Politically Georgia: Peach State to be backdrop of Harris, Walz first sit-down interview

Today’s highlights include:

That time another presidential candidate toured South Georgia.
Lt. Gov. Burt Jones signals his legislative agenda.
North Carolina moves to “toss up” state in presidential race.

Georgia will be the stage for the first joint sit-down interview with Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris and her running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz.

CNN’s Dana Bash is set to interview them while they travel through South Georgia on their two-day bus tour. The interview is scheduled to air at 9 p.m. Thursday, shortly after Harris is set to conclude a Savannah rally.

Harris has faced pressure to participate in an in-depth interview since President Joe Biden dropped out and she became the Democratic nominee. She pledged to take part in one before the end of the month, and CNN’s interview comes right before the deadline.

Republicans have made her lack of a formal news conference or interview a key talking point, highlighting former President Donald Trump’s frequent media availabilities over the last several weeks. Trump campaign adviser Brian Hughes scoffed at Harris’ timing.

“Since it’s all the American people can get, we will expect that CNN holds them accountable for their past failures and the constant disavowal of years of dangerously liberal policies they’ve supported right up until their pollsters took over a month ago,” he said.

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Credit: Andrew Harnik/AP

Credit: Andrew Harnik/AP

FLASHBACK. Vice President Kamala Harris’ South Georgia swing is a first for a Democratic presidential contender in a while, but it is not the first ever. In fact, it’s bringing back memories for anyone involved in former President Bill Clinton’s 1992 Georgia bus tour that aides dubbed “Bubbas for Bill.”

That 10-bus caravan included Bill and Hillary Clinton, Al and Tipper Gore, then-Georgia Gov. Zell Miller, then-U.S. Sen. Sam Nunn, D-Ga., Clinton’s Georgia chairman Gordon Giffin and, according to press reports, 150 journalists and support staff.

The route ran from Columbus to Valdosta, with stops in Albany, Tifton, and even Parrot. A story from the Tampa Bay Times describes Clinton’s penchant for boiled peanuts and impromptu stops, as well as a crowd of 5,000 waiting for the soon-to-be president in Valdosta when he arrived at the end of a long day campaigning.

He pitched defense cuts in Columbus, home of U.S. Army base Fort Moore, and told the Georgians who turned out: “It’s nice to be in a place where I don’t have an accent today, a place where a Moon Pie is something you eat, a (Columbus) Mudcat is something that plays baseball, a promise is something you keep and a president is someone who cares about ordinary working people, like the pride of South Georgia, Jimmy Carter.”

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Credit: Arvin Temkar/AJC

GREAT IDEA! Is it possible some members of the Harris-Walz team have taken out a subscription to the mighty Dublin Courier Herald?

That’s where our pal Charlie Hayslett, columnist and creator of the Trouble In God’s Country blog, floated a novel idea two weeks ago — a bus tour through South Georgia featuring former football coach and current Democratic vice presidential hopeful Tim Walz.

From Hayslett:

“Put the members of that 1999 Mankato West football team on a bus with their old coach for a road trip across rural Georgia in the heart of football season and it could make a difference. They might be the visiting team on a hostile field, but my hunch is Coach Walz can get the Democrats back in the game in rural South Georgia."

“Coach Walz” will join Vice President Kamala Harris on the tour of yet-to-be announced stops after starting in Savannah today. If only it were a Friday night.

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Credit: Arvin Temkar/AJC

REMOVING THE REINS. Georgia lawmakers on Tuesday began studying what to do about transgender athletes competing in amateur women’s sports. But Republican Lt. Gov. Burt Jones seems to already know what he wants to do when the Legislature convenes in January.

Back in 2022, the Legislature punted the issue of transgender athletes to local athletic associations. The Georgia High School Association then voted to ban transgender athletes from competing based on their gender identity.

On Tuesday, during the first meeting of a Senate committee to study the issue, Jones said he wants to revisit that.

“We’re going to take those reins away, that obligation away, from the Georgia High School Association because as elected officials that should be our duties,” Jones said, adding: “We’re not here to marginalize anyone … but we’re here to protect female sports.”

The reason behind the “punting” — Jones’ words — is complicated. Then-House Speaker David Ralston, whose top priority was a vast mental health overhaul, opposed legislation that would target transgender athletes.

But he agreed to the compromise at the urging of Gov. Brian Kemp, who was eager to ward off a primary challenge from former U.S. Sen. David Perdue. At the time, Ralston said he would urge the high school association not to “target” transgender athletes, but he privately indicated he knew what was coming.

The 2022 law, and its result, helped boost Kemp’s campaign runaway victory against Perdue. A 2025 law could have a similar impact for Jones in what’s expected to be a competitive 2026 GOP primary for governor.

Bentley Hudgins, Georgia state director of the Human Rights Campaign, criticized Tuesday’s hearing as “an odd display of out of state far-right, anti-science extremism.”

“These attacks on transgender athletes are fueled by discrimination, not facts,” they said.

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Credit: Associated Pess

NORTH CAROLINA RACE TIGHTENS. North Carolina may have joined Georgia as a presidential battleground state.

For months, Democrats have pledged to compete in North Carolina, which hasn’t flipped blue since Barack Obama captured it in 2008. They hope, too, that far-right Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson’s run for governor helps energize liberal and centrist voters that might otherwise skip the race.

On Tuesday, the Cook Political Report declared North Carolina a toss up as Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic presidential nominee, has closed the gap with former President Donald Trump.

Republicans have invited Democrats to zero in on North Carolina, saying it’ll drain the Harris campaign’s resources for a state Trump’s team still sees as a GOP lock.

Cook Political Report’s Amy Walter notes that while North Carolina is similar to Georgia, there are some key differences. For one thing, the Tar Heel state has a smaller Black vote and a larger percentage of white voters without a college degree. It’s also more rural.

It was Biden’s success with Black voters in Georgia in 2020 that “pushed him over the top,” Walter wrote. That’s something our AJC colleague Ernie Suggs examined during a reporting trip to North Carolina earlier this month.

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Credit: Ryon Horne/AJC

OLIVER IN THE SPOTLIGHT. Georgia lawmakers will continue their questioning of Department of Corrections Commissioner Tyrone Oliver on Wednesday.

Georgia prisons have been a mess, as detailed in an extensive investigation published last year by the AJC’s Danny Robbins and Carrie Teegardin. Their series exposed a host of problems, including widespread corruption among prison employees.

Wednesday’s hearing of the Senate Department of Corrections Study Committee will focus on personnel, including how the department handles “problem employees,” according to committee chair Sen. Randy Robertson, R-Cataula.

“I don’t ask gotcha questions, but I am going to ask questions that I think are important to the taxpayers,” Robertson said. “And I expect the individuals testifying, especially government employees, to be completely honest.”

The first hearing last week lasted about three hours. Robertson, who retired from the Muscogee County Sheriff’s office in 2015, said today’s hearing could go for five hours. He plans to have at least five meetings total.

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Credit: Miguel Martinez/AJC

LISTEN UP. Today on “Politically Georgia,” state Rep. Debbie Buckner, D-Junction City, talks about the Harris-Walz campaign bus tour of South Georgia. And state Rep. Ruwa Romman, D-Duluth, talks about her work with the uncommitted movement during the Democratic National Convention.

You can listen live at 10 a.m. on WABE 90.1 or follow “Politically Georgia” on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts.

On Tuesday’s show, PolitiFact editor-in-chief Katie Sanders discussed the statements made at the recent Democratic and Republican political conventions. Plus, retiring AJC reporter and editor James Salzer talked about his impressive career.

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Credit: Courtesy photo

SAVANNAH SMACKTALK. Savannah Mayor Van Johnson typically declines to endorse candidates in partisan local elections, such as those for county commission and district attorney. While a Democrat, Johnson holds a nonpartisan office and sees the logic in remaining neutral.

Even so, he said Tuesday he would consider endorsing one particular candidate if asked. And said candidate is a Republican: Andre Pretorius, who is challenging for the Chatham district attorney’s post.

Johnson voiced strong displeasure with the incumbent, Shalena Cook Jones, over her recent dismissal of five indicted murder cases. As our AJC colleague Adam Van Brimmer reports, Johnson questioned whether the circumstances behind the dropping of the cases — the involvement of former Savannah police detectives fired for lying — warranted dismissals and Jones’ labeling of the cases as “compromised” and unlikely to be recharged.

The criticism of Jones — and potential endorsement of her opponent — turns the district attorney’s race into a political quandary for the mayor. He is a prominent Democrat who has acted as a surrogate for Vice President Kamala Harris, Georgia U.S. Sens. Jon Ossoff and Raphael Warnock and two-time gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams. He admits going against an elected Democrat such as Jones is difficult.

“But I’m a mayor before I’m a Democrat,” he said. “The victims’ families impacted by violent crime don’t care if I’m a Democrat. They want accountability. And I’m going to call things like I see them.”

Stay tuned on that endorsement.

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Credit: Arvin Temkar/AJC

TRANSITIONS. State Sen. Brandon Beach, R-Alpharetta, says he will resign from the Development Authority of Fulton County.

Beach said he’s leaving because “I’m just really busy with some things nationally and my own campaign.” He’s been on the board for the past eight and a half years.

As the AJC Zachary Hansen explains, critics have assailed the agency in recent years for being too generous with tax breaks, especially during Beach’s years.

A loyalist to former President Donald Trump, Beach has close ties to Republican Lt. Gov. Burt Jones and is considered a potential statewide candidate in 2026. But GOP insiders say he’s far more likely to take a federal appointment if Trump wins in November.

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TODAY IN WASHINGTON:

President Joe Biden has no public events on his schedule.
Vice President Kamala Harris is campaigning in Georgia.
The U.S. House and Senate are in recess until Sept. 9.

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ON THE CAMPAIGN TRAIL:

Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic presidential nominee, will travel to Savannah where she is scheduled to kick off a bus tour through South Georgia. Her running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, will join her.
U.S. Sen. JD Vance of Ohio, the Republican vice presidential nominee, will speak about the economy at a 3 p.m. event in Erie, Pennsylvania, and another 7:30 p.m. event in De Pere, Wisconsin.
Walz is also scheduled to speak at the International Association of Fire Fighters convention in Boston.

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Credit: Ben Hendren for the AJC

WELL DESERVED. Hall County school officials on Monday dedicated the new Sandra Dunagan Deal Elementary School, named after the former Georgia first lady who died of breast cancer in 2022.

Deal, wife of former Georgia Gov. Nathan Deal, was known for reading to students in each of Georgia’s 159 counties when she was first lady. As the AJC’s Josh Reyes reports, Sandra Deal spent decades in Hall County as a student, teacher and parent.

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Credit: Arvin Temkar/AJC

SHOUTOUTS. Today’s birthdays:

State Rep. Dar’shun Kendrick, D-Lithonia
State Rep. Tremaine Teddy Reese, D-Columbus

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.

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AS ALWAYS, Politically Georgia readers are some of our favorite tipsters. Send your best scoop, gossip and insider info to greg.bluestein@ajc.com, tia.mitchell@ajc.com, patricia.murphy@ajc.com and adam.beam@ajc.com.

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