Chamber campaign schmoozing, Vance's visit, GA's wrong-way energy policy & more

Earlier this week, U.S. Senator Jon Ossoff (D-Ga) addressed the Georgia Chamber of Commerce while many of the GOP hopefuls seeking to oust him in 2026 were working the room. Also working the room - Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger, who hasn't said what office (if any) he'll be running for soon.But he was in the room schmoozing, so of course he's running for something. The question is: is there an avenue for him to win the GOP nomination in either the Senate or gubernatorial primary? I, for one, have my doubts. ------Meanwhile, Vice President J.D. Vance swooped into metro Atlanta to tout the highly unpopular "Big Beautiful Bill" that was signed into law last month. He steered clear of going anywhere near projects unfunded by that same bill, like the $65 million for the south metro Flint River Gateway Trails. ------Speaking of environmental impact, Georgia's going the wrong direction (and that'll be exacerbated by Trump-led green energy rollbacks), and consumers will pay the brunt for that, according to Patty Durand, founder of Georgians for Affordable Energy. ------Texas moved forward with their use of "gerrymandering on request" to appease the unpopular President, Donald Trump. He's trying to fend off a midterm turnover of the U.S. House. California, in turn, is aiming to undo what Texas does, and their state Supreme Court signed off on it. What's rich is, House Speaker Mike Johnson wants California to stick to using independent redistricting commissions (just California, though; no word on seeing red states embrace this concept, of course) when he's the shining example of an unchallenged politician benefiting from gerrymandering in his home state. Brilliant takedown by David Pepper on X. ------Jamie Dupree wrote an op/ed for the Atlanta Journal Constitution spotlighting what appears to be the first Democratic-drafted plan to provide an alternative to "Project 2025" that Dupree believes most Americans could get behind. Ohio Democratic House member Greg Landsman has penned a ten-point plan that lays that path out.