Why Georgia business leaders are flexing their muscles
Atlanta’s top business leaders are flexing their muscles ahead of the coming legislative session.
The Metro Atlanta Chamber, the driving force behind a failed regional transportation sales tax vote in 2012, is reviving a push for major infrastructure improvements. Some corporate giants are again opposing a “religious liberty” push they see as discriminatory. And business leaders want it known that metro Atlanta welcomes millennials and people from other countries.
The chamber has long been a bastion of fiscal conservatism, and Gov. Nathan Deal and other Republican leaders have enjoyed outspoken support from its leaders. But the group’s clout has limits, especially in a statehouse where a tea party-influenced strain of conservatism has made it difficult to back anything that would raise new revenue.
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.
