The AJC’s dynamic duo of Tamar Hallerman and Bill Rankin broke loads of news with their bombshell interviews with five more special grand jurors investigating whether then-President Donald Trump and his allies broke Georgia laws when they meddled with the 2020 election results.
One of the most significant developments was the revelation for the first time that jurors heard a recording of Trump calling House Speaker David Ralston to urge him to back a special legislative session to overturn his defeat.
It’s the third known recording of Trump trying to bully a Georgia official into undermining the results. The others are Trump’s infamous call to Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger and another to a state investigator delving into allegations of absentee ballot fraud in Cobb County.
Credit: TNS
Credit: TNS
The jurors described the Ralston recording, which hasn’t been made public, as a short back-and-forth that ended cordially. The late speaker artfully sidestepped Trump’s demand by saying he’d do anything he deemed “appropriate.”
The remark “took the wind out of the sails,” for Trump, one juror said, leaving the president with little to say except thank you.
Some legal experts say the Ralston recording could play a significant role in the investigation. Anthony Kreis, a Georgia State University law professor, said the call “might be important evidence to piece the narrative together about how central Trump was behind a corrupt enterprise.”
Credit: TNS
Credit: TNS
Another big takeaway is that jurors questioned former U.S. Sen. David Perdue about a meeting at Truist Park in December 2020 when he pressed Gov. Brian Kemp to convene a special session.
That meeting was featured in Greg Bluestein’s book “Flipped” and became a flashpoint in the GOP primary last year. At the meeting, Kemp told Perdue and then-U.S. Sen. Kelly Loeffler he wouldn’t call a special session under any circumstance.
“I have no problem being the bad guy,” he told them.
After Hallerman and Rankin’s story broke Wednesday, your Insiders were bombarded with analysis from politicos who pinpointed a quote from one of the grand jurors predicting the fallout will be “massive” when the report is released in the future.
Wrote one: “Could Atlanta be the home of the Democratic National Convention and the Donald Trump trial at the same time in 2024?”
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Credit: Natrice Miller/AJC
Credit: Natrice Miller/AJC
RAFFENSPERGER REMOVAL: A late addition to an elections bill would strip Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger of his position on the State Election Board.
Raffensperger already lost his chairmanship of the board as part of the state’s voting law passed two years ago — one of the only parts of the law that he objected to at the time.
Under the latest version of a bill Wednesday that prohibits outside funding of local election offices, Raffensperger wouldn’t even remain a nonvoting member of the board that decides the consequences for election irregularities and fraud.
(You can find your copy of that substitute here.)
Credit: Arvin Temkar/AJC
Credit: Arvin Temkar/AJC
State Rep. Houston Gaines, a Republican from Athens, suggested the additions to the bill that remove Raffensperger, financially separate the State Election Board from the secretary of state’s office, and give the board authority to appoint an executive director. The bill doesn’t include funding.
Gaines said the proposal would make the State Election Board more independent from the secretary of state’s office, but he didn’t elaborate to the House Governmental Affairs Committee on why it was needed.
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Credit: Arvin Temkar/AJC
Credit: Arvin Temkar/AJC
UNDER THE GOLD DOME, Legislative Day 35:
- 8 a.m.: Committee meetings begin;
- 9 a.m.: The House gavels in;
- 1 p.m.: The Senate convenes.
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Credit: Arvin Temkar/AJC
Credit: Arvin Temkar/AJC
ON THE MOVE. With just five days of session left until Sine Die, here’s what we’re watching:
- Gov. Brian Kemp signed House Bill 162, a roughly $1 billion, one-time tax rebate for Georgians. Filers will see rebates between $250 and $500.
- The House Governmental Affairs Committee passed Senate Bill 222 Wednesday, the bill to ban outside funding to counties for elections, known as the “Zuckerbucks” bill. Mark Niesse reports the bill has just small steps left — House approval and Senate agreement to amendments — to get to final passage.
- State Rep. David Wilkerson, D- Powder Springs, is prepping legislation to de-annex a large portion of the newly created City of Mableton back into unincorporated Cobb County, Taylor Croft writes. Many residents of the new city say they either opposed cityhood or did not know they’d be included in it.
- The Senate passed HB 142 Wednesday, creating a unified police force for Spelman College, Clark Atlanta University, Morehouse College, and Morris Brown College.
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WHO’S COUNTING? The honeymoon may be over between the state House and Senate, which had seen a reset in their sometimes frosty relationship with new leaders in both chambers this year.
But on Wednesday, Lt. Gov. Burt Jones ended the day’s Senate floor session with a quip about the slow pace of work on the House side when it comes to passing bills that originated in and passed the Senate.
“We might need to work on our March Madness bracket tomorrow because the House isn’t doing anything with any of our bills,” Jones said. “So I think Mr. Pro Tem, if you’re alright with it, maybe we should just work on the brackets tomorrow, because they’re not taking up any of our stuff.”
Rules Committee Chairman Matt Brass went to the well to hammer the point with a handful of papers.
“In my hand I hold nine bills, nine Senate bills. That’s how many they have passed over there,” Brass said. “We are at 60 House bills we have passed. I tell you that to tell you the Rules Committee meeting will be very brief today.”
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Credit: Arvin Temkar/AJC
Credit: Arvin Temkar/AJC
STACEY ABRAMS 3.0. Stacey Abrams has said she will “likely run again.” Although she hasn’t said which office she might put her name forward for, the possibility of a third Abrams run for governor doesn’t excite some Georgia Democrats, our Insider Greg Bluestein writes.
“The party needs to move forward. And going 0-3 isn’t a way to go forward,” one Democrat said.
In the meantime, Abrams announced this week she has joined Rewiring America as senior counsel. The non-profit advocacy organization is at the center of the effort to move consumers from fossil fuels to cleaner energy. The group landed in Fox News’ crosshairs last month when it advocated for Americans to swap from gas stoves to electric ranges.
The group is also focused on connecting Americans with the billions of dollars in incentives to transition to newer, greener appliances included in the Inflation Reduction Act last year.
In a statement, Abrams said, “It has to be about people getting their fair share, having a better life, and having appliances that work. We need to be able to tell people why electrification matters to them.”
I’m excited to join @RewiringAmerica today as Senior Counsel to help more folks understand how much money they can save with a little help to upgrade their homes and vehicles. Together, we can share the benefits of electrification and ensure families get their fair share. pic.twitter.com/alQlvdUVPR
— Stacey Abrams (@staceyabrams) March 14, 2023
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Credit: TNS
Credit: TNS
TODAY IN WASHINGTON:
- The U.S. Senate has more confirmations scheduled.
- Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack testifies before the Senate Agriculture Committee on the Biden administration’s outlook on the 2023 Farm Bill.
- The House is in recess this week.
- President Joe Biden has no public events scheduled.
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Credit: Ore Huiying/The New York Times
Credit: Ore Huiying/The New York Times
TICK TOCK for TIKTOK. The state of Georgia has already moved to ban TikTok from state devices, citing the national security concerns stemming from the Chinese government’s close relationship with the social media platform.
On Wednesday, The New York Times reported the White House has demanded the company either separate itself from its Chinese owners or face a total ban in the United States.
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Credit: TNS
Credit: TNS
GARCETTI CONFIRMATION. Former Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti was confirmed as ambassador to India on Wednesday thanks to the support of most Democrats and a handful of Republicans.
Both of Georgia’s U.S. senators, Jon Ossoff and Raphael Warnock, voted in favor of Garcetti’s confirmation despite allegations that he should have known and intervened after a close aide was accused of sexual harassment.
“I looked at everything, and I’m voting to confirm,” Warnock said prior to the final vote.
Credit: Natrice Miller/AJC
Credit: Natrice Miller/AJC
The final vote was 52-42 with seven Republicans in favor and three Democrats opposed. Six lawmakers were absent for various reasons.
Ossoff said that he reviewed the allegations but didn’t find anything that would disqualify Garcetti from serving. He also noted the importance of filling the ambassadorship for a key U.S. ally that could also help improve trade relations with the state of Georgia.
“I have engaged intensively with the Indian government to support Georgia farmers, and there’s tremendous economic potential for Georgia-India trade and investment,” he said. “And having an ambassador in place enables us to get things done for Georgia in U.S.-India relations more effectively.”
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Credit: Courtesy photo
Credit: Courtesy photo
DOG OF THE DAY. We’ve already told you about the dogs of lobbyists at the state Capitol. Now meet our first doggy-ist at the Capitol, Bailey Lott.
Bailey lives with his owner and handler, Chase Lott, in Tifton. He recently visited the Capitol to meet with members of the General Assembly to share how he is trained to support the health and well-being of first responders as a part of AT&T’s animal-assisted therapy program.
To Bailey-the-Doggyist and the first responders he’s supporting, you have our vote!
Send us your pups of any political persuasion — and cats, on a cat-by-cat basis — to patricia.murphy@ajc.com, or DM us on Twitter @MurphyAJC.
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AS ALWAYS, Jolt readers are some of our favorite tipsters. Send your best scoop, gossip and insider info to patricia.murphy@ajc.com, tia.mitchell@ajc.com and greg.bluestein@ajc.com.
