Sorry not sorry?
The oh-so-curt apology letters penned by two attorneys once aligned with former President Donald Trump as a condition of their plea deals in the Fulton County election interference case brought a wave of criticism.
“Bart Simpson-at-the-chalkboard vibes,” wrote Henry Gomez, an NBC reporter.
“These apologies hit you right in the feels,” said Marcus Flowers, a former Democratic U.S. House candidate.
“Looks like a note written by a third grader caught taking extra cookies,” opined Jamie Dupree, the veteran chronicler of the U.S. Capitol and AJC columnist.
They were responding to the AJC’s publication Thursday of the letters written by Sidney Powell and Kenneth Chesebro, who each struck plea deals with Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis to avoid prison time in her far-reaching case against Trump and his allies.
Credit: Fulton County Sheriff's Office
Credit: Fulton County Sheriff's Office
Chesebro’s letter clocked in at 23 words. Powell’s was just 13, scrawled on notebook paper: “I apologize for my actions in connection with the events in Coffee County.”
The succinct admissions contrast with a lengthier mea culpa obtained by the AJC that was written by Scott Hall, a bail bondsman who pleaded guilty for his role in the Coffee County election data breach, and the tearful apology that attorney Jenna Ellis read in court.
Legal analyst Andrew Weissmann said he was shocked by the brisk apologies, particularly since Chesebro and Powell avoided jail time and can continue practicing law despite “engaging in attempted overthrow of the U.S. government.”
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Credit: Miguel Martinez/AJC
Credit: Miguel Martinez/AJC
LISTEN UP. Fulton District Attorney Fani Willis sat down for a far-ranging interview with AJC journalists Tamar Hallerman and Bill Rankin earlier this week.
Hallerman joined the Thursday edition of the “Politically Georgia” radio show and podcast to unpack Willis’ insights on whether she’ll be in the courtroom as a prosecutor in the election conspiracy trial of former President Donald Trump and whether she intends to run for an office other than DA in 2024.
Listen at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts or wherever you listen to podcasts. And catch “Politically Georgia” as it airs live at 10 a.m. every weekday on WABE 90.1 FM, at AJC.com and at WABE.org.
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FERGUSON OUT. U.S. Rep. Drew Ferguson, who has represented a Georgia congressional district that includes the south metro Atlanta suburbs since 2019, announced Thursday that he will not seek reelection next year.
The Pike County Republican said in a statement that he decided to retire and spend more time in his west Georgia home with his wife and family.
“Georgia is truly a special place, and it’s calling us home,” Ferguson said. “Julie and I look forward to spending more time with our children and grandchildren while continuing to work to keep Georgia the best state in America to live and do business.”
Ferguson’s surprise decision not to seek another term triggers a wide-open race for a deeply conservative U.S. House seat at a time when Georgia’s political maps are still in flux.
Among the names already out there as possible candidates: Former state Rep. Philip Singleton; Sens. Matt Brass, Mike Dugan and Randy Robertson; state Rep. David Jenkins; former state Rep. Tim Bearden; former state Sen. Mike Crane, who lost a congressional bid to Ferguson in 2016; and Chris West, the 2022 GOP nominee for a neighboring Democratic-held district.
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Credit: Arvin Temkar/AJC
Credit: Arvin Temkar/AJC
COBB CONUNDRUM. Every Cobb County political map drawn by the Republican-controlled Legislature in 2021 is now under judicial scrutiny.
On Thursday, a federal judge tossed out the county’s school board map, ordering lawmakers to approve a new version by Jan. 10 — just two days after the start of the legislative session. The county commission’s maps are also the subject of a legal fight before a state court judge.
The state legislative and federal congressional maps encompassing the suburb have already undergone a court-ordered overhaul, and they will soon be reviewed by U.S. District Judge Steve Jones.
Cobb County Democratic chair Erick Allen, a former state legislator, said it shows the “desperate attempt to maintain power — even if it means breaking the law.”
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Credit: Alyssa Pointer/AJC
Credit: Alyssa Pointer/AJC
RENEGADES. Several of Stacey Abrams’ closest allies and longest-serving deputies have created a new political consulting firm to boost Democratic candidates, left-leaning causes and abortion rights initiatives. The tagline for the group: “Trusted expertise for badass campaigns and initiatives.”
The Renegade Collective is led by Lauren Groh-Wargo, who launched the New Georgia Project voter registration initiative with Abrams a decade ago, ran both her campaigns for governor and was chief executive of the Fair Fight Action political network.
Other members include data analyst Jack DeLapp, media personality and lawyer Mo Ivory, policy analyst Justin Kirnon and voting rights attorney Allegra Lawrence-Hardy.
Groh-Wargo said the firm is mostly booking work in Georgia and the South, though it’s also conducted data analysis for Michigan clients and helped with an abortion rights ballot initiative in Ohio.
“There are huge down-ballot opportunities across the country, especially with all the maps that have been redrawn,” she said. “There aren’t many consulting shops that can both run short-term campaigns within the framework of a longer-term effort.”
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Credit: TNS
Credit: TNS
JET FUMES. U.S. House members went home for a three-week holiday break after voting overwhelmingly to approve the compromise agreement for the National Defense Authorization Act.
But in the Senate, members were told to delay their vacations as negotiators work on a U.S.-Mexico border security agreement that can be coupled with aid to Ukraine and possibly Israel.
The House tally on the NDAA, a sweeping military policy package, was 310-118. Four members of Georgia’s delegation opposed the measure: Republicans Marjorie Taylor Greene of Rome, Andrew Clyde of Athens and Mike Collins of Jackson and Democrat Nikema Williams of Atlanta.
Credit: Nathan Posner for The AJC
Credit: Nathan Posner for The AJC
Williams said in a statement that she opposed the legislation because it represented an increase in defense spending.
Clyde and Collins echoed concerns raised earlier by Greene that the negotiated version of the NDAA was drafted behind closed doors and excluded language backed by conservatives. Both also said they opposed the temporary reauthorization of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act contained in the bill.
“This legislation is woke, weaponized, and wrong for America,” Clyde wrote on social media.
I just voted NO on the FY24 NDAA.
— Rep. Andrew Clyde (@Rep_Clyde) December 14, 2023
This legislation is woke, weaponized, and wrong for America.
I will never betray the men and women who answer the call of duty by allowing the Left’s radical agenda to further tarnish our great military.
The House vote means the bill heads to President Joe Biden’s desk to sign into law, meaning the NDAA’s streak of gaining annual passage every year since 1961 is likely to remain intact.
In the Senate, Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., told his members he expects them in Washington, D.C., next week in anticipation of an agreement on foreign aid. Negotiators are hoping to finalize a measure that limits immigration at the southern border and couples that compromise with money for Ukraine and possibly Israel.
However, the House was dismissed until Jan. 9 and there is no indication House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., would call members back any sooner even if an agreement is on the table.
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TODAY IN WASHINGTON:
- President Joe Biden has no public events scheduled.
- The Senate awaits an agreement on border security measures that could be coupled with funding for Ukraine and Israel.
- The House has adjourned for the holiday break.
- Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg and U.S. Sen. Jon Ossoff, D-Ga., join local leaders in Millen for an event highlighting federal funding to improve railroad crossings.
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CELEBRATION BOWL. The Howard University Bison will have a prominent fan in the stands as they take on the Florida A&M University Rattlers in Saturday’s Celebration Bowl football game.
Vice President Kamala Harris plans to attend the nationally televised matchup of two historically Black colleges at Atlanta’s Mercedes-Benz Stadium. Harris, a 1986 graduate of Howard, often talks about the impact that attending the Washington, D.C., school had on her life and career trajectory.
The vice president’s office is marketing the visit as a way to champion Black colleges.
U.S. Sen. Raphael Warnock, a Georgia Democrat and Morehouse alum who also plans to attend, encouraged Harris to make the trip. The Bison, owners of a 6-5 win-loss record this season, will need all the help they can get from their 12th man in the stands. They are considered the underdogs against the Rattlers, a team that lost only one game in 2023.
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Credit: Courtesy photo
Credit: Courtesy photo
DOG OF THE DAY. There are more than a few mornings when we’ve thought about swapping spots with our Dogs of the Day, and today is just such a day.
What’s not to love about Amie Broughton’s dog days? We’re told the long-locked two-year-old English springer spaniel enjoys posing for glamour shots and chasing squirrels. When that gets old, she takes her person, Kevin Broughton, for a walk on Main Street in Woodstock to check in on the pubs that stock Milk-Bone treats.
Amie, for living la dolce vita in Cherokee County, we salute you. And we declare you our Dog of the Day!
Send us your dogs of any political persuasion and location, and cats on a cat-by-cat basis, to patricia.murphy@ajc.com, or DM us at @MurphyAJC.
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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.vanbrimmer@ajc.com.
