Twelve years is a long time in politics but just how long? In 2006 both Democratic gubernatorial hopefuls called for a special session of the legislature to write a constitutional amendment banning gay marriage in Georgia. Now both candidates are telling voters they are the most progressive and committed to equality. One example of how
One of Georgia’s largest LGBT groups threw it’s muscle behind Stacey Abrams in the Democratic Primary for Governor. Georgia Equality said it was endorsing the former House Minority Leader for her long-standing commitment to LGBT rights. Perhaps what’s most important about this endorsement is that Abrams’ rival, Stacey Evans, is fast running out of constituencies
This week’s Courier Herald column: Several questions will be answered this week in the Georgia General Assembly that will have an impact on Georgia’s long term future. These will bleed into upcoming campaigns and, with most statewide offices up for election, will thus send an early signal of how Georgia will be governed as well
Democratic gubernatorial hopeful Stacey Abrams says she wants an Earned Income Tax Credit in Georgia. Unveiling her sweeping “Economic Mobility Plan” on Thursday (PDF), Abrams said Georgia’s version would start with a refundable credit at 5% of the federal EITC. Eventually the state EITC would move to a 10% credit. The cost of the Georgia
The following is a Facebook post from Representative Bert Reeves, (R-Marietta) and is posted with his permission. (I’ll note that I reached out to him after reading it, he did not request it.) Reeves was the primary sponsor of HB 159, an effort to streamline Georgia’s adoption process and update Georgia’s code and procedures for
On Monday, Stefan posted a guest editorial from our former Contributor, Dr. Anthony Kreis. Yesterday I received a rebuttal piece from Dr. Robin Fretwell Wilson. Dr Wilson is the Roger and Stephany Joslin Professor of Law and the director of the Program in Family Law and Policy and The Fairness For All Initiative at the
This week’s Courier Herald column: As our new year begins in Georgia, political optimism for many is fueled by the fact that a state governed by Republicans now has a White House and Congress controlled by Republicans. Well, optimism for many Republicans anyway. More than a few Democrats are still somewhere between pretending 2016 was
After Governor Deal vetoed the Free Exercise Protection Act last spring, There has been lots of speculation over whether “religious liberty” legislation would be a factor in the upcoming 2017 legislative session. That speculation grew more heated after House Speaker David Ralston wondered in an interview with Bill Nigut and Jim Galloway if the issue
Over the weekend, Dunwoody’s Reporter Newspapers published a post mortem on the 2016 elections, featuring comments from Senator Fran Millar and State Rep. Tom Taylor, who represent the area, along with Oglethorpe University political professor Joseph Knippenberg. The theme of the story as expressed in both the headline and the lede was that Georgia Republicans
Senators Greg Kirk and Vincent Fort wrapped up their series of debates over religious liberty Thursday night with an appearance in Tifton. While the various religious liberty bills from the 2016 session were brought up, the goal of the debates, according to Senator Kirk, was to offer each side of the debate an opportunity to
