A new podcast with U.S. Sen. Cory Booker, D-N.J., presumably the prelude to a 2020 presidential campaign, debuted Sunday with an appearance by U.S. Rep. John Lewis.
The conversation focused on the Atlanta congressman’s extensive civil rights biography, but in the last few minutes, Lewis spoke of a new taunt aimed his way – the shouted name of our president. Said Lewis:
"I was coming back to Washington on Sunday night. I was on a flight from Atlanta. And I'm walking down the aisle, and the gentleman said as loud as he could, 'Trump!'
"So, I just kept walking. I didn't say anything. And sometimes, I'm walking through the airport in different places. People – I guess they think they're getting to me, harassing me, but they don't understand. I've been called many, many things. But I'm not going to let anything get me down."
The use of Donald Trump's name in this fashion isn't a particularly new thing, but it's the first time we've heard of it being thrown at a member of Congress.
***
Senator Booker, by the way, made his second pilgrimage to Atlanta in six weeks on Monday, this time to help celebrate Martin Luther King Jr. Day in the civil rights leader's hometown and to stump for his favorite candidate for Georgia governor.
The potential presidential candidate headlined a fundraiser for ex-Georgia House minority leader Stacey Abrams and rallied her volunteers at an appearance.
Booker was last in town in December to stump for Keisha Lance Bottoms, three days before she was elected Atlanta mayor.
***
Georgia Republicans will have another suburban seat to defend in the state Legislature.
State Rep. David Casas, the first Hispanic Republican state legislator in Georgia history, announced Monday he will not seek re-election in November.
In a statement to the AJC, he said he wants to spend more time with his wife and teenage children, tend to his mounting duties as a college professor and administrator, and invest more time in his writing and his church.
Casas was first elected to the Lilburn-based district in 2002 and was known for sponsoring anti-gang legislation and a tuition tax credit in the mid-2000s.
He trounced Democratic opponents in 2008 and 2010, and he’s run unopposed since then. But Casas was likely to face a credible Democratic challenger this year. Hillary Clinton won his district by about 12 points in 2016, making it one of the party’s juiciest pickup opportunities.
At least three other GOP lawmakers in purplish territory have already announced plans to retire: Rich Golick of Smyrna, Tom Taylor of Dunwoody and Wendell Willard of Sandy Springs. And over in the Senate, David Shafer’s bid for lieutenant governor leaves open another competitive seat. Shafer is from Duluth.
***
On a related note, the Marietta Daily Journal this morning takes a look at a general election challenge to state Rep. Ed Setzler, R-Acworth. Democrat Kyle Rinaudo is a 21-year-old Campbell High School percussion teacher and a 2014 graduate of North Cobb High School.
***
Back in November, Moody's, the investor rating service, announced that it would start taking into account the preparations that coastal governments are making for rising sea levels as part of its bond rating analyses:
"The growing effects of climate change, including climbing global temperatures, and rising sea levels, are forecast to have an increasing economic impact on US state and local issuers. This will be a growing negative credit factor for issuers without sufficient adaptation and mitigation strategies…"
On Sunday, the Savannah Morning News got around to showing the report to public officialdom:
Two hundred miles inland, Gov. Nathan Deal's office seemed unconcerned about the Moody's report. Sent a copy and asked how Georgia is addressing the risks of climate change to keep the state's bond rating high, Deputy Chief of Staff for Communications Jen Talaber Ryan replied: "I can't speak for Moody's as to how they rate states, but can only say the AAA bond rating is one Georgia has held for 20 consecutive years."
The newspaper notes that Georgia has a higher percentage of its population living in a 100- to 500-year floodplain than any in the U.S.
***
The Georgia Municipal Association has scheduled what we think is the first back-to-back debates of 2018 candidates for governor and lieutenant governor. The forums will occur over two days, during a GMA gathering at the downtown Marriott Marquis Atlanta.
An hour-long debate among Democratic candidates for lieutenant governor will begin at 2:45 p.m. Sunday, followed by a debate among Republican candidates.
At 8:15 a.m. Monday, an hour-long debate of Republican candidates for governor, will be followed by a meeting of the Democratic candidates for governor at 9:30 a.m.
***
Gov. Nathan Deal has named his floor leaders for the 2018 session of the Legislature:
-- State Rep. Chuck Efstration, R-Dacula, is a former Gwinnett County assistant district attorney;
-- State Rep. Trey Rhodes, R-Greensboro, is a financial planner;
-- State Rep. Terry Rogers, R-Clarksville, is vice chair of the House economic development committee;
-- Senator-elect Brian Strickland, R-McDonough, was just elected to fill a vacant seat in that chamber. He'd been elected to the House in 2012:
-- State Sen. P. K. Martin IV, R-Lawrenceville, is an insurance agent;
-- State Sen. Larry Walker III, R-Kathleen, is also in the insurance business.
