Tuesday on a measure that the board’s District 2 seat “is deemed vacant” following a judge’s ruling this week.

Last month, Superior Court Judge Kellie Hill ruled that the map of commission districts that county leaders created in October 2022 was unconstitutional and outside the home rule powers.

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Kemp and Trump End Feud with Full Throated Embrace and Upstaging Harris Coronation Night

Brian Kemp and Donald Trump

Former President Donald Trump and Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp found the perfect narrative Thursday night to upstage Vice President Kamala Harris’s nomination acceptance speech, ending their feud dating to the 2020 election with a full-throated embrace that played out on national television.

The mutual endorsement reunited two of the GOP’s most powerful figures heading into the November election, and made the road for Democrats to score a win in Georgia more difficult.

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Georgia’s Raffensperger Announces Indictment of Alleged Double Voter in 2022 Election

Brad Raffensperger

Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger (R) announced the indictment of a voter who cast ballots in both Georgia and Arizona in the November 2022 election.

The secretary of state’s office conducted an investigation into double-voting following the 2022 general election and referred the case to the Forsyth County district attorney’s office, according to a press releaseWednesday.

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RNC Co-Chair Predicts ‘Softening’ in Trump, Kemp Feud After Governor Reportedly Offers Georgia ‘Political Machine’ to Former President

Donald Trump and Brian Kemp

Lara Trump, the daughter-in-law of former President Donald Trump and co-chair of the Republican National Committee (RNC), on Tuesday predicted softening in the feud between former President Donald Trump and Governor Brian Kemp after the Georgia leader reportedly offered his “political machine” to the Trump-Vance ticket.

The prediction came after the former president described Kemp as “disloyal” during an August 3 rally in Atlanta, which prompted questions about whether the terse relationship between the men that developed after the 2020 election results would impact the Trump campaign in November.

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Audit Finds More MARTA Atlanta Program Due $70 Million, Transit Agency Disagrees

MARTA

Atlanta city officials say a review of the More MARTA Atlanta program for fiscal 2017 through fiscal 2022 concluded that it is due roughly $70 million.

However, Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority officials say that independent auditor Mauldin & Jenkins’ calculations are wrong.

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Atlanta Area Continues to Have High Inflation

Atlanta

Inflation continues to plague Georgia businesses, and the Atlanta area continues to grapple with inflation, though it may be faring better than other cities in the country, a new analysis revealed.

According to personal finance site WalletHub, the Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell metropolitan statistical area ranks 11th out of 23 major MSAs for its change in inflation. An analyst with the site said the ranking highlights some positive and concerning aspects policymakers should consider.

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Trump-Aligned Lawyer Who Exposed Fani Willis Affair and Stalled Georgia Election Case Says D.A. Caused Downfall: ‘She’s the One to Blame’

Ashleigh Merchant and Fani Willis in a courtroom (composite image)

The Georgia election case against former President Donald Trump and those who helped him contest the 2020 election results in the Peach State is almost certain to remain ongoing on Election Day, and the attorney who first surfaced evidence Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis was engaged in a romantic affair with her special counsel said on Sunday that Willis is “the one to blame” for the current state of the case.

Willis’ case against Trump is currently before the Georgia Court of Appeals, which will determine whether Judge Scott McAfee erred when he ruled that Willis’ relationship with Wade, a private defense attorney paid more than $650,000 for his work on the case, was not sufficient reason to disqualify her as the prosecutor in the case against the former president.

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Georgia Reports Increased Revenues to Start Fiscal 2025

Georgia Capitol Money

With one month in the books, Georgia’s tax collections seemingly started the year on a positive note after ending last fiscal year with decreased collections.

Peach State officials said this week that total General Fund receipts for July, the first month of fiscal 2025, surpassed $2.5 billion. According to state numbers, that is an increase of 2.7%, or $66.3 million, over July 2023 in fiscal 2024, when net tax collections totaled nearly $2.5 billion.

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Inflation Has Cost Georgia Families $27,000 Since 2021

Grocery Shopping

Republican lawmakers in Georgia are concerned about increases in inflation, as a recent report shows households have paid $27,427 more because of inflation since January 2021.

The average household in the state is spending $1,074 more per month to buy the same goods and services as in 2021, according to a July report from the U.S. Congress Joint Economic Committee.

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Feds Give Georgia $14.3 Million for Airport Block Grants

Georgia Airport

The Federal Aviation Administration has awarded Georgia nearly $14.3 million to help rehabilitate nonprimary airports statewide, officials said.

The money, part of $636 million for 320 grants in 46 states and American Samoa, ostensibly aims to improve airport infrastructure. It was awarded as part of the 2024 Airport Improvement Program’s fourth round of grants, and the Georgia award includes more than $13.3 million in entitlement spending and $924,275 in discretionary spending.

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Trump Campaign Spends Nearly $40 Million Ad Blitz in Primary States, Including Almost $24 Million in Georgia

Former President Donald Trump on Monday reportedly placed nearly $40 million in seven battleground states, including $23.8 million in Georgia, as polling shows him statistically tied with Vice President Kamala Harris in the state that helped propel President Joe Biden to the White House in 2024.

Trump’s campaign placed a $37.2 million television ad buy across Georgia, Arizona, Pennsylvania, North Carolina, Michigan, Wisconsin and Nevada, according to AdImpact, which reported it is “the most he’s reserved on TV ads in a single day this cycle.”

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Harris Closes in on Trump in Recent Georgia Polls

Kamala Harris and Donald Trump

Recent polls out of Georgia have former President Donald Trump just barely leading Vice President Kamala Harris.

With just 89 days until the election, Harris is riding a wave of momentum since launching into the race July 21 with President Joe Biden’s exit.

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Hundreds of Thousands of Dollars Pour Into House District 53 Race

Susie Greenberg and Deborah Silcox in front of the Georgia State Capitol Building (composite image)

While many of Georgia’s 180 state House of Representative seats are not competitive, District 53 is where Democrat Susie Greenberg hopes to flip the “most flippable” seat back blue.

Incumbent Republican Rep. Deborah Silcox was first elected in 2022 by a margin of less than 1,500 votes, after many years of Democrat representatives. She previously was a representative in District 52, before losing that seat in 2020.

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Georgia Tries Navigating 2024 Election While Investigating Unresolved Disputes of 2020 Election

Chris Carr

As Georgia prepares for the 2024 presidential election with implementing new rules and procedures, some unresolved 2020 election disputes remain, with the State Election Board opening an investigation into an issue it previously closed.

Heading into this year’s presidential election cycle, Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger is implementing election security measures as the Georgia State Election Board is enacting new rules that could impact the November election and investigating 2020 presidential election issues.

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Three Months from Election Day, Georgia Election Board Alters Rules

Georgia Election Board

Georgia’s election board has approved a measure that allows county election boards to make a “reasonable inquiry” before certifying election results.

However, critics of the move are sounding the alarm, saying it will open the door to overreach.

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Fani Willis Says Resignation of Nathan Wade Was ‘Boon’ to Trump’s Defense, Urges Court to Toss Disqualification Appeal

Nathan Wade Fani Willis

Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis in a court filing published Friday argued the forced resignation of former Special Counsel Nathan Wade was a “boon” to former President Donald Trump and the other defendants in her Georgia racketeering case against the former president and his allies over their contest of the 2020 election results.

In a filing submitted on August 5, the district attorney’s office argued the victory for the defendants, though ultimately unnecessary, provides the necessary appearance of impropriety to dismiss their appeal.

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Georgia Election Board Seeks New Investigation into Fulton County’s Handling of 2020 Election

Sherri Allen

A Georgia State election board on Wednesday night voted to request that state Attorney General Chris Carr reopen an investigation into Fulton County’s counting of the results of the 2020 election.

The request comes after the board closed the matter in May, but voted to install an independent election monitor for the 2024 election, after an independent investigation found that the county likely scanned thousands of ballots twice in a recount of the 2020 election.

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Former Atlanta Jail Guard Who Identifies as Transgender Man Sentenced to Prison for Strangling Female Inmate

The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia confirmed on Wednesday that Former Fulton County Jail guard Monique Clark was sentenced to four years in prison and three years of supervised release after she strangled an inmate who was in handcuffs until the inmate lost consciousness.

The Fulton County Sheriff’s Office confirmed to The Georgia Star News in September 2023 that Clark is a biological female, and was housed in a female unit of the Fulton County Jail, but government officials with the FBI and Department of Justice exclusively used masculine pronouns while describing her crimes in a press release.

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Georgia Public Service Commission Weighing Railroad’s Land Condemnation Request

Sanderville Train

The Georgia Public Service Commission could soon decide whether a railroad can seize private land for a proposed 4.5-mile-long spur after hearing oral arguments in the case on Tuesday.

The Sandersville Railroad, a Class III short-line railroad, initially petitioned the PSC in March 2023 to condemn land for the spur and subsequently moved to condemn additional land. The railroad’s existing tracks are about 25 miles from Sparta, and the spur would connect a rock quarry southeast of the city with a CSX Transportation rail line but not existing Sandersville Railroad tracks.

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Democrats Renew Concerns About Georgia’s Voter Registration Cancellation Portal

Voter Registration

Amid a report that voters’ personal information was temporarily accessible online, critics are renewing their concerns about Georgia’s Voter Registration Cancellation Portal.

The information, including a voter’s date of birth, the last four digits of their Social Security number and their driver’s license number, was briefly available on the portal, a new tool that allows voters to proactively cancel their voter registrations, the Associated Press reported. That information is what’s needed to request a registration cancellation.

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Atlanta Commission Poised to Approve Plan Amendment for $265 Million in Federal Money

Atlanta Skyline

The Atlanta Regional Commission’s board and Transportation & Air Quality Committee are expected to approve changes to an amended Transportation Improvement Program on Aug. 28.

The amendment includes roughly $265.3 million in federal money, including $38.2 million in earmarks and $221.6 million in “discretionary grant funding.”

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Georgia GOP Bans Former Lt. Gov. Geoff Duncan After Harris Endorsement, Urges National Action

Georgia Republican Party (GAGOP) Chair Josh McKoon on Friday announced that former Lieutenant Governor Geoff Duncan will be permanently banned from attending any of the state party’s events, including conventions and caucuses, after Duncan endorsed President Joe Biden then Vice President Kamala Harris.

McKoon additionally confirmed the GAGOP will issue a resolution condemning Duncan for his “self serving and hypocritical behavior,” and “expelling” him from the Republican Party, and that the GAGOP State Executive Committee “will consider action to permanently ban” Duncan from qualifying as a Republican candidate in the Peach State.

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Georgia Mayor Wants City to Reimburse over $40,000 in Expenses, Including $10,000 Spent on Jill Biden and $2,400 on Trip to White House

Garnett Johnson

Augusta Mayor Garnett Johnson on Tuesday asked the Augusta City Council to reimburse more than $40,000 in expenses to his personal credit card he claims were necessary for the city to conduct its business, including $10,000 to facilitate a visit from First Lady Jill Biden and more than $2,000 for a trip to the White House.

Johnson claimed to the city council on Tuesday that the expenses were within the city’s budget, and suggested he used his personal credit card as a matter of efficiency.

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Georgia Planning $1 Million in Grants for Military Mental Health Services

Military support group

Georgia officials are awarding $1 million in grants to increase mental health access for military members, veterans and their families.

Last year, state lawmakers passed House Bill 414 to create the Veterans Mental Health Services Program under the Georgia Department of Veterans Service. Republican Gov. Brian Kemp signed the measure into law on April 25, 2023.

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Incumbents Maintain Fundraising Edge in Georgia

Earl Carter, Sanford Bishop Jr, and Hank Johnson in front of the US Capitol (composite image)

Thirteen of 14 incumbents representing Georgia in the U.S. House of Representatives have leads in fundraising with 101 days to go.

None of the seats occupied by nine Republicans and five Democrats are forecast to impact the party majority in the chamber.

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With Rising Property Taxes, Georgians Can Vote to Freeze Values for Assessments

Home Owner

While property taxes continue to rise in many jurisdictions across Georgia, voters will have a chance to cap how much home values can rise for property tax purposes.

“Monthly costs for Georgians, from the north Georgia mountains to the coast, continue to rise,” Lt. Governor Burt Jones said in a statement last month. “During record high inflation, skyrocketing debt and expenses rising every day, local governments should be focused on bringing costs down – not letting them increase.”

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Trump Leads Harris in Arizona, Pennsylvania, Georgia, Michigan but Ties in Wisconsin, Poll Claims

Kamala Harris and Donald Trump

A poll released Thursday and conducted after President Joe Biden dropped his bid for reelection shows former President Donald Trump leading Vice President Kamala Harris in the battleground states Arizona, Pennsylvania, Georgia, and Michigan, while the former president is tied with the vice president in Wisconsin.

The New Emerson College pollsters found Trump enjoys his greatest lead in Arizona, where they determined 49 percent of voters support him while just 44 percent back Harris.

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Georgia Democrats Rally Around Kamala Harris

Joe Biden walking with family members

As Georgia Democrats rally around Vice President Kamala Harris to replace President Joe Biden on the Democratic presidential ticket, Republicans say democracy is threatened.

“They got him. Not today democracy, not today,” posted U.S. Rep. Mike Collins, a Republican, immediately following Biden’s announcement.

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Democrats Sue Kemp over Leadership Committee Law

Georgia Governor Brian Kemp

Georgia Democrats have filed a federal lawsuit against Republican Gov. Brian Kemp, saying a measure he signed three years ago that allows him to effectively “sidestep” campaign finance restrictions.

Kemp signed Senate Bill 221 into law in May 2021. Under the so-called “LC Law,” some politicians can chair leadership committees and receive contributions from their members or supporters.

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Kemp Outlines Breakdown of $1.5 Billion Georgia Transportation Infrastructure Spend

Brian Kemp

Georgia plans to spend about 40% of the $1.5 billion in additional transportation funding lawmakers approved on increasing the Georgia Department of Transportation’s capital construction program.

In January, Republican Gov. Brian Kemp announced a plan to include an additional $1.5 billion in the state’s amended fiscal 2024 budget for the Georgia Department of Transportation for projects that “directly help move commuters and freight.”

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Georgia Lawmakers Propose Federal Dollars for Atlanta Water

Jon Ossoff and Raphael Warnock

Federal lawmakers from Georgia announced legislation they said would help pay for Atlanta’s water infrastructure upgrades.

U.S. Sen. Jon Ossoff and Raphael Warnock, both D-Georgia, introduced the City of Atlanta Water Infrastructure Enhancement Act. U.S. Rep. Nikema Williams, D-Georgia, introduced a companion piece in the U.S. House.

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DNC Sends $15 Million to Battleground States Pennsylvania, Arizona and Georgia After Trump Selects Vance for VP

Jaimie Harrison

The Democratic National Committee confirmed the transfer of $15 million to battleground states after former President Donald Trump selected Senator JD Vance (R-OH) to serve as his vice president on the Republican ticket for president in 2024.

In a statement released on Tuesday, the party claimed the transfers to local parties would increase state coordination and give President Joe Biden a better shot at retaining the White House in November.

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