As Amazon prepares to whittle down its list of finalists for a second headquarters, Gov. Nathan Deal said that he's confident the ongoing corruption investigation into Atlanta City Hall won't hinder Georgia's chances.
“The new mayor has been very active in working with us at the state level and very proactive in terms of new business development,” Deal told our Channel 2 Action News colleague Richard Elliot on Tuesday. “I think she has the right attitude and the right approach to it.”
State leaders worked furiously earlier this year to shore up Atlanta's bid for the massive Amazon project that appears to have been damaged by election-year maneuvering. The company scouted multiple sites in late March.
The governor cited the state's investment in a cybersecurity center near Fort Gordon in Augusta, saying the proximity to a hub of research around the emerging industry has become a central part of Atlanta's recruitment strategy.
"It is an issue that is not going away soon," Deal told Elliot. "We just want to make sure we provide trained people who know what to do about it."
Deal wouldn't comment directly on the federal investigation - except to say the probes will "take care of themselves."
The governor's top aide, Chris Riley, also chimed in on the mayor's courtship of Amazon over the weekend. He wrote on Twitter that he and Deal enjoy working with Bottoms, who is a "tireless partner for economic development" in the region.
Insider’s note: This item was ripped and expanded from The Daily Jolt.
More recent AJC coverage of the Amazon deal:
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