Welcome to Politically Georgia, your essential morning briefing from the AJC’s politics team. As a subscriber, you can receive this briefing as a newsletter every weekday, or read it here on ajc.com. Anyone can also sign up for the P.M. Update for a review of the day’s top politics stories, and listen to the accompanying radio show on WABE or podcast on Apple, Spotify and elsewhere.
Gov. Brian Kemp has signed a series of emergency orders to suspend the state’s gas tax, a move that has kept often-spiking fuel prices lower in Georgia than in nearly any other state over much of the last two years.
The fuel tax break ended Wednesday when Kemp’s latest order lapsed. The expiration means the state will resume collecting 31.2 cents a gallon for unleaded gasoline and 35 cents per gallon for diesel.
Why the halt? The governor’s state of emergency allowed him to waive the tax collections as long as legislators approve the decision when they next meet. Now that lawmakers have convened for a court-ordered redistricting session, they must ratify the suspension.
Kemp doesn’t plan to ask for an extension while the General Assembly is in special session and he might not issue motorists another gas tax break once it ends. Kemp’s camp is in a wait-and-see mode, we’re told, as prices hover below $3 per gallon in much of Georgia.
Credit: Arvin Temkar/AJC
Credit: Arvin Temkar/AJC
The gas tax was a useful political tool as Kemp ran for reelection in 2022, a time when prices nationally eclipsed $4 per gallon. The state decided to forgo the levy for 10 months, from March 2022 to January 2023. Kemp benefited from a wave of media coverage each time he extended the break.
He lifted the suspension in January as prices fell below $3 per gallon, then resurrected it in September with an emergency order that blamed President Joe Biden’s administration for rising costs. Analysts attributed the higher gas prices to rising demand and supply cuts.
The suspension costs the state — and saves drivers — $150 million to $190 million a month. Kemp said Georgians saved $1.7 billion during the previous 10-month break.
That’s easier to stomach given the state’s financial position: The Atlanta Journal-Constitution recently reported Georgia has a record $16 billion in its rainy day and “undesignated” reserve funds.
At $2.79 per gallon of unleaded gasoline on Wednesday, Georgia had the fourth-lowest average price in the nation, according to AAA. That’s 46 cents below the national average.
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Credit: Natrice Miller/AJC
Credit: Natrice Miller/AJC
BACK AGAIN. It was like deja vu all over again as state lawmakers filed into the Capitol on Wednesday for a special session to redraw the legislative and congressional maps they created during a special session just two years ago.
Democrats came out swinging over the new GOP-proposed House and Senate maps, which drew eight House Democratic incumbents into races against each other, while just two Republicans saw the same potential fate.
On the Senate side, chatter abounded over which Democrats got the biggest overhauls of their districts — changes that would require them to get in front of thousands of new voters before the next election in 2024.
Credit: Natrice Miller/AJC
Credit: Natrice Miller/AJC
State Sen. Gail Davenport of Jonesboro was among the many Democrats who went to the well to say the new maps dilute Black voters’ voices instead of strengthen them. Federal Judge Steve Jones ordered the redistricting effort after ruling the current maps violate the Voting Rights Act of 1965.
“I guess you all thought we would sit by and say nothing,” Davenport said to the GOP majority. “But those of us who are Black here know why we were sent here. … Stop diluting the Black vote.”
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REMEMBERING ROSALYNN. It wasn’t all partisan brawling at the Capitol as lawmakers convened a special legislative session dedicated to redistricting. House members of both parties stood to honor the late first lady Rosalynn Carter at roughly the same time Wednesday she was laid to rest in Plains.
State Rep. Mike Cheokas, R-Americus, and state Rep. Debbie Buckner, D-Junction City, were both close with the Carters and spoke about their memories of Rosalynn Carter. Buckner remembered Carter learning to ski in her 60s, going trout fishing in Siberia and living a life of great service and adventure.
“Being in her presence felt like a Christmas gift,” Buckner said.
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NEW ROSTERS. Both the House and Senate GOP caucuses saw changed membership since the last session.
State Rep. Mesha Mainor of Atlanta now caucuses with the Republicans after switching parties over the summer. And the Senate GOP caucus no longer includes state Sen. Colton Moore of Trenton after he was booted for running ads against Republicans who refused to call for a special session to oust Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis for indicting former President Donald Trump.
Credit: Natrice Miller/AJC
Credit: Natrice Miller/AJC
Instead of sitting quietly Wednesday, Moore went to the well to insult Republican senators and echo Trump’s false claims of election fraud.
“People in northeast Georgia don’t like thieves, and people think the election was stolen,” he said.
If Moore was looking for a reaction, he didn’t get it, as his colleagues went about their business without paying much attention.
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Credit: Natrice Miller/AJC
Credit: Natrice Miller/AJC
More from the Capitol:
- The Senate passed a resolution from state Sen. Matt Brass, R-Newnan, condemning the Hamas attack on Israel and “antisemitic acts and speech in the United States.” The measure passed 46-0, but with multiple Democrats excused or skipping the vote.
- State Rep. Michelle Au, a physician by trade, brought back the bloodmobile for blood donations. After State Rep. Sharon Cooper, R-Marietta, said men in the Capitol had the worst record of donating, Speaker Jon Burns, R-Newington, volunteered, but only if Dr. Au, D-Johns Creek, would be on hand. She was happy to assist.
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A GRAND BARGAIN? Key Republicans say they’re open to legislation that could add hundreds of thousands of poor Georgians to the state’s Medicaid rolls as part of a compromise to roll back hospital regulations.
The measure would be modeled after a Medicaid initiative recently adopted in Republican-led Arkansas. That program made 250,000 additional residents eligible for health care coverage.
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Credit: Casey Sykes for the AJC
Credit: Casey Sykes for the AJC
UNDER THE GOLD DOME:
- 9 a.m.: The Senate Reapportionment and Redistricting Committee meets.
- 10 a.m.: The House floor session begins.
- 1 p.m.: The House Reapportionment and Redistricting Committee meets.
- 2 p.m.: The Senate convenes.
And for your planning purposes, the House and Senate will not meet over the weekend.
“I understand there’s a football game happening Saturday?” House Majority Leader and Georgia Bulldogs super fan Chuck Efstration, R-Auburn, joked as he announced the planned schedule, which he noted could change in case of emergency.
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MEDIA BLITZ. President Joe Biden’s reelection campaign launched the latest in a wave of TV ads this morning targeting Georgia voters. The ad, “Your Family,” highlights Biden’s efforts to lower health care costs and bring down the price of prescription drugs. Expect to see it during shows like “The Voice,” “Survivor” and “Bachelor in Paradise,” along with national cable news programs and popular sportscasts.
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GREENE TRIES AGAIN. U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene has reintroduced her resolution to impeach Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas.
Greene, R-Rome, also took the steps to force a quick vote on the measure, which could put the impeachment before members as early as today. The resolution isn’t much different than the one Greene introduced earlier this month. Eight Republicans voted with Democrats to refer that earlier measure to committee.
Greene said she is trying again because Republican voters tell her they want Mayorkas out of his job.
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Credit: Nathan Posner for The AJC
Credit: Nathan Posner for The AJC
OUTSIDER STATUS. U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene appears to be back to embracing her outsider status in the U.S. House as she picks fights with fellow Republicans.
Ever since her one-time ally, Rep. Kevin McCarthy of California, was ousted as House speaker, Greene has been on the attack.
Greene said she does not consider her feuds with fellow GOP lawmakers a shift in tone. She says she is being who she always was: an outsider who is less concerned about making friends in Washington, D.C., than pursuing a far-right “America First” agenda.
“I’m not having relationship problems,” she said. “I feel like a Republican voter. That is where my mindset is. I’m tired of being let down by Republicans in Washington.”
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ARGENTINA’S TRUMP. Argentina’s president-elect Javier Milei has been compared to former President Donald Trump, with each praising the other and Milei echoing Trump’s calls to fight against socialism.
On Wednesday, 11 Republicans in the U.S. House wrote a letter to Milei congratulating him on his election victory. U.S. Rep. Andrew Clyde, R-Athens, was among them.
“Your message of freedom, liberty, and advancing economic prosperity through limited government and fiscal responsibility has united the Argentine people in a historic way,” the lawmakers wrote.
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TODAY IN WASHINGTON:
- President Joe Biden meets at the White House with João Manuel Gonçalves Lourenço, president of Angola. Afterward, he and Vice President Kamala Harris attend the National Christmas Tree lighting.
- The House could take votes on resolutions to expel Rep. George Santos, R-New York, and to impeach Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas.
- The Senate has confirmation votes lined up.
- The Senate Judiciary Committee could vote to authorize subpoenas related to its investigation of Supreme Court justices accused of ethics lapses.
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RED VS BLUE. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and California Gov. Gavin Newsom aren’t competing for the same office, but when they meet in Alpharetta at 9 p.m. tonight for a Fox News debate, they will preview a clash that goes beyond typical electoral politics.
DeSantis, a Republican, is running in the 2024 GOP presidential primary. Newsom, a Democrat, is considered a potential candidate for the White House in 2028 or beyond.
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Credit: Courtesy photo).
Credit: Courtesy photo).
DOG OF THE DAY. When we say we consider cats for Dog of the Day, we mean it. So it’s time to meet Marco Soltis, the fancy feline named after Florida U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio.
Marco is a 12-year-old seal point Himalayan whose great loves in life include boxes, Amazon deliveries (because of the boxes), and Merrie Soltis, his person.
A reliable source tells us Marco is a discerning politicat who, at the moment, is disappointed in Sen. Rubio’s record. Maybe not enough legislation supporting boxes? And being a cat, he considers himself an Independent, of course.
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.
