Gay pride Festivus pole could return to Georgia Capitol this year
Today’s newsletter highlights:
- Test your knowledge of politics with our weekly news quiz.
- Democrats back Republican plan for hand-marked paper ballots.
- Robert F. Kennedy Jr. faces bipartisan criticism during a Senate hearing.
Free speech
A decade ago, a rainbow-colored pole topped with a shimmering disco ball commemorating the made-up holiday of Festivus rose for the first time in the Georgia Capitol.
This December, it could make a comeback.
Florida activist T. Chaz Stevens said he’s filed an application to install a new pole under the Gold Dome to mark the 30th anniversary of a Supreme Court ruling that opened the door for such displays in public forums.
“It’s self-funded, meets safety requirements, and the whole point is to spark debate (and maybe a laugh) while reminding us that the First Amendment protects all viewpoints — not just the popular ones,” Stevens wrote.
Stevens staged a similar effort in 2015 that resulted in a gay pride Festivus pole inspired by the fictional Dec. 23 anti-commercial holiday popularized in a 1997 episode of “Seinfeld."
Back then, it provoked some confused reactions. One conservative lawmaker said it looked like a child’s toy. Others traded quips about a holiday where, in the words of fictional TV character Frank Costanza, celebrants get to “tell them all the ways they have disappointed you over the past year.”
With this version, Stevens said, the goal is to offer a “secular counterpoint to the other holiday displays allowed at the Capitol.” And, as ever, he promised the pole would be adorned with “some sharp, satirical steel.”
Friday news quiz
Good morning! It’s time to fire up those brain cells and see if you can remember details about political news from Georgia and beyond. The answers are at the bottom of the newsletter. Some of you have said the answers leave you wanting to know more, so we’ve added some brief context. We won’t leave you hanging.
In 2020, just 33% of children on a Georgia Medicaid program received dental services, raising concerns from state auditors. How many children received dental services last year?
- A) 48%
- B) 33%
- C) 15%
- D) 28%
David Clark, a Republican state representative from Buford and a candidate for lieutenant governor, released a policy proposal this week. What was it?
- A) Exempting people 75 and older from state income taxes.
- B) Raising the state’s homestead exemption to $500,000 for homeowners 60 and older.
- C) A statewide sales tax holiday in August of each year for back-to-school shopping.
- D) Requiring hand-marked ballots for elections.
Republicans in Congress want to rename a federal program after President Donald Trump. What is that program?
- A) Workforce Pell Grants.
- B) Head Start.
- C) Made in America Manufacturing Initiative.
- D) Community Development Block Grants.
A U.S. district judge in Georgia recently tossed out a federal rule. What did this rule do?
- A) Required graphic warnings on cigarette packaging and advertising.
- B) Limited how many red snapper recreational anglers can catch.
- C) Imposed new testing and monitoring requirements for chemical manufacturing facilities.
- D) Sets standards for data sharing among health care providers.
Bubbling in ballots
In a rare show of election bipartisanship, some Democratic lawmakers, including U.S. Rep. Hank Johnson and state Sen. Elena Parent, are supporting a Republican effort to move toward hand-marked paper ballots.
“It’s time for Georgia elections to be conducted free from the substantial threat of undetectable electronic manipulation,” said Johnson, D-Lithonia. “Hand-marked paper ballots will eliminate that threat.”
The proposal for paper ballots filled out by hand came Tuesday from Republican leaders of a state House election study committee who are seeking to replace Georgia’s touchscreen-based voting system, the AJC’s Mark Niesse reports.
But Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger opposes the idea for a test-run during November’s Public Service Commission election. His office said that state law requires a uniform voting system.
Parent, an Atlanta Democrat, said her support of the pilot project would depend on its feasibility and support from election officials.
“I have long been interested in a system that utilized hand-marked paper ballots and ballot scanners because I think it is more secure and more representative of the voters’ intent because they can’t check a QR code,” she said.
Even if a pilot project doesn’t happen this fall, lawmakers say they’ll consider efforts to change Georgia’s voting equipment during next year’s legislative session.
Tea leaves
Gabriel Sterling, who has been one of Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger’s most loyal deputies, just launched a bid to replace his former boss.
Raffensperger, who could run for reelection, hasn’t announced his plans. But the fact that one of his closest allies is running for his job is the clearest sign yet that Raffensperger is preparing a run for governor.
Raffensperger’s intentions have been an open secret for months. But his entry would upend what’s so far been a two-man GOP race between Lt. Gov. Burt Jones and Attorney General Chris Carr.
Court watch
We’re still waiting for a ruling on whether Georgia native Lisa Cook can stay on the Federal Reserve Board of Governors after President Donald Trump tried to fire her last week. But a recent court ruling in a separate case could give Cook reason to be optimistic.
A federal appeals court recently reinstated Rebecca Kelly Slaughter to the Federal Trade Commission. Trump had fired Slaughter, a Democrat, over the summer. But the court ruled the firing was illegal because it was without cause, meaning it wasn’t based on “inefficiency, neglect of duty, or malfeasance in office.”
Cook is making a similar argument, saying Trump also fired her without cause. She says the cause he gave — an “unsubstantiated and unproven allegation” of mortgage fraud — is not sufficient.
The White House has said Cook was “credibly accused of lying in financial documents,” noting that she holds “a highly sensitive position overseeing financial institutions.”
Both cases escalated on Thursday. The Trump administration asked the U.S. Supreme Court to let him fire Slaughter. Meanwhile, the Department of Justice opened an investigation of the mortgage fraud allegations against Cook.
Glass houses
President Donald Trump is citing claims that Georgia-born Federal Reserve governor Lisa Cook claimed more than one primary residence on her loan papers to justify her firing.
But a ProPublica investigation revealed at least three members of Trump’s Cabinet could face similar questions.
From the story:
Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer entered into two primary-residence mortgages in quick succession, including for a second home near a country club in Arizona, where she's known to vacation. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy has primary-residence mortgages in New Jersey and Washington, D.C. Lee Zeldin, the Environmental Protection Agency administrator, has one primary-residence mortgage in Long Island and another in Washington, D.C., according to loan records.
The three Cabinet members denied wrongdoing, and the White House issued a statement saying each has “followed the law and they are fully compliant with all ethical obligations.”
Courtroom security
The Georgia Supreme Court declined to hear the appeal of a man forced to wear an electronic stun cuff during his trial. But Justice Shawn Ellen LaGrua said the case has raised troubling questions about how judges are balancing courtroom security with the rights of defendants.
Bernard Scales was forced to wear a Band-It device during his trial on charges of aggravated child molestation and other offenses. He was convicted, but asked for a new trial, arguing the device violated his constitutional rights.
What concerned LaGrua was testimony in the case showed the device was controlled by the Carroll County Sheriff’s Department. LaGrua cautioned trial judges that “security within the courtroom is under their control and cannot be abdicated to law enforcement personnel.”
LaGrua noted that trial judges have a “heavy burden” to protect people that enter their courtroom, adding that “it is understandable to want to use restrictions to ensure a high level of safety and public confidence in the security of the courtroom.”
“Ensuring a defendant’s constitutional rights remains paramount,” she wrote. “When we do not keep that at the very forefront of our minds, we risk the rights of us all.“
Listen up
There is no “Politically Georgia” podcast today. We’ll be back on Monday to answer questions from the listener mailbag.
You can listen and subscribe to Politically Georgia for free at Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts.
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.
Correction
An item in Wednesday’s newsletter should have said that Julie Adams voted against certifying results in Georgia’s 2024 presidential primary.
Bipartisan bashing
We knew Democrats, including Georgia U.S. Sen. Raphael Warnock, would pile on Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. on Thursday during his testimony before a Senate Committee.
But it was criticism from some Republicans that raised the most eyebrows, especially given the hyperpartisan environment in Congress.
Sharp criticism came from three Republicans on the panel: U.S. Sens. John Barrasso of Wyoming, Bill Cassidy of Louisiana and Thom Tillis of North Carolina.
Both Barrasso and Cassidy are physicians. Tillis isn’t running for reelection, so he has more freedom to criticize the administration.
Barrasso and Cassidy raised concerns about Kennedy’s decisions regarding vaccine standards and availability. Tillis also questioned Kennedy’s firing of former Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Director Susan Monarez.
Georgia’s Democratic U.S. Sens. Raphael Warnock and Jon Ossoff both called on Kennedy to either resign or be fired.
“You are a hazard to the health of the American people,” Warnock told Kennedy during the hearing.
Today in Washington
- President Donald Trump will receive an intelligence briefing, sign executive orders and make an announcement from the White House.
- The House and Senate are done for the week. Members return on Monday.
Shoutouts
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Before you go
Answers to this week’s quiz:
- D: 28%. A state audit said the Georgia Department of Community Health “has not taken steps to identify the cause for this trend and has not developed a strategy to address this problem.”
- B: Raising the homestead exemption to $500,000 for homeowners 60 and older. It would be a dramatic shift. Right now, the exemption for most homeowners is $2,000.
- A: Workforce Pell Grants. This new program would be known as “Trump Grants.” It will offer financial aid for short-term workforce training programs.
- A: Required graphic warnings on cigarette packaging and advertising. The judge ruled the U.S. Food and Drug Administration failed to publicly disclose all the raw data it relied on when making the rule.
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.
About the Authors
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.
Tia Mitchell is the AJC’s Washington Bureau Chief and a co-host of the "Politically Georgia" podcast. She writes about Georgia’s congressional delegation, campaigns, elections and the impact that decisions made in D.C. have on residents of the Peach State.
Patricia Murphy is the AJC's senior political columnist. She was previously a nationally syndicated columnist for CQ Roll Call, national political reporter for the Daily Beast and Politics Daily, and wrote for The Washington Post and Garden & Gun. She graduated from Vanderbilt and holds a master’s degree in journalism from Columbia University.
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