Raphael Warnock for president? New book highlights what could have been

Tucked into “Original Sin,” the new book about an alleged cover-up of President Joe Biden’s declining health, is a quote from veteran Democratic operative David Plouffe saying out loud what many Georgia politicos had buzzed about for years.

Plouffe told the authors — CNN’s Jake Tapper and Alex Thompson of Axios — that if Biden had dropped out of the race in 2023, U.S. Sen. Raphael Warnock of Georgia would have been among the party heavyweights who would have “kicked the tires” on a run.

“We would have been eminently stronger,” said Plouffe, who was a senior adviser to Kamala Harris’ presidential campaign.

Warnock wants nothing to do with the name-dropping. On Sunday, NBC’s Kristen Welker asked Warnock on “Meet the Press” if he thought the Democratic Party would have been stronger had Biden dropped out earlier.

“Kristen, here is what we absolutely know about last year’s election. It’s over. And I’m going to spend all of my energy focused on the task in front of us,” he said, echoing Democrats’ intent on derailing the “big ugly” tax and spending bill pending in the U.S. Senate.

“I didn’t hear a direct answer to the question there,” Welker said.

“I take very seriously my job,” Warnock replied. “The people of Georgia hired me to stand up for them.”

The exchange is a reminder that even as Georgia heads toward a wild 2026 midterm election, Warnock could be at the center of speculation for the 2028 presidential race.

Things to know

Credit: Olivia Bowdoin for the AJC

Credit: Olivia Bowdoin for the AJC

Good morning! Here are three things to know for today:

Campaign watch

Credit: Arvin Temkar/AJC

Credit: Arvin Temkar/AJC

Lt. Gov. Burt Jones hasn’t announced an expected run for governor yet, but the race to succeed him is quickly developing.

Senate President Pro Tem John F. Kennedy entered the race for Georgia’s No. 2 job this morning, becoming the latest prominent Republican to seek the seat.

“I’ve never shied away from tough fights in the state legislature, and this campaign will be no different,” he said. “Georgians can be confident that my leadership will be focused on delivering conservative results, not empty rhetoric.”

Another powerful Senate Republican, Majority Leader Steve Gooch, jump-started his campaign earlier this month. And state Sen. Blake Tillery, who leads the powerful Appropriations Committee, has also filed to run.

Kennedy, a Macon attorney and an ally of Gov. Brian Kemp, is perhaps best known as the lead sponsor of the massive legal overhaul that narrowly passed the Legislature this year. His allies hope his familiar name also boosts his visibility.

The Democratic race has been slower to form. Democratic state Sen. Josh McLaurin, D-Sandy Springs, is the only high-profile contender from his party in that race so far.

Each is aiming to succeed Jones, a first-term Republican who is expected to unveil a campaign for governor later this summer.

Hurricane season

Credit: Arvin Temkar/AJC

Credit: Arvin Temkar/AJC

For many Georgians, Hurricane Helene expanded the scope of what’s possible during storm season. Now, state officials will have to manage those expectations amid another aggressive forecast.

Hurricane season began Sunday and will last through the end of November. Federal forecasters say there’s a 60% chance activity this year will be above normal.

The biggest thing state lawmakers did to prepare for this hurricane season was to spend $5.7 million updating the state’s 911 system and empowering the Georgia Emergency Communications Authority to enforce standards for its use. This new system will have better audio and give dispatchers more precise location data to find people.

But the Legislature balked at creating a new Georgia Resilience Office within the state’s emergency management agency. This office, recommended by a panel of lawmakers who studied the issue last year, would have helped county governments better plan for these storms and share information.

State Rep. Clint Crowe, R-Jackson, indicated state officials with the Georgia Emergency Management Agency believed the agency could do those things without creating a new office. But Crowe feared doing it that way would make it easy to put off planning as memory of Helene fades.

“Recency bias is a real thing,” Crowe told his colleagues during a public hearing in March.

Nationally, experts fear the federal government isn’t ready to help. The Federal Emergency Management Agency has lost about 2,000 full-time staff amid mandated cuts by the Trump administration’s Department of Government Efficiency initiative.

But the National Hurricane Center, which tracks storms in the Atlantic, Pacific and Caribbean, has avoided those cuts.

Decriminalizing cannabis

Georgia’s Republican Legislature has made sure cities can’t adopt progressive policies like raising the minimum wage or limiting cooperation with federal immigration officers.

But a growing number of local governments have found a way to loosen laws around marijuana possession. The latest example is Kennesaw, where a newly elected council member is leading the charge to eliminate jail time for misdemeanor possession of cannabis.

Anthony Gutierrez, first elected last year in a special election, raised the idea during a City Council work session last week. It prompted nearly an hour of debate among the council, with a consensus emerging about a willingness to reduce the fine to $500 and eliminate jail time.

“I was a little surprised by that, but it was a very well appreciated surprise,” Gutierrez said. “I think there is definitely some good chances that we can get this done.”

Gutierrez said he thinks four of the five council members, including himself, would support the change. That would be enough to override a potential veto by Mayor Derek Easterling. An AJC poll last month showed most Georgians want to go further by legalizing recreational marijuana.

In Georgia, Gutierrez said 17 cities have reduced the fine and eliminated jail time for misdemeanor marijuana possession, including Atlanta, Athens, Augusta and Savannah.

Nationally, 24 states allow for recreational marijuana use and 39 states have legalized medical marijuana. Georgia lawmakers plan to study medical marijuana policies in a special committee scheduled to meet later this year.

Columbus problems

Credit: Jason Getz/AJC

Credit: Jason Getz/AJC

A power struggle inside Columbus’ City Hall involves Georgia House Minority Leader Carolyn Hugley.

Hugley runs an insurance business, and she received a $29,000 federal grant in 2022 through a program run in part by the city’s Community Reinvestment Department. All grants require the signature of the longtime Columbus city manager — who happens to Hugley’s husband, Isaiah Hugley.

In April, some council members criticized Isaiah Hugley for not telling them about this grant. Isaiah Hugley said he disclosed the grant to other city officials. Deputy City Manager Pam Hodge ultimately signed off on the grant.

Things came to a breaking point last week, when the council voted to fire Isaiah Hugley as city manager just a few months before he was scheduled to retire.

Isaiah Hugley’s attorney, Scott Grubman, sent a letter to council members in April telling them that “neither Mr. nor Mrs. Hugley engaged in any type of wrongdoing.”

“This is a very serious allegation and could not be further from the truth,” Grubman wrote.

The grant isn’t the only pressure point. The city’s finance department has been under investigation, which resulted in the arrest of multiple city officials earlier this month.

Isaiah Hugley’s attorney has asked the council to reinstate him and pay him more than $213,000. Carolyn Hugley was elected as the new House minority leader last year.

Listen up

Credit: AJC file photo

Credit: AJC file photo

Today on “Politically Georgia,” the hosts answer questions from listeners about Insurance Commissioner John King’s political future and whether Gov. Brian Kemp is ready to retire once his term ends.

Have a question or comment for the show? Email us at politicallygeorgia@ajc.com or give us a call at 770-810-5297 and you could be featured on a future episode.

You can listen and subscribe to the show for free at Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts.

Job Corps closures

Credit: Yuri Gripas/AP

Credit: Yuri Gripas/AP

The U.S. Department of Labor says it will close most of the nation’s Job Corps centers by the end of the month, a decision that’s likely to impact centers in Albany and Brunswick.

These centers aim to help low-income youth and young adults earn their GED diplomas and train for jobs. But Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer said in a news release the centers had fallen short of their mission.

“A startling number of serious incident reports and our in-depth fiscal analysis reveal the program is no longer achieving the intended outcomes that students deserve,” she said. “We remain committed to ensuring all participants are supported through this transition and connected with the resources they need to succeed as we evaluate the program’s possibilities.”

U.S. Rep. Sanford Bishop, a Democrat who lives in Albany and is co-chair of the bipartisan Congressional Job Corps Caucus, blasted the Trump administration for shuttering the program, saying the decision “will shatter the dreams and aspirations of tens of thousands of promising students.”

Today in Washington:

Shoutouts

Credit: AJC file photo

Credit: AJC file photo

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Before you go

Credit: John Raoux/AP

Credit: John Raoux/AP

President Donald Trump withdrew the nomination of Jared Isaacman, an associate of Elon Musk, to lead NASA. Musk formally left the Trump administration last week.

That’ll do it for us today. As always, you can send your best scoops, gossip and insider info to greg.bluestein@ajc.com, tia.mitchell@ajc.com, patricia.murphy@ajc.com and adam.beam@ajc.com.