Georgia to be at center of presidential campaign next week
The presidential race is landing in Georgia in the coming week, but not necessarily because Republicans are worried that the Peach State is in play.
Former President Bill Clinton will hold a public conversation with Jimmy Carter on Tuesday as part of the Clinton Global Initiative’s three-day meeting in Atlanta. The next day, Donald Trump is headed to Atlanta for an early-morning fundraiser with the state’s top Republicans.
The events come a week after the general election campaign launched in earnest as Hillary Clinton clinched her party’s nomination — and amid new hopes from Democrats that Georgia could join the ranks of the swing states that could decide the election.
The visits are for two very different purposes. Bill Clinton wants to highlight his foundation, which corrals millions of dollars to help solve pressing global crises, while sharing the stage with the only other living former Democratic president.
And Trump aims to raise cash for his campaign with the help of Gov. Nathan Deal and U.S. Sen. David Perdue, another sign that his party is rallying around him despite his divisive comments. It also signals that the billionaire won’t rely on his personal fortune to underwrite his presidential bid.
A political ‘conversation’
The Clinton foundation’s three-day summit, which begins Sunday, will host panels with business leaders, academics and politicians who tackle some of the nation’s vexing problems. One panel featuring Coca-Cola North America’s president will target how leaders can bolster workforce development, another will gather education experts to explore how to address poverty at schools.
About 1,000 participants will attend the meeting and leave with a public service project they hope to successfully complete within the next year. Two Atlanta-focused projects are to launch as well: One aims to train and place certified computer science teachers at high schools across metro Atlanta, and the other hopes to transform blighted urban lots on Atlanta’s Westside into a new park.
“Ultimately, I hope it’s a call to action. There is an expectation that everyone has a role to play, and the meeting is the means to which they determine how to commit,” said Ed Hughes, the foundation’s deputy director. “Ultimately, this is work that matters.”
The highlight is a discussion Tuesday between Bill Clinton and Jimmy Carter that caps the meeting. Billed as a “conversation” between the two Democrats, it will almost certainly touch on the presidential contest. Carter largely stayed out of the primary between Clinton and Vermont U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders, saying through a spokesman that he will support the nominee.
The nonprofit has also been the focus of increasing criticism of the Clinton campaign. It's received millions from foreigners with links to their home governments despite a vow not to accept cash from foreign governments. And The Wall Street Journal in May reported that the foundation steered a $2 million grant to a firm owned by friends of the Clintons.
Hillary Clinton has pushed back, saying the foundation has been as transparent and open while ducking questions about whether her husband would step down as head of the foundation if she is elected.
"We had absolutely overwhelming disclosure. Were there one or two instances that slipped through the cracks? Yes. But was the overwhelming amount of anything that anybody gave the foundation disclosed? Absolutely," Clinton said in a CNN interview last week. "And I'm proud of the foundation. I'm proud of the work it has done."
Playing catch-up
Trump’s visit Wednesday comes in the middle of a trek through potential swing states, following stops in North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Florida and Virginia. Polls in Georgia show a tight race between Trump and Clinton, though no Democrat has won the Peach State since 1992.
The fundraiser is not open to the public, and there's been no announcement as to whether Trump will also hold a campaign rally in Georgia. He's held three in Georgia so far, though none since he won the state's primary with nearly 40 percent of the vote in March.
Georgia Democrats say they can compete in Georgia in 2016 with Trump at the top of the ticket, pinning their hopes on mobilizing high turnout from minorities and winning over moderate women disillusioned by him. Trump has kept staff in Georgia raising money and organizing grass-roots events for the November race.
The Georgia GOP has closed ranks around the party's standard-bearer, and many of his one-time critics have formed a hesitant truce over their nominee. That's exemplified in the two lead hosts of his fundraising gathering.
Perdue unequivocally endorsed Trump at Georgia's GOP convention this month, becoming the presumptive nominee's top political surrogate in Georgia. But Deal has been quieter on the presidential race, saying that he'll support Trump but that his endorsement matters little. His office said he's undecided about whether to attend the Republican National Convention next month in Cleveland.
It's also another sign that Trump is trying to escalate his fundraising after a late start. He had previously vowed to self-finance his campaign as a testament to his independence from Republican establishment leaders, and recently he warned that his campaign might not have enough cash to fend off Clinton's attacks.
He’s trying to catch up quick: An invite says donors who give at least $2,700 can hear his brief speech at the event, and those who donate or raise at least $25,000 “will spend time in a separate room getting to know and be known by Mr. Trump.”
About the Author
Greg Bluestein is the Atlanta Journal Constitution's chief political reporter. He is also an author, TV analyst and co-host of the Politically Georgia podcast.
