Jon Ossoff blames Trump as another Georgia hospital shutters some services
Today’s newsletter highlights:
- Tim Echols asks for help in the Public Service Commission race.
- Anti-Islamic protesters skip Muslim candidate forum.
- State lawmakers try out student tests.
Hospital struggles
Georgia Democrats are still pushing to extend expiring federal health insurance subsidies at the center of the government shutdown. But they don’t want you to forget about the even bigger health care battle revolving around President Donald Trump’s tax and spending law.
The GOP-backed measure slashes $1 trillion in Medicaid spending over a decade to help finance tax breaks and new spending on immigration enforcement and national defense. Democrats say Trump and his allies must shoulder the blame for the fallout.
One example: St. Mary’s Sacred Heart Hospital in Lavonia is set to shutter its labor and delivery unit today, citing cuts to the Medicaid program that “solidified” its decision. The rural hospital already struggles to recruit physicians and serve an aging population.
Democratic U.S. Sen. Jon Ossoff, who is battling for a second term, has seized on the hospital’s closure as a symbol of the policy’s real-world impact.
“This is what happens when you gut the Medicaid program,” Ossoff said. “It defunds hospitals and nursing homes, and now, when pregnant women in northeast Georgia go into labor, they may have to drive an hour or an hour and a half to get care.”
His three main Republican rivals — U.S. Reps. Buddy Carter and Mike Collins, and former football coach Derek Dooley — have all embraced the bill as a painful but necessary step to cut spending on some government services while permanently extending income tax cuts. The hospital sits in Collins’ district.
Ossoff said reversing the reductions would be a top Democratic priority if the party wins control of Congress next year.
“It’s wrong,” he said, “and it’s why we have to repeal these Medicaid cuts.”
Things to know
Good morning! It’s day 27 of the federal government shutdown. We’re just eight days away from the Nov. 4 statewide elections for the Public Service Commission and various local governments across the state.
Here are four other things to know for today:
- About 1.3 million people in Georgia who rely on the government to help buy their groceries could lose access to their benefits next week if the federal shutdown is not resolved, the AJC’s Caleb Groves reports.
- Turning Point USA has seen a big increase in interest across Georgia colleges and universities in the weeks after the assassination of Charlie Kirk, the group’s founder, the AJC’s Jason Armesto reports.
- Main checkpoint wait times at Atlanta’s airport surpassed 40 minutes on Sunday amid an ongoing government shutdown, the AJC’s Emma Hurt and David Aaro report.
- Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens wants to build a new hospital, proposing an $800 million project that would be paid for in part by extending some of the city’s tax allocation districts, the AJC’s Riley Bunch reports.
Campaign watch
Another sign Republicans are nervous about losing a pair of elections for the Public Service Commission next week: a public callout for backup.
Over the weekend, one GOP commissioner openly urged U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Rome, to vocally support his campaign.
“Her endorsement in this PSC race would energize 14th District voters,” Tim Echols posted on social media, a public plea that underscored just how tight these races have become.
Democrats are eager to make Peter Hubbard and Alicia Johnson the party’s first statewide winners since 2006 in any race not involving former President Joe Biden, or U.S. Sens. Jon Ossoff or Raphael Warnock.
Democratic National Committee Vice Chair Jane Kleeb is headed to Georgia this week to help rally voters. Party officials say hundreds of volunteers are also helping with a final get-out-the-vote blitz.
Republicans see the PSC contests as a fight on two fronts: against Democrats energized by rising utility rates and against a wave of municipal elections in left-leaning cities like Atlanta that is boosting turnout.
As for Echols’ plea? It appears Greene was listening. She posted on social media this morning, urging Republicans to vote.
“I’m voting today — join me!” she said.
No show
The anti-Islamic demonstrators who threatened to rally Sunday outside an Alpharetta forum of Muslim candidates never showed up. But state Rep. Ruwa Romman did.
The Duluth Democrat, who is also running for governor, arrived at a nearby coffee shop prepared to confront protesters egged on by Laura Loomer, the far-right commentator who used Islamophobic language to attack the event. Instead, Romman walked in on a rain-soaked evening to find no protesters in sight.
“This is a deep indicator of how online is not always real life,” she said.
Romman, the first Palestinian-American elected to the state Legislature, said her advisers urged her to stay away after Loomer’s supporters targeted the event on social media. She acknowledged it could have gone “either way.”
But, she added, “Now is the time to be brave.”
Test time
As a third grade teacher in 2014, 94.5% of Will Thigpen’s students in Candler County met or exceeded the standard for English and language arts. The next year, only 25.7% of those same students were proficient or above.
What happened? Georgia changed its testing. The new assessment used computers and required more complex analysis of passages.
“It’s really hard to talk about that shift if you weren’t there,” Thigpen, now the principal of Metter Middle School, told lawmakers during a legislative hearing last week. “I’m going to have you experience that shift.”
Thigpen then proceeded to test state lawmakers, giving them samples of the two exams. Lawmakers put their heads down and got to work. The first test required filling out answers with a pencil. The second test required a computer and headphones.
“I don’t know if I speak for the rest of the folks up here, but point taken,” state Rep. Shaw Blackmon, R-Bonaire, said once he finished the test.
After asking lawmakers if they wanted to take a break — he noted students usually get graham crackers and juice — Thigpen drilled home his main point.
“What we assess, how we assess and how we use the assessment will continue to determine what happens in classrooms around Georgia,” he said. “There are unintended consequences when you do this.”
Citizenship proof
Janice Johnston, vice chair of the State Election Board, said last week that a letter she signed calling for people to prove their U.S. citizenship before registering to vote in federal elections was not sent on behalf of the board.
But the letter says otherwise.
“The Georgia State Election Board endorses the proposal to amend the Federal Voter Registration application by making proof of citizenship a required component of the registration process,” the letter reads.
That irked Sara Tindall Ghazal, the board’s sole Democrat. She told us she was “shocked” and “disappointed,” accusing Johnston of misleading the public.
Johnston did not respond to a request for comment.
The letter supports a new rule pending before the U.S. Election Assistance Commission, which would require people to show a passport or other document proving they are U.S. citizens when filling out the national mail voter registration form. The rule is pushed by America First Legal, a conservative group founded by Stephen Miller, a top aide to President Donald Trump. It is similar to an executive order Trump signed in March but has since been blocked by the courts.
Georgia already requires proof of citizenship for new Americans registering to vote here, a rule that has been upheld by the courts.
Listen up
Today on the “Politically Georgia” podcast answer questions from the listener mailbag about up-and-coming politicians in the Democratic party and the early voting logistics in the Public Service Commission race.
You can listen and subscribe to Politically Georgia for free an 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.
Insurance rates
The fight over the federal government shutdown has focused on the health insurance costs for people who purchase coverage on the individual market — a small but significant group of the overall population.
But most people get their health insurance through their employers. And the news there isn’t good, either.
Annual family premiums for people with employer-sponsored coverage rose 6% in 2025, according to KFF’s annual health benefits survey. On average, an annual family premium now costs about $27,000. Workers have to pay about $7,000 of that, while companies cover the rest.
The cumulative premium increase over the past five years, plus the employees’ share, matches inflation and wage growth over that same time period. But things could get worse next year.
With the health insurance subsidies in the individual market set to expire, many insurance companies are planning large increases next year. KFF warns that could signal big increases in employer sponsored plans, too.
Today in Washington
Happenings:
- President Donald Trump’s trip to Asia continues in Tokyo.
- The House is in an indefinite recess during the government shutdown.
- The Senate returns for evening votes on Trump’s nominations.
- Small Business Administrator Kelly Loeffler will appear at a news conference with House Speaker Mike Johnson to discuss the impacts of the government shutdown.
Shoutouts
Belated birthdays:
- Georgia Supreme Court Justice John Ellington (was Sunday).
- State Sen. Brian Strickland, R-McDonough (was Sunday).
Want a birthday shoutout in the Politically Georgia newsletter? There’s a form for that. Click here to submit the shoutouts. It’s not just birthdays. We’re also interested in new jobs, engagements, birth announcements, etc.
Before you go
Make sure to join us Nov. 5 as The Atlanta Journal-Constitution hosts a forum with seven candidates for governor. RSVP soon as space is limited.
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.
More Stories
The Latest
