The Ron Show

Shawn Harris, vying to unseat Republican Clay Fuller in Georgia's 14th Congressional district, is also a cattle farmer, and like many in the trade, is suffering mightily under Trump's looming beef import plan. Hear how it's literally impacting his and other farmers' wallets, and how Harris' dogged pursuit to represent the rural northwest Georgia district once held by Marjorie Taylor Green actually gets boosts from her social media tirades even if that's not her intent.The former brigadier general has a few thoughts on the Iran war debacle, too.

At Cobb County's 'Back to School' faculty rally, superintendent (and Trump fan-boy) went off on a 12-plus minutes long political bender that sent dozens of Cobb educators heading for the aisles and exits, prompting scrutiny from the school system. On with me to discuss the event, the tone, the aftermath and the intimidatory effect of the grilling teachers are taking (will there be disciplinary action?) and how one school board race in that county could change everything (eventually) is freelance journalist, Cobb County Courier contributor Rebecca Gaunt.

Donald Trump's March executive order aiming to curb mail-in voting (except for when he uses it, of course) drew swift legal action from dozens of states and voter rights organizations, and to hear the Supreme Court's conservative majority rationalize it, it's the swiftness to act that drew their rebuke.At issue, though, is a little-known precedent -the Purcell principle. From CNN:"If federal courts attempt to shut down Trump’s executive order closer to November, they are likely to run headlong into a wonky judicial doctrine known as the “Purcell principle.” Rooted in a 2006 Supreme Court decision, the principle warns federal courts at all levels against making last-minute changes to voting rules. If the litigation drags out, the Justice Department is almost certain to argue that it’s too late for courts to intervene to stop the administration before this year’s midterm."In other words, 'damned if you do, damned if you wait.'Well, here's a "not so fast," for ya ... there's lots more to happen back in lower court action to potentially / likely derail Donald's dastardly voter suppression deed - and that's chiefly due to a pesky little document known as the "US Constitution," but time (maybe not much of it, really) will tell.That said, Georgia GOP gubernatorial nominee Rick Jackson seems comfortable in some previously unspoken knowledge that his buddy Governor Brian Kemp will utilize the National Guard to lord over voting precincts. He literally told a supporter that near a live mic (or recording mobile device). All this to say: "stay woke," y'all.

Marilyn Marks, executive director at the Coalition for Good Governance, has long warned that Georgia's physical set-up for voting at precincts - using illuminated touch screens - violates Georgia Constitutional law by denying one's right to privacy when voting. It turns out, that's not the only way "ne'er do wells" can find out how you voted: she tipped off a Princeton University researcher that she could use Chat GPT to find out how a handful of Heard County voters voted, and he experimented with the process and took it a step further. There's just one Georgia Election Board member - MAGA-rific Salleigh Grubbs - who's even remotely concerned about this, and Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger nor his director of special projects for the secretary’s office, aren't at all. Are you?Marilyn joined me today to discuss the very real dangers for many voters fearful their employer, their spouse, their pastor, their students' parents (for example) can know (and potentially weaponize) how they voted, and offers some solutions to secure a voter's privacy in time for November's midterm elections.

PLUS: Alpharetta's aversion to icky renters & why would a Billy Linville crossover endorsement matter when Rick cant' get Burt on board?Earlier this week, the Democratic Party announced its finalists for the 2028 DNC convention and Atlanta didn't make the shortlist (Denver, Philadelphia and Boston all did); a decision that - on its face - is sort of inexplicable given Georgia's teetering on the brink of flipping blue with a good solid nudge or two and that the aforementioned finalists have all hosted the convention in recent years. Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens released a letter of exasperation - not wrong to disagree with the decision to snub Atlanta i n2028 - but he included enough ammunition for the GOP to use in a 2026 midterm cycle that's beyond-necessary for the party he's a member of to claw back some power in Congress and in his own state. Hear why I likened his letter to a post-grounding tantrum from a teenager.A plan to develop Alpharetta's North Point Mall is getting pushback because the developer wants to include - ick! - apartments instead of buyable condominiums and townhomes. That north Fulton County enclave already has some NIMBY-istic laws on the books limiting the number of leasable homes in its city limits, but I can't help but wonder where they think a new sports arena's concessions, ticket booth and usher employees are going to live since jobs like those don't pay well enough for anyone to live IN Alpharetta? Who TF is Billy Linville - aside from a guy who dresses a lot like Rick Jcakson? Well, he's some moderate Democrat mover-n-shaker in Georgia politics (I guess?) who's endorsing 'slick Rick.' Meanwhile, prominent Georgia Republican (and current lieutenant governor) Burt Jones still hasn't warmed to supporting - let alone voting for - Rick Jackson.

Medicaid expansion, predatory lending (to hospitals from the likes of Rick Jackson's Jackson Healthcare), vaccine confusion, gun (and school) safety, and a post-primary vibe check ... all that in Thursday's conversation with Georgia House Rep. Dr. Michelle Au (HD 50).

State Senator Josh McLaurin joined The Ron Show Wednesday to discuss the issues of importance in the 2026 midterm election cycle. He and Ron also pontificate on why winning the Lieutenant Governor's race is of vital importance with or without control of the House and/or Senate and why he's best suited to deliver results.

Freelance journalist Alex Jobin joined me today to discuss his piece chronicling a struggling Montgomery, Alabama hospital and its biggest creditor - Jackson Healthcare - ready to profit off its bankruptcy at the expense of local and state taxpayers. Like Georgia, Alabama refuses to expand Medicaid through the Affordable Care Act and hospitals throughout that state or scaling back services or shuttering altogether. Fear not, though, Rick Jackson's company profits through it all, meaning - he and his company can prey on the healthcare industry when healthcare access to the poor and working poor is limited.

Georgia's elected Democratic Socialist, Georgia House Rep. Gabiel Sanchez (GA 42) is up for re-election and seems to be able to work well with the Democratic Party - as a Democrat and Democratic Socialist - winning over African American voters in his district and door-knocking for fellow Democratic House candidates hoping to flip the chamber this November. What gives? We've been told DSA candidates were "disruptive" to the party? Hmm. Maybe that's all BS?PLUS: fundraising lags for prominent Georgia Democrats, Trump tries brokering a peace deal - between Rick Jackson & Burt Jones, who can't even say he'd vote for the GOP nominee. Also, Mexican factory workers brought to the US for high-paying, high-skills jobs got shafted by their employers.

Whether Donald Trump uses his Thursday night address to relitigate Georgia's 2020 election was yet to be seen as of the Tuesday prior, but what's apparent aside from that is this: Democrats seem to know how to snatch "defeat" from the jaws of "victory" all too often the last decade-plus. Between the hand-wringing by centrists like James Carville and the "vote is in play" tease Bill Maher to "sour grapes" supporters of Rep. Jasmine Crockett in Texas, there are factions forgetting their own mantra: "vote blue, no matter who" when a progressive wins a primary. Well James Talarico isn't apologizing for defeating Crockett (nor should he), but he Is "doing the work" to show black voters in Texas his message should appeal to them.

That and was Atlanta the big winner in the FIFA World Cup aftermath? Those topics and more with Donnell Suggs, from The Atlanta Voice.

Mike Collins' son-in-law is a devout white supremacist, but also ... well, Mike Collins' son-in-law ... who until recently appeared all over Mike's campaign site. On to discuss that, the GOP's complex relationship with Israel, the evidence of antisemitism in our political discourse, and her insights into key 2026 Georgia races is former State House candidate and co-host of Georgia NOW's 'At The Kitchen Table' show and podcast, Debra Shigley.

Prior to Donald Trump's latest public hissy fit over election security, I (and the AJC's Patricia Murphy) had a pretty solid idea what would be covered - and that would a) not amount to much and/or b) actually benefit Democrats.

A recent spate of deaths at the hands of Immigration & Customs Enforcement (ICE) warrants further scrutiny of all the carnage caused by them in the second Trump presidency.Speaking od "the Donald," TV networks were positioning themselves to decide if (or not to) carry the President's Thursday night election blather. Campaign largesse for Senator Jon Ossoff not only bodes well for his re-election bid, but it may aid the gubernatorial bid of Democratic nominee Keisha Lance Bottoms.Lastly, will all the private and public sector investment in Atlanta's hosting the FIFA 2026 World Cup pay off, economically?

PLUS: the Graham "pleasure-givers" start speaking up & the subtleties of KLB's 'black' sales pitchSocial media was abuzz last night and into the morning that a planned address to the nation Thursday by the President was going to include salacious allegations that the elections of both Senators Jon Ossoff and Rev. Raphael Warnock were illegitimate.' The White House (somewhat) walked back those rumors, but it still drew rebukes from both Ossoff and Warnock. Meanwhile, after we (and many others) discussed the potential for a Warnock Presidential run in 2028, it's notable that not only has Rev. Senator Warnock gotten two "affordability" bills passed and made into law (the $35 insulin cap being a big one), his bill capping home ownership by private equity firms not only became law, it did so without the signature of President Donald Trump. That's right - Senator Warnock got his bill through Congress while Trump keeps flailing on his voter suppression bill. Who's got more sway in the Beltway these days, then, hmm?- - - Progressive podcaster Keith Edwards brought the world's attention to the first voices of those hired to bring "pleasure" to former Senator Lindsey Graham on his podcast, but he also stated - more eloquently than I could, frankly - why he, too, being a gay man, took issue with Graham's hypocrisies. - - - Lastly, a (gift link) good piece by Greg Bluestein at the AJC noting the differences between the campaigns of Stacey Abrams and Keisha Lance Bottoms despite both having glass ceilings to shatter in being Georgia's first female and black (plus female AND black) governor. Bottoms' more subtle tone vs Abrams' more vocal tenor is - if nothing else - noteworthy.

As the world wondered where Mitch McConnell was, the grim reaper threw us all a curveball and came for South Carolina Senator Lindsey Graham instead. The "decent" thing to do is to pay your respects to someone when they pass even if you disagreed with them ideologically, right? Sorry, but the "open secret" part of who Lindsey Graham was, blended with his rock-solid anti-LGBTQIA+ voting record for a party filled with acolytes who knew of his "open secret" but didn't mind so long as he towed the party line on issues that he smugly believed weren't aimed at the likes of him means this out gay white southern man owes him no respects, alive or dead.Georgia leaders (Republicans and Democrats) took the high road. None of them are gay, though, so ... Bitter? No. Steadfastly disappointed? Absolutely. Disgusted that he spent decades piling, legislatively, on to people he knew had no choice in who they loved because he, himself, had no choice sa to what he was drawn to sexually. Then again, there was the 2016 Lindsey Graham who warned us all (correctly) how disastrous a President Donald Trump would be and the Lindsey Graham of January 6, 2021 who had 'had enough' of the Trumpist antics. Unfortunately, there's the years between those eras and the last five years where he enabled the man he exclaimed was going to be so dangerous to his party, the nation and the world.

Notes to come ...

Hear me (and Greg Bluestein at the AJC) out ...

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Notes forthcoming.

Friend of the show, columnist Jay Bookman reminds us (and Rick Jackson) of the "Rick Jackson" Rick recalls himself being as a child: impoverished and in need. As Bookman opines, it's as if Jackson forgot that child version of himself on route to crafting the sort of policies he'd put in place if he were to become Georgia's next governor.- - - Revisiting a conversation I had with Mary Rose Wood, a brave "bad ass" (her brother's term) who's a high school teacher in Chapin, SC. There she was smeared on school board candidates' campaign mailer as "communist." All because she had her AP language arts students read a Ta-Nehisi Coates book. The south gonna "south," right?Anyhow, we discussed her story, brush with fame (and fear) in that small SC town.

Some folks on social media have taken the bait, arguing the pros and cons of mandated "Pride Night" gear for pro athletes. Of all teams, the SAN FRANCISCO Giants manages to have anti-gay bigots on its roster, but they also (my opinion) made the mistake of concocting "Pride Night" gear for players to wear (it was an option, and note mandated). A minor league baseball team wound up having to forfeit its game when too many rostered players refused to wear their "Pride Night" gear. I'm as gay as they get, but I'm not dumb enough to think it's wise to put "Pride night" literally on the shoulders of pro athletes. Why give any bigot the platform to gripe about it? Or write Bible verses (eye roll) on their caps in response? Meanwhile, I'm re-sharing a conversation I had back in 2023 with a Hartwell, Georgia independent Baptist preacher who bucked the bigoted Baptist trend and swung open his smalltown church's doors - as the Washington Post reported it tnen - filling pews by "leaving no one out."

...plus the Georgia GOP no-show rodeo & a Wynter-y cold endorsement leaves Mike Collins frozen out.The special session Governor Brian Kemp commanded out of the state legislature didn't yield much for his party (no redrawn maps, no property tax cuts passed onto consumers' sales taxes) but it did yield a mess of an election bill he'll have to sign (we're guessing) to address the looming QR code deadline: according to Marilyn Marks with the Coalition for Good Governance, the bill accidentally mandates razor-thin election margins, the way it's written. Oof. She joined me to explain. - - - Meanwhile, it's officially "general election season" for the 2026 calendar so focus will turn to Rick Jackson v Keisha Lance Bottoms, with statements made by Jackson at an event with a radical anti-abortion voter raising eyebrows. In the comments, he seems to co-sign on eliminating exclusions for incest and rape. - or at least creating new barriers to those exceptions being available to women who learn they're pregnant on or after the six-week ban in Georgia would occur. His being poor at thinking on his feet (there and in a prior televised debate) is likely one reason why Democratic nominee Keisha Lance Bottoms is challenging Jackson to no less than three one-on-one forums. ---The alleged killer who stabbed a MARTA passenger weeks ago may receive the death penalty, according to a federal grand jury, writes Rosie Manins at the Atlanta Journal Constitution. That's the story anti-transit, anti-urban folks want you to focus on, and not the fact that MARTA has adequately absorbed twice the usual ridership during the World Cup while running on-time and without incident. All that just proving that a little influx of state and federal support makes MARTA run "smarta."- - - As if there isn't enough to embarrass any Republican with self-awareness, a Georgia GOP rodeo drew "tens" of people (my guess-estimate when you don't count candidates and their surrogates). HA!- - - One more, though! Atlanta-based conservative talk radio host Shelley Wynter (WSB A/FM) had Senator Jon Ossoff on recently - and endorsed the incumbent Senator! Hear the exchange:

A Tuesday update on Georgia's special legislative session takes us to one ring of a three-ring circus of GOP clown activity. As the AJC's Caleb Groves & David Wickert reported - Republicans under the Gold Dome struggled to tackle a self-mandated deadline to eliminate QR codes from ballots while also trying to saddle local elections officials with an absurd burden to hand recount top-tier races. Stone Mountain Senator Kim Jackson took to the floor to rip the silliness. Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger (REPUBLICAN) succinctly pointed out that Georgia Republicans in the assembly had 18 months, ten meetings with his office and multiple budget requests for funding to allow his office to do exactly what they mandated his office do - to no avail.- - - Technically in the same "ring" of the current GOP circus, Democrats successfully blocked Georgia Republican efforts to create new taxes (they'd saddle county & city politicians with doing that to avoid shouldering any blame themselves) by passing property taxes only roughly 65% of the state's residents would benefit from while 100% shoulder the additional taxes sure to come to cover for 'em. - - - The lead clown in this three-ring circus is, of course, the clown with all the orange spray tan makeup. As James Tate on Twitter/X astutely lays out - point by point- Donald Trump has again successfully created a problem he now wants to fix while blaming "Antifa" for causing. Ron Filipowski: " So an Antifa scuba diver with a box cutter snuck into the Reflecting Pond to cut a 300 foot section out while evading all cameras and law enforcement in order to sabotage Trump. Do I have that right?"- - - Meanwhile, Tucker Carlson and Marjorie Taylor Greene are both now washing their hands of the Republican Party. I mean, their complicity in crafting what the GOP is now under MAGA & Trump is missing from their proclamations. They're unhappy (among other things) that we a) went to war with Iran then b) negotiated a deal that's a near-complete capitulation to Iran (from the "The Art of the Deal" leader they helped to return to the White House). British comedian Jonathan Pie, in his caricaturish role of TV reporter Tom Walker, truly captured all that makes ZERO sense with Donalt Trump leading on negotiating with Iran and his treatment of allies.

During the entire special session of the Georgia General Assembly, Democrats managed - time and time again - to withstand GOP efforts to offer property tax cuts while putting the burden on local electeds to find ways to make up the funding gap such cuts would put on county and municipal budgts. One such locally elected official - Jimmy Furst, Chamblee city councilman - provided his thoughts in an op/ed for the Atlanta Journal Constitution - and of course, so did I.Meanwhile the chief (we're told) reason for the special session was a looming July 1st deadline to eliminate QR codes from Georgia ballots. A half-measure with no Democratic party input sought to put the task off until 2028 but also mandating hand recounts for the top two races on any ballot. Oy!- - - My hometown (Grovetown, Georgia) has changed a lot since I was a kid in the 1980s. When I was a kid, we had a former Klansman as our fire department chief. Today, Grovetown's a racially diverse thriving bedroom community of 10,000-plus with Black city council members. A former city councilperson and mayoral candidate - Ceretta Smith - is now the Democratic party nominee for Georgia's 12th Congressional district. I got to know more about the former US Army medic and national union leader about what drives her to continue to want to serve her country.

PLUS: We get a post-primary checkup on the Democrats' slate in Georgia from Atlanta-based strategist & Mike Collins will have a hard time beating Ossoff when he's unliked within GOP ranksNow that we're clear of the primary calendar (checks to make sure it's impossible there's any. more. run-offs) it's time to get to know some of the Democratic candidates throughout the state running for state and federal offices.Numerically, why not start in Georgia's 1st Congressional? Amanda Hollowell is the party's nominee; a well-known political strategist and the Chief of Campaigns at Color Of Change, the country’s largest online racial justice organization. I got to spend a lot of time learning about her, what's shaped her mindset and how her professional background and her raising a son who chimes in with his and his friends' views makes her a sharpened candidate to flip GA 1.- - - Atlanta-based political strategist/consultant Andrew Heaton popped on a call for a post-primary check-up of the Georgia Democratic Party's November slate, and to look at what the GOP counter candidacy looks like, too. One issue that may hobble Mike Collins is that he's unlikable even among prominent conservatives in the state, and the improprieties within his campaign and Congressional office may dog him throughout the general election cycle.

PLUS: Kemp's 11th hour endorsement may test his political prowess for now and later.When Nabilah Parkes stepped away from use Georgia Senate seat to run for lieutenant governor, I believe she put personal aspiration ahead of party and constituents, which is why I can't vote for her today. That said, she couldn't have predicted the Supreme Court gutting the remnants of the Voting Rights Act to unleash another round of racial gerrymandering, but that's where we are, starting tomorrow.There's a run-off for that seat where two Democrats hope tobe on the general election ballot in November to take the office next January, but Republicans could win it today with a surge in turnout up-ballot aiding them.It's a three-alarm fire, and stepping up to try and save that Senate seat for Democrats is an unconventional candidate in Adrienne White-Carden. She's a career woman, mother and wife who's worked behind the scenes on several campaigns and causes, and is now the face and name on campaign material.She joined me to discuss the moment, why it works for her and her family "just this once" and the uphill battle she and her campaign staff, volunteers and army of endorsers have had to wage in the lats week.- - - Elsewhere on the ballot, Republicans have to choose between "Daddy's (money) boy Burt" and Rick "the ick" Jackson - who now has backing from (ick!) Ted Cruz and the social media praise from Donald Trump Jr. (ick!). Meanwhile Burt netting an 11th hour endorsement from Governor Brian Kemp feels like a backhanded compliment of sorts but it and Kemp's backing of Derek Dooley in the US Senate primary seem to be early tests of Brian's political clout in the state he's governed for two terms.

Joining me to discuss - HD 62 candidate KaVon Arnold, seeking to overcome not only a primary runoff opponent, but half a million in gaming PAC money, too.Also problematic is that her opponent, Ken Collier, doesn't have the kind of voting record that speaks to being a staunch (or even just present) Democrat.Anyhow, it was good to connect with KaVon; she's a great story of a hometown East Point / Tri-Cities grad who continues to re-invest in her community and school through good works. - - - The looming Iran / US / Israel "memorandum" doesn't pass the smell test, nor does warhawk Pete Hegseth's assertion that this deal is going to be so wonderul because we attacked them - preferable, I sppose, to not attacking them and just sticking to the JCPOA signed into existence by President Obama about twelve years ago before Trump withdrew us from it. But also, how significant will this deal even be? And while we're coming up with $300 billion to repair damage done in Iran, where's the money for Americans' having to endure spikes in fuel prices and the cost of goods?

World Cup hype is being met with hoteliers being less-than-impressed with bookings. Last summer, Beyonce' and baseball's All-Star game seemed to outpace FIFA's marquee event, in Atlanta bookings. This isn't just an Atlanta malaise, either. Who's to blame? A global economy stunted by war? ICE presence dampening spirits in the Latino community? Maybe it's some combination of events, but it's hard to escape the ambivalence, writes the AJC's Ken Seguira. - - - With all the gaudiness of the UFC / Motorcross events at the White House, it's also kind of humorous that investigators are literally combing Washington Mall grass to figure out who's responsible for the appearance of the numbers 8,6, 4 and 7 in the grass. - - - High-profile GOP run-offs are giving an alarming edge to Republicans in Senate district 7 where the former Senator - Nabilah Parkes - exited early to make an 11th hour run for the nomination to be her party's lieutenant governor nominee. With Democrats needing every vote in a looming special session where new legislative maps will drawn and voted on. While the pivot may pay off for Parkes, it may have cost her party a Senate seat until next January, and through this pivotal special session.

Watching from afar as the Graham Platner situation continues to unfold, I'm both amused (by Kellyanne Conway and Trump's utter lack of self-awareness) and concerned that his being the Democratic nominee in Maine to unseat Susan Collins could make retaking the Senate a nailbiter. ---Meanwhile, Georgia Recorder scribe Jay Bookman joined me fresh from posting his latest op/ed: "Where is the state’s commitment to helping Atlanta’s public transit system succeed?"Valid question, indeed.

PLUS: Donald pisses off Knicks' fans; where's the proof from the FBI / Fulton seizure & MARTA's naysayers seem unaware of the authority's efforts to address homelessnessThe Atlanta Journal Constitution's Patricia Murphy - perhaps as a response to national media fawning over Jon Ossoff as a potential 2028 contender - brought the wet blanket to that notion. Okay fine; but it's hard to argue that his being on a potential 2028 ticket wouldn't make it a better ticket.- - - - Donald Trump showing up for the New York Knicks' NBA Finals game earlier this week was clearly another "Make a Wish" presidency stop: more about him and less about the tens of thousands there or the hundreds of thousands who hoped to attend watch parties around the venue. Fans there let him know they were pissed, but the nationally syndicated morning show "The Breakfast Club" also weighed in on Stephen A. Smith's disdain for Trump's presence. - - - - The AJC reports on the FBI seizure of Fulton County 2020 boxes of ballots: that it's "investigation fails to deliver, so far." Ya don't say.- - - - The thing about "big city" issues is (I've said this many times) that Republicans never offer actionable solutions, but like "Statler & Waldorf," the old snipes in "The Muppet Show" balcony, have snide comments and no contribution. Most right wing MARTA grousers are likely unaware MARTA's actually long teamed up with an Atlanta homeless advocacy organization (gift link) to assist the unhoused who show up in their stations and on their trains.

PLUS: "everyone" wants Senator Jon Ossoff to run for President.I pulled up a recent video done by the Atlanta Journal Constitution's Ernie Suggs, doing a small tour of MARTA train usage weaving in MARTA's troubled (from the start) history for some context.What frustrates me most about MARTA's issues - and the issues flowing into its stations and trains from the major city it serves - is that Republicans who have almost no footing in the metro area, and particularly not the city itself, show no interest in addressing systemic issues by offering long term solutions. Instead, they lean on "dog whistle" tropes knowing their suburban, exurban and rural voters have backed-in preconceptions about "inner city" violence and "urban" decay.There's nothing new under the sun with this sort of pandering to a mostly white voting block but what doesn't get said enough - in my opinion - is that a) "white flight" led to a lot of usb) at the state level, Republicans take a "hands off" approach to a region of the state they can't gain footing in because they don't see the electoral benefit (gee, wonder why?) whichc) makes them just as (if not more) responsible, in absentia, as any local authorities or elected leaders actually *trying* to effect positive change.Atlanta police chief Darin Schierbaum opines "you can't arrest your way to a safe city" in an op/ed in the Atlanta Journal Constitution. He's right; but that's all Republicans ever offer as "solutions" to crime: bigger police presence as a (temporary) deterrent but never solution(s) to the longer term and system issues that are at the root of crime: a lack of opportunity. - - - -The New York Times' Michelle Goldberg opines that "everyone" wants Georgia's US Senator Jon Ossoff to run for President. Hey, I"m a fan, myself; I've whispered about him being a 2028 dark horse in episodes past, too, but I'm skimming over her op/ed to chew on the notion a bit. The AJC's Patricia Murphy, meanwhile, has a different take: "sorry liberals; Jon Ossoff isn't running for President."- - - - Whew, that 'Meet The Press' sit down was a headscratcher, no? Why's the President holed up in a metal sided building in rural Wisconsin in the midst of severe weather to do a network TV interview, anyway? Oh, and also he's a petulant man-baby who his base entrusts to negotiate with the likes of Iran, China's Xi and Russia's Putin, but is too easily rattled by Kirsten Welker pressing him on unfounded election conspiracies. But the story that caught my attention over the weekend? That the Pentagon has ratcheted up its concerns that Israel is spying on us. The Hegseth-led "Department of War" raised its threat assessment level to the highest level on our ally - Israel - spying on us. - - - -Back to Trump on 'Meet The Press,' and my calling out political media for their two-toned portrayal of monthly jobs numbers from one presidency to the next. Trump is taking victory laps over jobs numbers from May that - under Biden - would've been less feted by national media. Meanwhile, farm bankruptcies are up, affordability is nearing crisis mode for many Americans (Trumps loves inflation, he said) and USDA Secretary Brooke Rollins - quizzed by Rep. Eric Sorensen - couldn't be bothered.

First, with the loss of Atlanta Civic Circle, a reminder that local journalism, local podcasting, local "scrutinizers" are in short supply even in a big city, and this economy and constantly altering landscape in news and content delivery don't make it any easier.That's why I chose to divulge that my personal income situation necessitates me taking a job that'll ensure a more stable income for me; but the hope is I'll be able to figure the schedule to keep doing this show. So with that ...- - - Despite crime data showing violent crime is down both in Atlanta and where MARTA police has jurisdiction, two prominent incidents - a violent stabbing murder and a gang-related shooting - has passengers on edge and dubious right wing politicians looking to capitalize. Burt Jones, for example, has spouted off a time or two on social media - even tying Keisha Lance Bottoms to MARTA - while offering nothing to actually solve what ails MARTA. That's the GOP for you, though: never solutions, just band aids with badges. AJC op/ed writer David Plazas wrote on the MARTA situation - from the standpoint of someone who enjoys using it frequently. Like the rest of us, he wants MARTA to succeed and to be better. - - - Another situation where the city's mass transit needs are being awfully bungled: the Atlanta Beltline that now has autonomous vehicles connecting patrons to the southwest portion of the trail via "ATL Spoke." One problem: a study touting its use was biased according to a filed complaint.Sara Gregory's thorough piece in the AJC offers a LOT of smoke that may well lead to a roaring fire of corruption.

Notes to come ...

My conversation today was heard by hundreds or thousands on Georgia NOW & Progressive Voices, but truly, it was meant for an audience of one - former Atlanta mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms, who's now the Democratic Party nominee for Governor of Georgia.MARTA's a PR disaster. A ghoulish, murderous stabbing of a grandmother. New trains (again) delayed prior to the FIFA World Cup. "More MARTA" underwhelming the voters that supported it.The Atlanta Beltline is falling further and further from its intention to alleviate in-city gridlock and offer easier mobility from Atlanta's historic neighborhoods as resistance to the rail element continues to build clout. Why not take a page from the Georgia GOP, circa 2020-21, and call for a state takeover of MARTA the way they salivated over wresting the airport from the city? As Atlanta's former mayor, you have your fingerprints on the Beltline project and can't possibly agree with Cox Enterprises CEO Alex Taylor who's joined the NIMBYs and Eastside trail business folks who now don't want the crucial rail element at all anymore, now, can you? Transit ... mobility ... not just for Atlanta in-city, but the metropolitan area and - dare I say - the state (that's home to the world's busiest airport and has feeder airports inexplicably flying people in small numbers at exorbitant fares) should be a top-of-mind conversation for an aspirational gubernatorial candidate. Heck, talk Delta into a public-private partnership. There's precedence for this in Canada. It makes good business sense for Delta, because it clearly did so for Air Canada, too. While the two GOP candidates try to out "tax cut" one another while also slinging mud to and fro, wouldn't be refreshing for the Democratic gubernatorial candidate to counter with something vastly more impactful?I mean a $1000 break here or there is fine, I guess. Not life changing. Reducing commute times, an affordable, swift means to connect to the world's busiest airport from Athens, Augusta, Columbus, Macon & Savannah - all of which makes it viable for people to live just about wherever they want in the state where they can find more affordable housing; that's what would positively impact the lives of so many Georgians.Mrs. Bottoms, you should pronounce to voters that you'll be governor who connects the state. Be the "mobility governor."It's there waiting for someone to grasp. Grasp it.

It's now abundantly clear that not only are the Georgia Republican Party's two Senate options of poor candidate quality with mid-20th century 'Jim Crow' vision, they're corrupt. Even worse for the Georgia GOP, they're golden boy - governor Brian Kemp - has been pulled into the woodchipper and exposed as well. With good local journalism disappearing - even in major hubs like Atlanta - it's important to pay attention to when it's still covering stories like these. The whole "Dooley-Kemp-other Dooley money funnel" story brought to light last week by WXIA-TV's Doug Richards was actually touched on in a Substack piece by Georgia Politics & Polling (no author named). Still, hat-tip!That sullies the already mediocre shine on the campaign of failed football coach Derek Dooley, son of UGA football legend Vince. It's also tarnished the perception that Brian Kemp is an unblemished 'rising star' with 2028 aspirations. Rep. Mike Collins, however, has long seemed to have issues with the company he keeps - notably his chief staffer and campaign manager Brandon Phillips. If Brandon's not making repulsive statements about rape victims being "sloppy seconds," he's making sure his girlfriend gets paid via taxpayer dollars through an internship where she did nothing. Then there's another staffer - Kip Talley - working double-time to free a Holocaust-denier - and bragging he'd do so in a group chat.A whole lot of 'ick' on that run-off ballot.- - - Speaking of run-offs, I'd opted not to weigh in on Georgia Democratic run-offs because I don't see bad options; but the lieutenant governor's race calls for commentary. Listen, I've no issues with ambition, but former Senator Nabilah Parkes put hers above her constituents, and her debate performance did little to make her look as a) a superior choice or b) a likable candidate (and she's a likable person, so that's baffling). Leaving your post is one thing; leaving the middle of a General Assembly session is another. Trying to explain that your absence means nothing because the other side is the majority and will ram new maps through anyway smacks of 'defeatism' and her opponent, state Senator Josh McLaurin is right to point that out.

Lost-n-Found Youth - an Atlanta-based organization working to take LGBTQIA+ young adults off the streets, provide them shelter and guidance to find their way to sustainability, is guided by executive director Melanea Alvarez, who joined me today to share the organization's backstory, and give a thorough audio tour of all the organization - known in thrifting circles for its popular thrift store - does for unhoused LGBTQIA+ youth. We also discuss the challenges an organization like LnFY faces in less-than-ideal political circumstances. GIVE TO LNFYVOLUNTEER WITH LNFY

Last Thursday, WXIA-TV's Doug Richards reported on findings that showed a bit of a taxpayer cash corruption loop showing itself between Governor Brian Kemp and the Dooley family, where Brine influenced upwards of $27 million in school safety contracts, taking donations from Daniel Dooley and funneling it back to Daniel's brother Derek Dooley's Senate campaign. Meanwhile, Mike Collins had to cut ties (finally!) with Congressional staffer and campaign manager Brandon Phillips after a social media comment calling a Dooley staffer "Matt Lauer's sloppy seconds" and “a Yankee with poor judgment in women and GA politics.” That Dooley staffer - Brooke Nevils, came forward recently alleging being raped by former the former NBC and TODAY show host Matt Lauer and revealed attempting suicide afterwards.I mean, sure it's low, but Phillips LIVES "low." As Patricia Murphy pointed out in her AJC op/ed, Phillips has been involved in bar fights and dog-kicking allegations. He's scum, but he's popular GOP scum, having ties to GOP gubernatorial hopeful Rick Jackson and Rep. Clay Fuller from Georgia's 14th Congressional district, along with lieutenant gubernatorial hopeful Sen. Greg Dolezal. Meanwhile, the joint campaign appearance with former Atlanta mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms and Senator Jon Ossoff stood in stark contrast at the Tabernacle Sunday, giving both candidates an opportunity to tee off on those scandals and on the current state ot Trump 2.0. I have both speeches in the show to review.

Atlanta-based journalist George Chidi (The Atlanta Objective, The Guardian) penned a thorough Substack piece taking a deep dive into the 2026 Georgia Democratic primary - going way down the ballot to give voters as much information as needed.Plus, hear how he's intrinsically tied to the death of Secoriea Turner and how that still affects him to this day, and what that wrongful death case could mean to the Keisha Lance Bottoms campaign. Now that we know the results, it's kind of fun to listen back to, I suppose. Please do!

The Atlanta Voice - celebrating sixty years in publication - is guided by editor-in-chief Donnell Suggs, who's made himself available for this show on many occasions, and the Monday before the Georgia primary, it was great to catch up and get a sense where his readership and metro Atlanta's Black voting bloc is leaning on a handful of races.He recently sat down with former Atlanta mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms, who is of course running for the Democratic nomination to be Georgia's next governor. Donnell and I discuss that race for second place, too. - - - This AL.com op/ed concerns me a bit. John Archibald covered protests in Selma and Montgomery, Alabama, and noted the optics of the fleets of black SUVs and limousines swooping into Selma for quick stops and swoops back out, as well as one woman's reponse: “That’s too much,” a lady beside me said. “This should be for the people.”Activists and politicians have to tweak these optics, in my opinion.That said, the likes of Rev. Senator Raphael Warnock, Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Tennessee state Rep. Justin Pearson, Senator Cory Booker, did lend voice and wisdom to the moment. I have highlights to share.

Gerald Griggs, Atlanta-based attorney, advocate and activist - and former NAACP Georgia chapter President, joined me Friday morning to weigh in on the landscape in a post-'Callais' U.S. and Georgia.He and I discussed the near-immediate aftermath of fever-pitch GOP redistricting to dilute Black voter power in Congress and even at the state level. Georgia's governor, Brian Kemp, this week announced he, too, is reconvening the state legislature to further gerrymander the state. He and I also previewed what to expect in Selma on Saturday.

Also, Democrats need to present an alternative to GOP and their own 'status quo' & is there a pattern of campaign finance ethics issues with Bottoms' campaigns?Not only did Brian Kemp call a special session of the General Assembly back to the Gold Dome to address a mess of its own making (mandating the elimination of QR codes from voter ballots), but the already-and-disproportionately gerrymandered state - in his mind - needs another redraw. So what are Democrats to do?Well, for starters, they need to understand that they, as a party, aren't much more popular than the historically unpopular President they're trying to mitigate by retaking the House the November. My goodness, if they could provide clarity by way of a slate of candidates backing a populist message that's centered on the working class, eschewing 'Third Way' "baby steps pragmatism" for a bold visionary agenda, the places they could ascend to!That agenda starts with fixing the way we govern and elect leaders. They include:Uncapping the House. New England California Republicans would love this because they'd finally have representation, and a nation whose voice in the House has been diluted by 1/3 since the 1930s gets its clout back.Eliminate partisan gerrymandering. Racial gerrymandering's supposedly gone, so get rid of partisan gerrymandering to ensure that, and do it before we've drawn ourselves into a civil war. By doing those two things you've already fixed the electoral college, but because it's broken, you have to also uncap the Supreme Court. Grow it to 13 to match the number of US court circuits. Oh, and Set term limits on that court.You can't tell me the American people wouldn't be solidly behind that. Call it "Project 2032" if you need to - so they know it can't be done overnight and that they (we) the voter have to stay on task to ensure we do our part to meet that date to see those accomplishments come to fruition. As Democrats, there'll be some self-inflicted pains in some "blue states," but gains to be made in others. So be it. This is how you grow your brand in places you aren't winning in. - - - I spent most of my show going off on that tangent, but closer to home, there are concerns - and now a filed campaign finance ethics complaint - shedding light on the Keisha Lance Bottoms' gubernatorial campaign. I highlighted a lot of those concerns before the complaint was filed, but this information's readily available for anyone to gather and use against her - including Burt Jones and Rick Jackson. Heck, I got it from a Republican campaign finance wonk. Is this "more baggage" to consider when deciding who Democrats in Georgia should back to be their gubernaotiral nominee? It bears mentioning this isn't the first time such allegations have come up. Then councilwoman Bottoms, when pivoting to a mayoral run, was hit with a $37,000 fine for campaign ethics violations.

Governor Brian Kemp's last hurrah with the veto pen (and the 'sign into law' pen, too) is akin to burying landmines on property just before abandoning it for someone else to step all over. Income & property tax relief measures passed by the GOP-led General Assembly will shift tax burden onto consumption taxes everyone will pay - disproportionately impacting the poor and working class - to give the better-and-well-of a break. Meanwhile, those revenue cuts also created a budget shortfall his vetoes don't measure to. So with those 'tough decisions' to make he chose curbing funds to combat veteran homelessness and money earmarked for K-12 student transportation needs. Wouldn't those buses help get students-of-need to those private schools their vouchers were supposed to bridge the gap for? - -- There's been so much attention paid to who ought to represent each party in the gubernatorial race that Georgia voters have no idea who ought to be lieutenant governor, with each party's candidates failing to gather enough support to overcome 'undecided' on either side. One of the three Democratic options - Richard Wright, a certified public account and not a career politician - joined the show today to make his case.

Fair Fight Action CEO Lauren Groh-Wargo (who's now been called to testify before a state Senate panel investigating the now-defunct New Georgia Project) joined me to vent over the state of civil rights & marginalized voter rights in a post-'Callais' environment. Lauren spoke of the need for a "new civil rights movement." Well, that new coalition is assembling Saturday in Selma - first at the Edmun Pettis bridge - with nearly a hundred organizations gathering to re-invigorate a civil rights movement that's seen a century of gains almost entirely wiped away in the last sixteen months. - - - Make no mistake: this isn't just about silencing Black voters. There's also been the targeted effort to eviscerate the Black middle class - starting with DOGE disproportionately terminating Black women from career federal jobs that, for generations, had been a 'safe haven' of sorts from hiring bias & pay discrepancies. It's not enough they want to dilute a Black family's voting power; they'd also taken aim at a Black woman's purchasing power, too. - - - It's no wonder, then, why Southern-born, Southern-raised Bakari Sellers 'lost his cool' as the smug Kevin O'Leary insisted Black people need to simply "get over it." Personally, I think Bakari showed great restraint.- - - Lastly, having recently binged 'Mad Men' and being - as many of you are - engulfed in 'The Handmaids' Tale' and it's spin-off, 'The Testaments,' I feel like both franchises provide some insights into what MAGA is taking women and minority women back to, but also the sort of Dystopian dream world the conservative patriarchy seems more closely aligned to than the diverse, expressive nation they currently live in.

After the 'Callais' decision by the US Supreme Court, Democrats were already bracing for 'confederate' states to hastily re-draw Congressional maps to eliminate majority black districts, clearly showing southern conservatives having moved on from 'racism' (note: sarcasm). Then came the Virginia Supreme Court deciding that state's hasty left-leaning gerrymander ran afoul of state law (by a 10-1 vote - not even close). So naturally, Democrats initially started grasping at an 'audacious and far-fetched' idea to salvage at least the Virginia gerrymander. To that I say "no. Stop. Don't do this in a fit of desperation."Why?Well it isn't just to take the "high road" that's cost Democrats ground the last few decades. No, it's about seeing an issue a vast majority of Americans agree on: gerrymandering just needs to go away, period. Democrats have tried legislating it away and watched as the Roberts' Supreme Court punted on its opportunity to get rid of it, too. It's a campaign issue. Use it. Use it in 2026. In 2028. In 2030 if necessary. Keep hammering at it until Republicans realize how much the American people are behind it or are so outnumbered they can't stop it.Any chance Democrats have at taking the House this cycle won't improve greatly by "far-fetched" scheming that'll only make them look as conniving as Republicans. Fine; maybe we don't win the House. I mean, maybe thanks to GOP 'dummymandering,' and Democrats overperforming this and last year anyway, you still do win it. There is that theory that this push to gerrymander is just putting 'safe GOP' districts within reach for insurgent Democratic candidates. Also, the Senate is in play and MAGA can't re-draw state lines. So you'll have to use gerrymandering again in 2028. Perhaps again in 2030. Plus, any gains the GOP made with black voters will be washed away. Trump's (and Stephen Miller's) overplaying their hand using ICE to demonize Hispanic people will do damage to the party's prospects with that bloc, too. "The ads write themselves."- - - Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez was in Atlanta last weekend and took the podium at Reverand Senator Ralphael Warnock's home church - New Ebenezer Baptist. I'm unsure if she's putting presidential feelers, but she's definitely striking a chord with soon-to-be-again marginalized black voters. - - - Lastly, while Virginia's Supreme Court is on folks' minds, it's not hard for us to forget that Georgia's 9-body high court is supposed to be filled with non-partisan candidates, but that former Governor Nathan Deal and current Governor Brian Kemp have seated eight of the nine due to maneuvering early retirements out of jurists to seat fresher bodies. So the (air quotes) "non-partisan" candidates Miracle Rankin and Jen Jordan have the full-throated support of former President Barack Obama, who makes the valid point that "state supreme court justices play a critical role in defending your rights and freedoms, which is why the election happening in Georgia right now is so important." In case we weren't already patently aware.

PLUS: A Democrat governor in GA having to work w/a GOP legislature & 'Friday Funnies'Thursday's conversation with former Fulton prosecutor Will Wooten, running for a Georgia Appeals Court seat, dropped just before the AJC's Bill Torpy penned his op/ed where he somewhat insinuates that perhaps Fulton DA Fani Willis may have dispatched candidates for a 'revenge tour' of sorts. Georgia Recorder columnist Jay Bookman offered more perspective on the Georgia Democratic gubernatorial race, noting that it's highly likely if a Democrat does win, they'll have to "work with" a GOP-led general assembly, and wonders which of the Democrats vying for the seat are best-suited to handle that task. - - - The passing of Atlanta media icon Ted Turner - who bought and transformed local station WTBS into the "SuperStation" that also introduced us to his other passion projects: the Atlanta Hawks and Atlanta Braves, then launched CNN and CNN Headline News, thrusting Atlanta into international prominence the likes of which it never before saw - is quite notable. For one, I grew up wanting to BE like Ted, but for another, his passing reminds me that he lived the sort of libera/progressive life of success that should serve as an example in this Musk/Trump/Bezos era of self-gratification and excess.And, as I do each Friday, I seek out some mental wellness and laughs with my good friend, comedian Sterling Thrill as we glance over the highlights and lowlights of another Trump presidency week "gone by."

His Georgia Court of Appeals judicial candidacy garners enough attention for Will Wooten because he is who he is on two fronts: he's an out gay man in the South, and a former Fulton County prosecutor, having worked with Fani Willis' office to prosecute Donald Trump and his band of co-conspirators for attempting to overturn the 2020 Presidential election results here in Georgia. While AJC op/ed writer Bill Torpy likens his attempted ascent to part of a 'Fani Willis revenge tour,' Will comes with a kind of value set his upbringing and his insight into marginalization that not many white men in the legal profession have insight into.Hear our discussion and see if you can pick up on that foundation coming through with his words and deeds.

PLUS: Reparations for white voters? Republicans want to draw inner city voters towards their suburban 'white saviors' & Geoff Duncan's new TV ad is outThe Trump Department of Justice (DOJ) has roughly 700 boxes of Fulton County's 2020 general election ballots and now they want names, addresses, phone numbers and email addresses of all the Fulton County election workers and volunteers from the 2020 cycle, too. Uhm, why? As Rudy Giuliani clings to life, it was just 14 months ago he was done paying two Fulton elections workers upwards of $100 million (or more) and now the DOJ wants to serve up other employees for potential MAGA "retribution? - - -As if that's not enough, MAGA podcasting nutjob Benny Johnson and The Article III Project founder/president Mike Davis are salivating at the prospect of getting white voters in Democratic-led states reparations (yes, reparations) for their being oh-so "wronged" by racially-based gerrymandering. The stones on these two white nationalist gasbags. - - - Remember all that GOP talk about black voters being on the "Democratic plantation?" Yet now they want to redraw maps to have their "white savior" representatives - who've shown no interest in doing right by inner city Americans when not representing city dwellers - represent everyone in these newly drawn districts except us. - - - It's encouraging then, that Georgia Democrats are taking some fight back to the right. Out gay Fulton County prosecutor Will Wooten is featured in a 30-second ad touting his record having helped build the election interference case against Trump as he seeks to challenge Georgia Court of Appeals Judge E. Trenton Brown III.- - - Okay, I have no opinion on cellphone bans in schools, honestly. I believe teachers when they say it makes their jobs easier, so on that front, I'm for the bans; but results show the real sales pitch - improved test scores - doesn't show itself in studies, just yet.- - - Lastly, Geoff Duncan has (finally) interested the TV ad game with a mostly cable and online ad buy, utilizing minority endorsees. The 30-second spot is good. It's effective. But it actually raised questions with me, still. Also, former gubernatorial candidate, Rep. Ruwa Romman, hasn't endorsed in that race since leaving it, but she did share her "sample ballot," with the #anybodybutGeoff hashtag and Mike Thurmond below it.On her personal Facebook, however, she did say of Duncan "I believe he’s sincere. I don’t think he’s just making up that he changed his mind. But he’s objectively the weakest candidate. We lose too many of our own for the mythical swing voter."