James May-June 2025 web - Flipbook - Page 7
Longtime state Senator Brandon Beach is heading to
Washington to take a prominent Trump Administration
position serving as the U.S. treasurer. The Alpharetta
Republican takes on the key role of overseeing the United States Mint and the gold reserve at Fort Knox, and
his name will appear on all new bills printed during his
tenure. RISING . . .
A point of contention during the legislative session
was how much money to allocate for the state’s school
choice voucher program. Eventually lawmakers went
with the Senate’s 21,000 scholarships, which comes to
about $141 million— far more than the House’s proposal
of 7,000. The first application window closed in April
and the state received more than 12,000 applications, of
which some 7,300 were eligible for the $6,500 scholarships. There are still more application periods this year
and, based on the first one, interest is RISING . . .
The future has officially arrived. Ride sharing giant
Uber is launching self-driving cars in Atlanta through
a partnership with robotaxi company Waymo, and its
fleet is being rolled out as this is written. The vehicles
have been exploring city streets for months, learning
routes and traffic patterns in preparation for passengers. How will they deal with Atlanta’s infamous traffic
and worse drivers? Some brave passengers are about to
find out. RISING . . .
U.S. Rep. Lucy McBath’s withdrawal from the 2026
Georgia governor’s race has Democrats scrambling to find
a candidate capable of running a competitive campaign.
Former Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms threw
her hat in the ring. But her entrance elicited groans from
many Atlantans who remember her soft-on-criminals
record. Jason Carter, grandson of the late President Jimmy Carter, isn’t running and, as this is written, twice-defeated gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams hints of a
possible run. Little-known state Sen. Jason Esteves is a
candidate and former DeKalb CEO Michael Thurmond
is pondering the idea. As 2026 campaigns take shape the
Democrats’ weak gubernatorial bench has their odds of
winning the Governor’s Mansion Drifting . . .
Following the surprise resignation by state Supreme
Court Chief Justice Michael P. Boggs at the end of March,
the remaining justices unanimously selected Presiding
Justice Nels Peterson as the court’s next leader. Appointed in 2016 by then-Gov. Nathan Deal, Peterson is a
Kennesaw State University and Harvard Law School graduate. Now leading the state’s highest court, Peterson’s
influence both in and out of the courtroom is RISING . . .
Good news for Georgia college students and their families! The University System of Georgia Board of
Regents which oversees 26 institutions voted not to raise
tuition for in-state students. That’s the seventh time in
10 years Regents have done so, keeping tuition and fees
among the lowest in the nation. “As more students than
ever enroll on our campuses, we continue to prioritize
reducing financial barriers and offering excellent value,”
said USG Chancellor Sonny Perdue. The Regents’ decision has Georgia students RISING . . .
State Sen. Bill Cowsert, R-Athens, who chairs a committee investigating Fulton County District Attorney Fani
Willis, was granted authority to expand his scope to
include groups founded by former gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams. Cowsert also sponsored Senate Bill
255, which would give his committee subpoena powers.
It passed the Senate and the House after bitter partisan
debate. Another blow to Willis has her Sinking . . .
Law enforcement was sent scrambling when it was discovered that a murderer had been accidentally released
from Clayton County jail and was on the run for weeks.
Clayton DA Tasha Mosley was incensed that Kathan
Guzman, convicted of strangling a teenage girl, had
somehow been released without even a statement
from the Clayton County sheriff’s office. It turns out
this is the THIRD inmate mistakenly released by the
jail since 2022! Luckily the killer was caught in Florida, but Clayton County Sheriff Levon Allen and his
office are Sinking . . .
M AY/J UNE 2025
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