In an exceedingly rare Sunday evening session, the Senate moved toward altering the Patriot Act, but sections of the law still expired at midnight. Here are the key paragraphs from the New York Times on what that means:
Unlike the pre-Memorial Day stalemate, the Senate did advance a procedural motion on a House-passed bill that would get the government out of bulk call data collection. Georgia Republican U.S. Sens. Johnny Isakson and David Perdue were among 20 senators who changed their minds over the recess and voted to proceed to the House bill.
The difference was the playing field: Before Memorial Day, Perdue and Isakson had a choice between the House's USA Freedom Act and extending the Patriot Act as is, and they chose the latter. Both votes failed.
Sunday night, Majority Leader Mitch McConnell only put the House bill up as a chance to move toward restoration of at least some of the Patriot Act authorities.
Said Isakson spokeswoman Amanda Maddox:
"While Senator Isakson still has serious concerns about the USA Freedom Act and wants to see improvements, he has even more serious concerns about allowing intelligence authorities that are vital to our national security to expire completely."
Perdue, according to a spokeswoman, had similar thinking and is looking for opportunities to strengthen the bill through amendments. McConnell will limit that process, though, to block Sen. Rand Paul -- who has managed to irritate nearly all of his colleagues with procedural delays -- from offering his amendments.
The Senate is back at noon to resume work on the bill. If they amend it, which seems likely, it would go back to the House.
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Welcome to June, the final month of the U.S. Supreme Court's current calendar. Three major decisions loom: On lethal injections, a crucial element of the Affordable Care Act, and the constitutionality of state bans on gay marriage.
LGBT groups are preparing what might be called their version of Juneteenth. From the Georgia Voice:
Georgia Equality appears to be the first out of the gate with plans for rallies across the state, with one event planned in Atlanta at the National Center for Civil and Human Rights and another in Augusta at the Richmond County Courthouse. Events in Athens, Columbus and Savannah are also in the works and soon to be announced according to a Day of Decision page recently added to Georgia Equality's website.
Check out that website, and you'll see these two paragraphs:
We will not know for certain how quickly counties in Georgia will begin to issue marriage licenses until we have a ruling from the US Supreme Court. However, Georgia Equality is working with Fulton County Commission Chairman John Eaves to ensure that licenses are issued as quickly as possible.
And this:
The State of Georgia allows for a discount of marriage license fees for those couples who have attended a certified premarital counseling program. Georgia Equality is currently working to identify certified counselors who are willing to work with gay and lesbian couples.
We’ve touched base with activists on the opposite side of this issue, to see if they have any countervailing plans – but have yet to hear back.
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Meanwhile, the conservative drumbeat for a "religious liberty" measure continues.
Weeks after delegates at the Georgia Republican Party's convention endorsed a version of the controversial proposal without non-discrimination language, the Georgia Teen Republicans called for the legislation at its convention.
State Sen. Josh McKoon, the Columbus Republican who championed the legislation, tweeted that its "great to see support for RFRA crosses generational boundaries for the GOP."
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They're calling it a campaign to "Bern Up" Georgia. Sen. Bernie Sanders' supporters in Georgia are rallying on June 7 at (where else) Manuel's Tavern to "discuss what attendees can do to spread awareness about Sanders and his agenda throughout Georgia."
The Vermont Independent has launched a long-shot bid for the Democratic Party's nomination with an aim to outflank front-runner Hillary Clinton on the left with calls for universal health coverage and new measures to fight income inequality.
The Georgians hope to replicate what's going on in Iowa. From the New York Times:
The first evidence that Mrs. Clinton could face a credible challenge in the Iowa presidential caucuses appeared late last week in the form of overflow crowds at Mr. Sanders's first swing through that state since declaring his candidacy for the Democratic nomination. He drew 700 people to an event on Thursday night in Davenport, for instance — the largest rally in the state for any single candidate this campaign season, and far more than the 50 people who attended a rally there on Saturday with former Gov. Martin O'Malley of Maryland.
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In South Carolina today, Sen. Lindsey Graham is scheduled to launch his presidential campaign. On today's front page and in the premium edition, we take a look at how the favorite son will shape the first in the South primary:
But if Graham, a raconteur and staple of Sunday morning news shows, expects his many challengers for the GOP nomination to cede the Palmetto State to a native son, he's mistaken, Republican activists and political observers in South Carolina said.
Expect to hear plenty about the Patriot Act drama in the hawkish senator's announcement.
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Over at myAJC.com, Dan Chapman and Scott Trubey had the most worrisome three paragraphs in the entire Sunday paper:
Tax breaks seduce corporations across county borders. The Braves quit Atlanta for an eager Cobb County and will leave a hole on the edge of downtown. A road-and-rail referendum to fix traffic fails miserably. A few inches of snow and ice deep freezes the fallacy of counties working together.
"We have water, environmental, infrastructure and K-12 education issues — the same issues we've been dealing with for 30 years with no significant progress. None," said A.D. Frazier, who has long straddled metro Atlanta's business and political worlds. "The problems we have require visionary and long-range solutions. But we have atomized the metropolitan area, balkanized it."
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Also in Sunday's paper, the AJC's Chris Joyner had this piece on a Georgia lawmaker who has blurred some lines:
In an email sent April 15, state Rep. Mike Glanton, D-Jonesboro, attempted to get a meeting with APS Superintendent Meria Carstarphen to discuss a contract between the district and teacher recruiting firm Global Teachers Research and Resources. Glanton is Global's chief operating officer and is responsible for negotiating contracts with school districts across Georgia and in other states. But it was his legislative resume that he emphasized to the district's top official.
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Your moral lesson for the week: Some goals aren't meant to be reached. Yet we must try and try again, moving ever close to perfection. From the Associated Press:
Organizers say 3,500 people turned in score cards after Saturday's "The Crawl of the South." Participants had to visit at least 10 bars during the eight-hour event, with a choice of 30 participating bars.
Kansas City, Missouri holds the record with 4,885 participants.
Saturday's event raised money for the Savannah Urban Garden Alliance.
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