Morning, y’all! It’s almost Labor Day weekend, and you know what that means: Lots of people on the road acting like they’ve never driven before and airports full of people who seem completely new to the concept of flying. Pack extra patience.
Let’s get to it.
MORE “???!?!?!!!” AT THE CDC
Just when you think things at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention couldn’t get more chaotic, the agency’s director Susan Monarez is reportedly out after less than a month. Except, she says she’s not.
- Monarez has hired lawyers who said in a public post she has not been formally fired and refuses to resign.
- Her counsel said Monarez refused to approve “unscientific, reckless directives,” and said HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. is “weaponizing public health for political gain.”
- Following news of her alleged departure, a wave of senior CDC leadership tendered their resignations.
- They included the chief medical officer and deputy director for program and science, the director of the CDC’s National Center for Emerging and Zoonotic Infectious Diseases and the director of the National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases, which does work on vaccinations.
🔎 READ MORE: The resignations set off a new wave of anger over Kennedy’s dismantling of the agency
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ICE ARRESTS UP IN GA
Immigration arrests have spiked significantly in Georgia since the beginning of President Donald Trump’s administration. The ICE field office in Atlanta also has some of the highest arrest numbers in the country.
- Georgia recorded 5,670 immigration arrests during the first six months of the Trump administration, according to new federal data.
- That’s up from 1,570 arrests during the previous six months.
- Atlanta’s ICE field office oversees immigration in Georgia, South Carolina and North Carolina, and accounts for the fifth-highest number of arrests in the U.S. Houston produces the most, followed in order by Dallas, New Orleans and Miami.
- New Georgia state laws mandate close collaboration between ICE and local law enforcement, which is one of the reasons for the spike.
🔎 READ MORE: See more federal data on ICE arrests
Other immigration news:
- A federal judge questioned whether Mario Guevara, the Atlanta-based Spanish-language journalist arrested while covering a June protest, can remain in immigrant detention even though charges against him were dropped. Guevara’s attorneys are calling for his immediate release.
- U.S. deportation flights are at record highs. Carriers are reportedly using dummy call signs and blocking out tail numbers on tracking websites to hide their activity.
MUST-KNOW POLITICS AND BUSINESS
🪖 Trump’s National Guard deployments are putting the squeeze on Georgia troops. Earlier this week, Trump ordered Guardsmen from all 50 states to assist in “quelling civil disturbances.” The Georgia Guard is also sending 75 troops to add to anti-immigrant operations across the state.
💰 The Trump family is expanding their crypto influence. Trump Media is partnering with Crypto.com to form a “digital asset treasury company.”
🗳️ Democrat Debra Shigley scored the most votes in Tuesday’s special state Senate election. Her strong showing has some GOP members worried ahead of September’s runoff.
Not politics or business, but still must-know:
Two children were killed and 17 people injured in a shooting at a Minneapolis Catholic school yesterday. The shooter allegedly opened fire from outside the building, through a window of a chapel where mass was being held. Police believe the shooter then died by suicide. More here.
DOGWOOD FESTIVAL IN TROUBLE
The Dogwood Festival has been a reliable harbinger of spring in Atlanta for nearly 90 years. However, the free Piedmont Park festival has been running on a deficit since the pandemic.
Organizers say the festival will have to shutter if they don’t raised $250,000 by the beginning of November.
The festival’s executive director Brian Hill says it used to be reliably profitable, but costs for labor, infrastructure and logistics have gone up. “Festivals are failing around the world,” he said.
🌸 READ MORE: What can be done to save the Atlanta institution
IT’S DRAGON CON TIME, BABY!
Nerd Mardi Gras is finally here! Dragon Con takes over downtown Atlanta starting today, so don’t be alarmed by the roaming gaggles of superheroes, medieval knights and anime characters. Par for the course.
- Organizers are expecting about 74,000 attendees.
- The convention takes place over five hotels: Hyatt Regency Atlanta, Marriott Marquis, Hilton Atlanta, Westin Peachtree and Courtland Grand. AmericasMart also hosts the popular vendor hall.
If you can Con, you really should. Here are some resources to make the most of it:
- Dragon Con nightlife guide
- Best Dragon Con activities for kids
- How to experience Dragon Con without a pass
NEWS BITES
Cracker Barrel is keeping its old logo after uproar over change
Whew, the major issue of our time is finally solved.
Prosecutors failed to indict Washington sandwich thrower
Today in news headline Mad Libs.
Beans 101: How to make creative, nutritious, leguminous meals
I made that last word up, it felt right.
Spain uses overripe tomatoes in annual tomato fight
A good, old-fashioned food fight would feel really healing right now.
ON THIS DATE
Aug. 28, 1963
From the front page of The Atlanta Journal: Massive Rights March Chants Through Capitol. Chanting demonstrators from the nation’s hamlets and cities marched “for jobs and freedom” ... in the greatest rally for Negro rights in U.S. history.
To round out coverage of the seminal March on Washington, this heartwarming headline on the same page: “Nazi Anti-Marcher Jailed.”
ONE MORE THING
You going to Dragon Con? I’ll be there Friday and Sunday in a cosplay so stupid I won’t even explain it. It’s potato-related. I’ll also be at the Aflac Kickoff Game Saturday. That one will be Orange-related.
Thanks for reading to the very bottom of A.M. ATL. Questions, comments, ideas? Contact us at AMATL@ajc.com.
Until next time.
About the Author
AJ Willingham is an National Emmy, NABJ and Webby award-winning journalist who loves talking culture, religion, sports, social justice, infrastructure and the arts. She lives in beautiful Smyrna-Mableton and went to Syracuse University.
