The Ron Show

Former Atlanta mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms ended all the speculation and announced her campaign for Georgia's governor's office early today. Greg Bluestein from the Atlanta Journal Constitution had a prolonged Q & A with Bottoms and it was somewhat revealing, actually. I'm still only lukewarm to the prospects of her being the Democratic party's nominee, but it's hard to ignore her introduction being an effective launch. ------Former Lt. Governor Geoff Duncan, the ex-Republican, has advice for the Democratic Party - to take a "new" direction he says. The problem is, this "new" direction is the same direction the party's tried taking since the ascendancy of Ronald Reagan - appeal to the center - and it's only failed the party more than it's aided them, but sure. Actually, no; Geoff should work harder to help sanity retake the GOP instead of trying to remake the Democratic Party to his liking. ------Bill Maher' sort of fallen from grace with a lot of us on the left, but occasionally he still delivers a "New Rule" worthy of sharing, and last weekend, he called out those on the right and the left for being so lacking in having 'core convictions.'

Atlanta's WXIA-TV, 11 Alive, broke the story late last week: a Georgia woman, brain-dead since February, has been kept alive for more than 90 days because Emory Hospital lawyers advised the hospital against ending life support because of an early pregnancy. Now, her family's gripped in perpetual mourning while also awaiting the birth of what could likely be a child with immense medial woes of its own. It leaves Georgia politicians, left and right, finger-pointing. State Senator Nabila Islam-Parkes penned a letter to Attorney General Chris Carr (running for the GOP nomination for governor, as well) to answer questions and provide clarity on the state's position on such a situation. Carr, for his part, said of the draconian six-week Georgia abortion ban, put in place by his party in 2019, that “removing life support is not an action ‘with the purpose to terminate a pregnancy.'” That statement could prove interesting in the upcoming primary, but in the meanwhile, a grieving family is left without input at all. Joining me today to discuss this matter is Georgia WIN List executive director Melita Easters. ------The impacts Thomasville, Georgia residents have endured thanks to decades of air and pollution by nearby manufacturing isn't lost on Senator Jon Ossoff, who skewered Trump EPA administrator Lee Zeldin last week as to why his administration eliminated funding for a health clinic slated for that cancer-riddled community in southwest Georgia. Ossoff wasn't alone, and the ripping didn't just come from Democrats. ------Over the weekend we learned of former President Joe Biden's prostate cancer diagnosis, and WUSA-9 TV in D.C. sought input from an oncologist to give her optimistic outlook. That didn't stop the current President's son from launching into more conspiracy theories of cover-up, of course, but, by and large, even POTUS and the usually repugnant Marjorie Taylor Greene wish him well.

Kennesaw State University students and their supporters took to Atlanta - some 30 minutes (by car) south of their campus - Wednesday to protest KSU's announcement that they're eliminating black studies & philosophy majors outside the Georgia Board of Regents' offices. NAACP Georgia chapter president Gerald Griggs joined me to provide background & tell me what's next in the process & continued protest of this decision. ------Also in Cobb County, that school board's curious use of social media to smear "multi-family development" (you know, "density") as 'possibly contributing to to difficulties for schools.' Never mind that we live in a more transient society than ever before in this country, it seems Superintendent Chris Ragsdale is using the school board's social media to rail on the county commission for being more receptive to density housing (you know, in a housing crisis in a sprawl county attached to a metro area underserved enough by mass transit and clogged a lot by vehicles on highways and thoroughfares). Rebecca Gaunt, covering this story for the Cobb County Courier, joined me to discuss. She also covered Kennesaw's growing interest in 'ADU housing,' incidentally. ------Oooh, Marjorie Taylor Greene is 'big mad' that it's coming out her potential Senate bid got derailed by a Trump-requested poll. Friend of the show, Georgia Recorder op/ed scribe Jay Bookman opined before that story broke that a Brian Kemp/Trump conversation may have also laid the foundation for 'Taser-Greene' to be told "have a seat" by the Donald himself. Ouch. ------Finally, an announced mega-merger between two cable TV and internet behemoths prompted me to reveal a passion project I'll be launching soon.

When a prominent politician does a town hall in Iowa, it sort of defines the unofficial start to the upcoming presidential cycle and their campaign in earnest to win the office. That's just ... tradition. So when former South Bend, Indiana mayor and U.S. Transportation Pete Buttigieg hosted a town hall with VoteVets Wednesday night, in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, a full 1,272 days before Election Day, November 7, 2028, it's as if we could say both that "he's running for President" and "the 2028 cycle has begun."Right?While he's taking on swipes from current Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy (Trump's lumberjack) and the current President, Pete's out there meeting people in a red state where GOP House members have been told not to. Oh, and while Duffy's whining about what should have been fixed when Joe Biden & Pete were in charge of the FAA, he should be reminded he is among 180 Republicans who voted against additional (and obviously needed) FAA funding. Watch the full town hall & decide for yourself: is Pete running?

The book Washington insiders have been tongue-wagging about for days now - "Original Sin: President Biden's Decline, Its Cover-Up, and His Disastrous Choice to Run Again" - was leaked. It'll be a best-seller and have pundits and conservative snipers taking aim at a perceived "conspiracy" or "cover-up" in the Biden White House, but how much meat is even on this bone?All I've read (so far) is a lot of hindsight from the same folks who weren't saying much from the positions they could have been long before the former President bowed out of the 2024 presidential race. A touch disingenuous if you ask me. CNN's Jake Tapper (who of course went on CNN today to discuss leaked revelations and tease of more) and co-author Alex Thompson (Axios) spoke to a lot of people after the election who weren't willing to go on the record before it - and that's not unusual in and of itself - but it belies a good bit of "well, what good is that to anyone, now?" responses, including from my guest today.With me to discuss the fallout, himself quoted in a Politico piece last week on the return of Joe Biden to the spotlight (he did two TV appearances last week) is Atlanta-based liberal political strategist Andrew Heaton. Among the "now they tell us "quips: there was consideration to having the former President use a wheelchair. See, that they didn't speaks more to us as voters than to their alleged/perceived "cover-up." We see "old guy in a wheelchair" and make (logical? illogical?) leaps about his mental abilities - which, I still take issue with.

On the surface, you'd think yesterday was a banner day for the second Donald Trump administration: his staff negotiated an end to the trade war he launched, he signed an executive order to mandate steep price cuts for prescription drug prices in the U.S., and who wouldn't have a good if they were given a $400 million luxury plane? Jon Stewart at 'The Daily Show' even confessed to having long-coveted the drug deal. About that ... ... the executive order, it turns out, isn't all that different than the one the courts struck down from him in 2020, and Senator Bernie Sanders called his bluff by vowing to draft the concept into legislation so Republican lawmakers could be on the record as supporting his initiative (they won't) the minute the courts do what they'll surely do again: strike down the order.------Then there's the tariff deal that still comes at a significant cost to American consumers. Even Larry Summers confesses "Trump blinked." The panel on CNN's NewsNight with Abby Phillip called it for what it was, too. Just kidding; Scott Jennings, of course, shilled. ------Locally, MARTA officials finally renamed a transit terminal long in need of a re-name for some pretty obvious reasons, but the name they landed on might ruffle some local sports fans' feathers. Hear why.

It dawned on me yesterday, while showing a house in Kennesaw for a mom sending her kids off to college not far away, that Georgia's political inhibitions towards rail transit continues to cost families like this one thousands per month for years, and unnecessarily. It's that sort of lack of vision - at the city level in Atlanta, the metro region, and of course, the state, that puts an undo burden on everyday Georgia families and it just got me to thinking about Atlanta mayor Andre DIckens' misfire on Beltline rail and the "dream big, aim high" appetite of Senator Jason Esteves, the early contender for the Democratic Party's gubernatorial nomination. More on that in a bit ...Meanwhile, there's a new Senate candidate on the right, and it isn't Marjorie Taylor Greene (thank God). With so many names in or out, the pundits on Sunday's "The Georgia Gang" had plenty to tongue-wag about so I eavesdropped on the conversation & added a little commentary of my own. ------So a former Beltline VP of planning - Beth McMillan - penned an op/ed in the Sunday AJC laying waste to Mayor Dickens' pivot on the in-city rail project he's now dooming to decades more in "wait, if at all." Kudos to her for bringing the receipts. It's that sort of decision that - in my mind - sours the Democratic party brand, which - as you'll hear - is very much on my mind today.

I've followed Ethan Embry on Twitter/X (he's on Bluesky now) for years now, and have always been fascinated with how well-versed he is on political and social issues. Today, I finally got to sit down with the Atlanta-based California transplant best known for his acting in cult favorites like 'Empire Records,' 'That Thing You Do,' 'Can't Hardly Wait,' 'Sweet Home Alabama,' and notable most recently as 'Coyote' in the Netflix series 'Grace & Frankie.'We hung for more than an hour and hardly even got to talk about his acting, outside of a project he's wrapping up on now. Next time, I promise (and he promised we'd do it again). Today we talked 'toxic masculinity,' how he found his voice on social media, his concerns with India & Pakistan flirting with nuclear war, the failures of the Biden media team, plus what he's doing between gigs to keep his hands and mind occupied.

Were it not for reporting by Ross Williams at the Georgia Recorder, none of us might've even known a 'Third Way'-backed centrist Democrat 'Ideas Summit' even took place in Atlanta earlier this week. State Senator Jason Esteves - the lone notable Democratic gubernatorial candidate (sorry, Keisha; until you announce 'for sure,' that's how it is ...) along with Senator Elena Parent, Representative Tanya Miller attended. Esteves, in fact, introduced 'Third Way' vice president of policy Jim Kessler, so there's surely some connection to Esteves and 'Third Way.'To that I say "uh oh.""Uh oh" because centrist Democrats have been the force stirring the party drink for a long time now, and frankly, they're the reason the party keeps losing, but they think it's 'woke white progressives' causing the party to stub its toe. No; it's piss-poor messaging and they're not addressing household budget issues that affect middle income America - the issues progressives like Bernie Sanders, AOC, et al, have been addressing even when it was taboo to do so last Biden/Harris re-election cycle. So on today's show, I call "bullsh*t" to the lot of it, and if/when Senator Esteves does come on to tout his gubernatorial campaign, I'm thinking we'll have a spirited discussion about this. Until then ...

State Senator Josh McLaurin put his name in the hat to succeed outgoing GOP Lieutenant Governor Burt Jones, announcing his candidacy at a Savannah port terminal Monday. He and I caught up today so I could ask him why he's the guy for the job, what he may have gleaned from watch Jones in the role all this time and why he made it his mission to inform the state Senate what the Trump presidency was up to while eh and his co-horts were in session. ------A recent $300,000 fine levied against a Stacey Abrams-backed organization is something of a measuring stick, I believe, with the state ethics commission now faced with assessing the wrongs (if any) done by an anti-gay organization accused of improperly benefitting the Kemp campaign in 2018. We'll be watching.

Last week we learned Georgia voters only seem to have an appetite for 'change' in the US Senate if it comes via Governor Brian Kemp unseating Senator Jon Ossoff. Well, unfortunately for the Georgia GOP, Kemp's decided he, nor "Marty and the girls" are up for it. Why? Georgia Recorder op/ed writer Jay Bookman has a few ideas, and he joined me to explain how he correctly predicted Kemp's decision in late 2024 and elaborate further on his (I believe correct) assessment that Marjorie Taylor Greene (already kicking the tires on a Senate run) has no chance to win a statewide election. ------Reverend Senator Raphael Warnock held an Atlanta town hall last weekend, and while the setting (a church) and overwhelming majority of the attendees gave him comfort, there were some vocal pro-Palestinian protestors who sought to be heard.

Protests in Atlanta and elsewhere "May Day" Thursday were but another chapter in a growing saga of organic "distress signals" from activists deeply concerned about federal workforce and entitlement cuts and an executive branch showing disregard for the other two, and the rule of law. Joining me to give some background on the organic, unaffiliated nature of the '50501' movement is Georgia vice-chair Bri Boyd.But not before we look into the field set for Saturday's Democratic Party of Georgia chair race. The candidate that stands out - at least the list of endorsements - is Charlie Bailey. The one that worries me the most? Former Augusta mayor Hardie Davis, with his ethics violation and issues of infidelity. Not what the party needs heading its state organization. Then there's the prospect of Marjorie 'Taser' Greene running for the GOP nomination to unseat Jon Ossoff in the U.S. Senate. Georgia Recorder op/ed writer Jay Bookman believes (and I concur) her brand won't travel well, statewide, and outside of the northwest Georgia Congressional district she moved into to run.

With Rev. Senator Raphael Warnock preparing to host his own town hall Sunday in Fulton County, and with the fresh memory of dissatisfaction at Senator Jon Ossoff's hall last week, coupled with Georgia polling that shows how unpopular Democrats are right now, it bears asking: are voters aware that they voted for this mess and left Democrats with too-few tools to do anything about it? Laughably, even Republicans polled want Democrats to (somehow) do more to push back when their choice for President goes too far. Wait, what?With me to discuss is Atlanta-based political strategist Andrew Heaton.

First, a follow-up to yesterday's show as both Cobb Democrats won their special elections to serve on that county's commission, putting Democrats (again) in control of that county's governance (despite all the efforts at the state GOP level to undo the will of the majority). Also, after having a grousing parent removed from a school board hearing a little more than a week ago for bending the knee to the Trump administration and eliminating their D.E.I. initiatives, Decatur City Schools undid that, much to the delight of that same parent and many others. That's not a good stretch of headlines for MAGA in Georgia, and neither is this:New Atlanta Journal Constitution/UGA polling shows President Donald Trump is underwater in Georgia on just about every issue with just about every demographic other than "white men" and "diehard Republican," but before Democrats go thinking things are swinging in their direction, those same findings show they're in worse shape.The good news? They're in no position to do anything and there's (unfortunately) still time for that reality to wash over voters who seem to lack that awareness (still). Current Georgia governor Brian Kemp leads Senator Jon Ossoff in a 2026 head-to-head, in that same poll, though around the margin of error, and even that's not the best news for Republicans in a state they've dominated. Why? He's the only potential Republican even appearing to be competitive vs. Ossoff and another 18 months anywhere similar to the last 100 days will wear on the party brand and anyone attached to it.About Democrats' suffering in polling ... AJC op/ed scribe and political reporter Patricia Murphy noted the precarious situation. Again, voters wanting Democrats to "do something!" seem to forget they left Democrats powerless to do much.

First came the gerrymander, as Georgia's state GOP legislators redrew a majority liberal county's commission map to better favor Republicans. Then came the court battle to unseat the commissioner elected to serve, but drawn out of her district by said gerrymander. Today, with both the map and the vacancy now adjudicated (poorly, I might add), many Cobb County voters head to the polls today to fill the vacancy with either former state representative Erick Allen or Alicia Davis, whose leading donor is the state senator who sponsored the gerrymander creating the vacancy i the first place. Other voters in Cobb will either re-elect incumbent Democrat Monique Sheffield or GOP challenger Matthew Hardwick. However, because the gerrymander and court thievery weren't eough, conservatives launched an 11th-hour disinformation campaign with a tactic that smacks of old mid-20th century "good ol' boy" tactics. You know the one: "Republicans vote today; Democrats tomorrow." With me to speak on it today is Cobb County Democratic party chair Essence Johnson and candidate Erick Allen. ------Meanwhile state party leaders will convene to elect a new state party chair, and the six candidates vying for the job held another forum last night in Toccoa. Hear their introductions and feel free to review that forum or the first or second forum of these same candidates held earlier this month.

The "last minute" of last night's '60 Minutes' was worth the wait, as CBS News' Scott Pelley laid waste to his network's parent company's adding 'extra supervision' to the news magazine's content. I mean, it's not all that different from what I had to deal with as editor of my high school newspaper - except that it's already established that school students don't enjoy "freedom of the press" in their schools. Oh, and '60 Minutes' has been on the air nearly six decades, racking up an unmatched number of awards in journalism.While American broadcast and print media continues to cave to Donald Trump, international journalists are marveling at the destruction of the fifth estate. ------Meanwhile, in the aftermath of Senator Jon Ossoff's Marietta town hall last Friday, I caught up with many of the CDC's fired and/or 'RIF'ed workforce - the "Fired but Fighting" collection of people still deeply concerned about the state of their work and its use in disease prevention. To summarize, they came to get Team Ossoff to do better in matching the work done by Senator Rev. Raphael Warnock and his staff, but are encouraged Ossoff and his staff are now better aware they need to step up. ------New York Times' conservative columnist Bret Stephens appeared on last week's 'Real Time with Bill Maher' panel, opining that Democrats shouldn't be drawn in by the tens of thousands of people turning out to hear Bernie Sanders and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. Imagine that - a conservative trying to keep the party he almost never sees eye-to-eye with from finding its populist base and succeeding. Naturally, he's wrong, and I'm here ot remind everyone why making the same istakes the party made in 2016 will fail the party and the nation on the whole.

Senator Jon Ossoff met with hundreds of constituents in Marietta at the Cobb County Civic Center Friday morning, with designs on pointing out the disparity in approaches on healthcare access and reproductive rights. Those in attendance - many recently fired (or "RIF'ed") CDC employees, others frazzled voters seething for impeachment - had questions completely divergent from the topics he set the table with.All the same, he answered questions for nearly an hour after an opening statement, and unlike at Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene's hellish scene in Acworth more than a week ago, no one was tased, arrested or asked to leave. That, and Ossoff took the heat aimed at him and his staff in-stride and vowed to do more for those with grievances.You can watch live streams fro WXIA-TV here. Some audio issues at the end may have you looking elsewhere, so WAGA-TV's stream can be found here.Or, hear just about all of the discussion on this special podcast.

With Senator Jason Esteves' announcement that he's officially in the 2026 race to be Georgia's next governor comes open speculation; where are the other Democrats for the field?The Atlanta Journal-Constitution's chief political reporter, Greg Bluestein, is notably fixated on whether Stacey Abrams wants in. ------Senator Jon Ossoff, with the 2026 cycle on his radar for obvious reasons, scheduled a town hall for constituents in Marietta Friday. While he opened the gathering wanting to bring attention to the need for Medicaid expansion and the dire consequences of Georgia's six-week abortion ban, those in attendance had other concerns to address. More on that in a follow-up podcast HERE.------"Protest music" hasn't gone away; it's just adapted and evolved. Remember us all discussing and debating the meaning and message behind Kendrick Lamar's halftime performance? Yeah, hip-hop has long been the vehicle for many kinds of "protest" messages, and it was earlier this week my dear sister-in-law sent me this gem from D.C.-based viral band Sub-Radio. In it, they roast Elon Musk relentlessly. Then there's my friend Randy Cahall, who was in Atlanta recently to record a session for me. His is more the old-school "folk singer with a guitar" type, but its amazing how even decades-old songs carry messaging that still resonates today.

Remember that 2020 pandemic "fresh air" vibe, that summer? How crisper, clearer and cleaner the air over Atlanta seemed? Well since then we've of course regressed; that's according to new American Lung Association report cards. Atlanta, in particular, slipped from C to F. On to discuss the results and speculate as to what could be done to reverse the trend, along with some disturbing signals in the current political climate, the ALA's Danna Thompson. ------The field appears to have cleared (so far, anyway) for Senator Jason Esteves to be the Democratic gubernatorial option in 2026, but who else is out there? I touch on it a little, with thanks to some savvy "Politically Georgia" reporting. ------All the talk about development and traffic and how Georgia and metro Atlanta addresses (or doesn't) its mass transit needs, it's interesting that this social media post crossed my radar. The message? "Bigger Isn't necessarily better." "Should cities focus on growing their population, jobs, and development?Absolutely not."I weigh in.------Lastly, a venerable voice on the left took her final bow on the radio Wednesday. Here's to Randi Rhodes ... with some well wishes.

It's easy to grouse about "NIMBYism" in situations where organized neighbors push back against "progress," but in the case of Atlanta's Amsterdam Walk, the neighbors weren't against sensible development of a nearby commercial lot; in fact, they supported zoned usage. Instead, they were steamrolled by city council (with the mayor's blessing) and Portman Holdings, who now has the go-ahead to cram 1100 apartments and 1400-plus parking spaces and retail onto a parcel of land with but one two-lane connection to an already over-trafficked four lane corridor. Oh and the prospects of rail transit for the foreseeable future were crapped on by said mayor weeks ago.Joining me to discuss the varying impacts of a development of that size ... from traffic to quality of life to even air quality ... is Charlie Kaften with A Better Amsterdam Walk.

With seven city council seats (eight if you count the Council presidency) and the mayor's office up for grabs in 2025, the otherwise sleepy "off cycle" calendar has some intrigue in Georgia's most populous city.To lean into it, I'm hosting a series of 'meet the candidate' shows between now and election day in November. Each announced candidate and incumbent will be (some already have been) invited on the show.First up: Council at-large 1 challenger Mat Rinker. Matt and I discussed the issues driving him to challenge incumbent Julian Michael Bond, which included transit, budget realities and ethics, to name a few.

With the passing of Pope Francis comes a litany of American and global tributes - Marjorie Taylor Greene's awful tweet notwithstanding. Among them are the thoughts from DignityUSA's executive director Marianne Duddy-Burke, who joined me to opine on his somewhat-progressive papal legacy and provide some insights into where the Catholic Church will go, ideologically, next. ------I've mentioned him as the kind of quality candidate Georgia Democrats could succeed with atop their 2026 ticket, and lo and behold, Senator Jason Esteves made it official: he's running. ------Last week, I spoke with Dustin Baxter at Kuck Baxter Immigration Law about their 'mass action' lawsuit in defense of international students whose visas were suddenly (and surprisingly) revoked. Good news Friday in that a judge issued a temporary restraining order keeping their status intact, pending further hearings later this week. ------Pete Hegseth was a disastrous choice for defense secretary, and that's not just me saying so; former Trump administration Pentagon insiders are, too. The 'DUI hire' fired three top aides, likely in an effort to snuff out any hint of the leaking that he again - again - used the Signal app to share sensitive military secrets in a group chat ... this time with family members in the mix. Was Pete's mom in the loop? NPR is reporting, by the way, that this may have been the final blow and that the White House is now looking to replace him. ------Okay, so even Joe Rogan thinks "disappearing" people to El Salvaodran prisons and skirting due process makes Trump and ICE "monsters." I mean, he still spews (in caricature 'MAGA moron' voice, no less) ignorant and bigoted spew about Latin American immigrants, but still ... oh and this gives me the occasional opportunity to remind everyone that Donald Trump actually allowed in more criminal migrants in his first term than Joe Biden did in his. ------Lastly, by now you've likely heard about Nancy Mace verbally accosting a man for having the audacity - as one of her constituents - to ask when she'll host another town hall. So much to unpack there: she presumed the man was gay and thus should have been happy with her that she voted in support of gay marriage (because gay men are single issue voters, I guess?), is unaware what "Daisy Duke" shorts are or that men's fashion has evolved from the dreaded "cargo shorts" era to five-inch inseams, insinuated the guy was in her face (from 5-6 feet away?) and dropped a litany of f-bombs insisting he get out of her face (as he was already walking away). Need I remind the "lady" about the code of conduct of her alma mater, The Citadel? Something about "honor, duty, and respect, with a focus on ethical behavior and personal responsibility."I mean, at least she was spotted in the skincare aisle. That worn look on her face screams "moisturize and sunscreen, lady!"

A south Georgia woman had a miscarriage, and to some in law enforcement, that necessitated an arrest. No, that's not a plot line from an episode of "The Handmaid's Tale," that's reality for women in their reproductive years while living in Georgia. With me to discuss the fallout of that miscarriage (of justice by local law enforcement) is Melita Easters of the Georgia WIN List. Of particular note: "the Friendly City" police press release. Disgusting. We also chew on the looming danger that is the SAVE Act, having passed the House and now in the US Senate's hands with Democrats promising a filibuster to block it. Dom Kelly⁠, joined me, as well, today to cover a batch of issues. Dom is co-founder/CEO of New Disabled South & New Disabled South Rising. We cover a lot ... from traveling abroad (but returning to MAGA America) to "anti-D.E.I." affecting the disabled (and veteran disabled) workforce to Trump targeting eco-friendly non-profits on 'Earth Day' to the spate of student visas being revoked and pro-Palestinian student protests leading to funding threats from the White House under the (thin) veil of combating 'antisemitism.' Pretty thorough coverage of much what the nation's discussing with two fantastic guests today.Oh, and the ugly scourge of white supremacy - once the FBI's top domestic terror threat - reared its ugliness, again, this time on the Florida State University campus.. Ho hum, America.

Despite her office's best efforts, Marjorie Taylor Greene had to come within shouting range of - get this - hecklers at her staged town hall. What's rich, according to the AJC's Patricia Murphy, is that she's a well-known heckler, herself, but had the audacity to amp up Acworth PD to pounce on anyone even so much us uttering a simple "boo." Credit to the Cobb County Democratic Party folks for organizing he peaceful outdoor protests and to the protestors for essentially taking all the attention from Marjorie's in-person MAGA infomercial. No one's talking about her spin; instead many are talking about the heckler being a hypocrite.------Chaotic town halls, ICE "disappearing" people to a deadly el Salvadoran prison, Donald Trump's beefing with Harvard, and student visas getting revoked for hundreds if not thousands of international students have taken a lot of eyes off the biggest issue dragging the Trump presidency into the red, polling-wise: the economy.Heather Cox Richardson made that point in her daily Facebook post yesterday, noting the Dow had lost about 700 points Wednesday (another 500 today) which explains why Trump and his sycophants are only too eager to stir up anger where their base is more angaged: immigration and social issues. ------Speaking of student visas, a hat tip to opinion writer Jay Bookman with the Georgie Recorder, whose latest is a deep-dive into the many (and there are many) ways scaring off international students will negatively impact the American economy and college and university's bottom lines.

Atlanta-based immigration law firm Kuck & Baxter have stepped up to take on a "mass action" suit on behalf of more than 130 international students whose student visas have suddenly (and in many cases, inexplicably) revoked for flimsy causes (if any cause(s) even exist). On today to discuss his firm's work and what his clients are dealing with, Dustin Baster from Kuck & Baxter. ------I'll weigh in more tomorrow on Marjorie Taylor Greene's dumpster-fire of a "town hall" (air quotes) tomorrow, but suffice to say, a "town hall," by definition, it was not, and because attendees came for a legitimate "town hall" only to wind up at a political MAGA infomercial, someone naturally had to be tased, right?Not to be "out-fascisted," the City Schools of Decatur board took umbrage with an attendee calling them "cowards" so those thin-skinned public servants had her physically removed, too. These were people who largely agree with the attendee, in principle, but "how dare she speak ill of them, flexing her First Amendment rights in their presence," right? ------My second guest today was Patty Durand, once a Georgia public service commission (PSC) candidate, now head of Georgia Utility Watch, a consumer utility watchdog ready to be a thorn in the rubber stamp-wielding PSC and the profiting utility providers said commission has been doing the bidding of. With two PSC seats up for grabs in an election "off-year" and with consumers searing mad about untenable cost-of-living increases, might this be a rare occasion for such usually down-ballot races to get the attention needed? Patty and I seem to think so - and it goes beyond the wallet. Cost overruns at Plant Vogtle were costly - which Georgia Power made you pay for; they'll seek to have you absorb 'em for post-'Helene' efforts, too, and since the General Assembly didn't directly address it, you will likely be on the hook for for-profit data center energy needs as well.Enter the watchdog.

An Atlanta-based law firm is taking up the plight of more than a dozen college students who've had their student visas revoked by the Trump administration in recent days. Between this and people "disappearing" to el Salvador (admittedly by mistake!) ... with the Oval Office now ignoring a unanimous Supreme Court they largely crafted to be so conservative-leaning, has it sunk in yet that we're already in a "Constitutional crisis," as Tad Stoermer forewarned two months ago on this very show? ------Bill Maher went to the White House and came away with souvenirs and a quizzical, new perspective on Donald Trump that, to me, makes him a now-useful tool for MAGA. I'll elaborate.

A new 'Morning Consult' poll of Georgia voters - weeks before his tariff antics even took form - shows Georgia voters were already weary of his fomenting economic uncertainty. Georgia Recorder commentary guru Jay Bookman twice (twice!) forewarned of Trump's tariff antics potentially negatively impacting Georgians and now the pundits on yesterday's "The Georgia Gang" find themselves in agreement that the mixed messaging is worrisome. Oh, and today, China banned a small list of exports to the U.S. that will definitely affect those Georgia manufacturing jobs Governor Brian Kemp was so proud of.Whelp; Sean Hannity has "us" figured out: we're coalescing behind using he term "chaos" to describe this (what, not the first?) Trump presidency. He's right; James Carville opined in the NYT Monday that it's an apt descriptive, and one that Democrats should use to attack his agenda.

In normal election years its hard to get voters engaged in public service commission races. In 2025, Georgians have the rare opportunity to elect two to the five-seat PSC board, and the candidates are adding up. With data centers potentially impacting your utility bills (and why should they?) and rates continuing to climb while Georgia Power rakes in eye-popping profits, these two races could become high profile. An opportunity for utility customers to rebuke their rate increases has to be tantalizing. Having a new consumer watchdog pop up is even more good news for utility customers / voters. ------International students in South Carolina, here in Georgia and throughout the country are seeing their student visas get revoked. Agein, something about 'due process' and first amendment rights being 'inalienable.' ------Lastly, my innate reaction to the news that former Atlanta mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms considering a gubernatorial run hasn't really come together quite as well as the AJC's Bill Torpy managed to word it, so I'm endorsing his rationale that she's a 'dream candidate' ... for Georgia Republicans to run someone against.

Wednesday was the rare reprieve from Wall Street hemorrhaging so naturally President Donald Trump felt the need to take a victory lap. Thank goodness Trump saved us from Trump when he put the pause on most tariffs, after realizing people were "getting yippy." So what's wild about all the suffering Americans and their 401(k) accounts are enduring is, it may all come down to Trump leaning on advisor Peter Navarro's belief in tariffs. Okay, no, what's really wild about that is that Navarro was a Jared Kushner "find" from writing books on trade policy while citing an expert named 'Ron Vara.'Ron Vara doesn't exist. The name itself is just an anagram using the letters from "Navarro."Oh, and while he was out celebrating his one day blip in the green, it's important to point out the damage done the days before wont' be simpy undone anytime soon - if ever. Because we're enduring (still!) the first '100 days' of another Trump presidency, there's naturally going to be discussion of Donald and those in his orbit profiting off of a situation. Such is the case as Trump himself took to Truth Social to implore his followers to snap up stocks hours before he paused his tariff rollout. Or when Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga) "bought the dip" and snapped up some plum stocks at a timely moment. As he's good at doing, Jay Bookman brought the damage closer to home in his latest op-ed explaining how the tariff uncertainties will be felt in Georgia. ------Uhm, an unknown number of international student visas are being revoked at Georgia schools and apparently in South Carolina, too. Oh, at Purdue University, now, too.

University of Georgia professor emeritus Peter Smagorinsky penned an op/ed in the Atlanta Journal Constitution last week that caught my attention: "How Trump's battle with U.S. colleges is making Canadian universities great." Like 'Handmaids Tale" ex-pats, America's distinguished scholars are seeking "safe haven" to continue doing their work outside the U.S., and Canada seems to be benefitting quite a bit. Peter joins me to discuss the fallout.------We may actually be at the point of the long-awaited MAGA "fever break" as Donald's reckless tariff actions these last two weeks have impacted retirement accounts. Don't believe me: listen to Ben Shapiro shriek or Eric Erickson exasperate on his show, or better yet: read these "scalded dogs" tweets from MAGA voters who now (now!) regret voting for Trump. Tanker truckloads of "MAGA tears."It typifies MAGA and conservatism, though, no? Only when they're impacted are causes that others have championed important to them. The consequences are only now starting to show themselves at checkout; Atlanta-based Delta Airlines' Q1 earnings statement shows the Trump brand of "economic chaos" is already impacting their bottom line. Their CEO calling Trump's tariff strategy "candidly, a bit chaotic."Ouch.

The "period of mourning" we've all sleep-walked through since election night last November may be subsiding for most of us, but Sunday's '60 Minutes' segment - detailing the callous disregard for due process and lack of contrition (let alone empathy) for those wrongly sent to a notorious Salvadoran prison - was, for me anyway, a setback. I kept telling myself "this isn't who we are as a country," while watching it, but having let it set in a couple days, I've come to realize it's exactly who we are; and what we are is "awful." Even the Supreme Court confirmed it to be so.Among those appearing to be sent to CECOT by mistake is a 31-year old makeup artist and theatre buff - a gay Venezuelan who fled his home country because of his sexuality (being gay is rough in Venezuela) and political persecution last spring. He arrived at a legal port of entry and filed for asylum; you know, "the right way." Yet his wrist tattoos honoring his parents feature crowns and well, to Trump-era ICE folks, that clearly (note: sarcasm) means "Tren de Aragua," the notorious Venezuelan gang.Then there's the guy who - 14 years ago in his teens, and on social media - flashed the "rock on" / "devil's horns" hand signal - or to out-of-touch tight-ass white people "Tren de Aragua gang sign!!!!"Just when you think this administration has shown us all their shortcomings, they show us there's still more in the tank.Unfortunately, it reflects on all of us.

It's been a minute since 'Atlanta Voice' editor-in-chief Donnell Suggs and I last spoke, and with so much to discuss, today seemed like as good a day as any to reconnect. Suggs got to spend a wire-to-wire day with Atlanta mayor Andre Dickens recently, so naturally, I had questions. With his re-election campaign's coffers brimming with cash, is that positive or negative in the eyes of Atlantans? Will 'Cop City' be a drag for him? His 11th hour pivot on 'Beltline rail?' Recent word that former mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms is looking into a gubernatorial run had me wondering if she's more popular with the Atlanta voter base than conventional wisdom might bely. Will Senator Jon Ossoff lose support from black voters because of attack ads targeting his vote on trans sports participants?Will looming tariff costs to the average American household keep folks from traveling this summer? Like to the new Universal Epic Universe theme park journalists like Suggs had the opportunity to get a sneak peak of?

It's easy to punch down after the results of the 2024 election left Americans wondering if Democrats can rebound, but The more we wade into this disastrous second Trump presidency, the more I contend the American people are realizing they got duped more than Democrats fell short. That doesn't absolve the party of their shortcomings and flaws, but you have to give credit where it's due, and in the case of Georgia's legislative Democrats in particular. Their numbers - suppressed by gerrymandering - were never going to provide them much ability to derail divisive and ugly bills, but they grinded into late hours in the closing days to give it their best effort. Notably they threw everything they had at HB 127, a well-intentioned bill that got poison-amended to include an erasure of anything "D.E.I." in public education. Despite their efforts, it passed in the Senate but died in the House needing to get those Senate amendments voted on. Pity.Still, a lot of bad bills will be on Brian Kemp's desk awaiting his signature, like a license to discriminate, using "religion' as the thin veil. Well, this is where we come in. EDITED TO AD: "We" did show up Saturday, no? Atlanta's "Hands Off" rally was one of dozens, nationwide, all drawing thousands in cities big and small, blue and red. Fantastic, but we're still 19 months out from 2026 midterms and the divisive tactics the right uses to fracture Saturday's unity are still there: trans rights, Gaza/Israel for example. Can the anti-Trump, anti-DOGE, anti-Musk movement stay unified?We'll see.

Who among us isn't a little "Ferris Bueller," right? Outside of those rare, constantly driven and meticulous types, we all take little breaks and skirt by when we believe we can. The second Trump presidency seems like a lot of that - Donald and company just gliding by without putting in much effort to "show their work" but definitely there to hand in their assignment anyway. Such was the case with Trump's "Liberation Day" Rose Garden ceremony yesterday. So much pomp and circumstance for a day when many economists - even conservative lawmakers and farmers - believe Trump just ignited a trade war that's going to lead to a recession - or worse. Pffft; only commoners like us every really feel the kind of pain that comes with a recession (or worse) Even the Rupert Murdoch-owned Wall Street Journal editorial board called Trump's "Liberation Day" simply "buy another yacht day" for the well-connected and well-heeled.But say Trump and company actually do think sparking a global trade war via tariffs is somehow - for the first time in modern history - going to usher in some economic nirvana. They say that those who refuse to learn from history are doomed to repeat it. It was on 'Ferris Bueller's Day off' the he missed his economics teacher droning on about 'Hawley-Smoot' tariffs fanning the flames of the Great Depression, for example. Even noted C and D student George W. Bush knew the folly in adopting the "evil triplets" of "isolationism, protectionism and nativism." It was her, after all, who gave something of a 'master class' and precautionary warning about those "triplets" and a reminder the damage "Smoot-Hawley" (or is it "Hawley-Smoot?" did in the 1930s, in a CSPAN Q&A fourteen years ago.My God, George W. Bush sounding professorial by comparison. Then there's the formula used to decide the rate of reciprocal tariff being levied. One economist and author termed it a "back-of-the-envelope" calculation. It was back on November 21st last year that I had Georgia Recorder columnist Jay Bookman on to discuss the many and varied ways Trump's tariff, tax and deportation policies were going to impact Georgians' budgets. The reaction yesterday, throughout Georgia's economics circles was "pretty insane."

Jason Cecil - like all of us - is defined by more than just a job; he's a husband, Dekalb County Ethics Board alternate, President of the LGBTQ+ recovery community-serving GALANO Club, to name a few of his attribuets. His job at the Atlanta-based Centers for Disease Control & Prevention (CDC) was really important, too, though. Until yesterday, he had been a Public Health Analyst in Global Immunizations since 2003, focusing on polio eradication, measles elimination, and immunization systems strengthening, before a promotion to the CDC division on Global HIV and TB. To hear him tell it, his was the division hit hardest by yesterday's cuts. Remember the DOGE-Elon Musk-Karen Leavitt-Donald Trump lie about $50 million for condoms "to Hamas?" Well, Mozambique in Africa has a Gaza province and none of those intellectual heavyweights distinguished between the two and even the monetary figure (and condoms, altogether) were overblown. It's the division Jason had been working in - global HIV and TB - that all along was " major, multi-pronged effort to address HIV and tuberculosis — not a dump of condoms."Well, Jason's no longer working in a capacity to deliver results for the George W. Bush-launched PEPFAR: the President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief. It was on World AIDS Day in 2022 that Bush returned to Washington (a rarity) to tout the two decades of PEPFAR's accomplishments. Yes, that Bush. Anyhow, Jason was kind enough to join me today to share his RIF experience, reaction, emotions and insights into what being a federal employee in such a necessary agency has been like since Trump was re-elected last November. Were contingency plans being made? Any "offloading" or "lifeboating" of research and data? What was the mood in the hallways like? What's next for career civil servants like him?

Outgoing state senator Brandon Beach - because he can fog a mirror - knows Donald Trump and Trump's seventeen co-defendatns were all guilty as hell in conspiring to overturn the results of the 2020 election in Georgia. How he sleeps at night after filing a bill to allow Trump to recoup legal fees from Fulton County taxpayers is beyond me, frankly. The ironic twist on it being that he was recently appointed by the president to serve as U.S. Treasurer and has the audacity to push legislation using the  "significant' appearance of impropriety” argument, invoking the Fani Willis/Nathan Wade coupling as fodder. Joining me to fume over that is Rep. Shea Roberts. We touched on that and the state of the Georgia Democratic Party & a few other topics of note as she and the rest of the legislature wind down the 2025 session."Cousin" Shea struggled to come up  with a bill she'd voted on in awhile she felt good about, but perhaps one submitted by fellow Democrat Mary Margaret Oliver that passed by a 163-4 margin offering some modicum of relief for Georgia renters might meet muster, yeah?Also, Rep. Lucy McBath put the brakes (for now, anyway) on her exploring a gubernatorial run, leaving Georgia Democrats with a pretty open field (for now, anyway), but also leaving Congressional hopefuls eyeing her seat waffling or waiting in the wings, too.

Senator Max Burns grew up attending segregated schools, but deems himself something of an expert on the necessity of deiversity, equity and inclusion in public schools and colleges in the state of Georgia. The fact that he can't even enunciate the word "ethnicity" should already be a 'red flag,' but here we are.Thursday, while struggling to say "ethnicity" correctly (never did), he promoted his unfounded belief that D.E.I. is some form of discrimination versus a means to ending it. The Senate Committee on Education and Youth hearing on Thursday devolved into an argument about what "anti-racism" meant, shortly after Senator Shaun Kemp opined "it seems that if civil rights laws were to be put before this body today we'd be voting against them."You can watch the entire hearing HERE. ------Then, how about Elon Musk going on Fox News with Bret Baier insisting The Trump administration will "go after" propagandists spouting what he calls :"Tesla lies." The lead propagandist who owns hiw own social media platform is telling us the President of the United States who also own his own social media platform - on Fox News, no less - that propaganda suddenly isn't protected free speech. "The ones providing the money, the ones pushing the lies and propaganda, we're going after them."Just like he and Donald believe should happen with those who riled up the January 6th tourists, right? Ahem.

Remember the four years of noise from the right about Joe Biden being the doddering, senile old man who wasn't really "in charge" of his presidency?So now that we're all aware of the Signal app "klatch" (read the dialogue here) ruminating over clearly classified information (except, "nuh-uh!") the question that came up for me, mostly recently is "where was the President?"Images of Presidents and their inner circle in the "situation room" or a secure room flanked by monitors and communication paraphernalia come to mind, right?He was playing golf. (cue the 'sad trombone' effect) So, who's in charge? Elon runs amok with DOGE; attorney general Pam Bondi seems to have taken up permanent residence at Fox News to fling vapid threats, and JD Vance and Pete Hegseth and the intel fellas get on Signal to play real life "Call of Duty?" While POTUS plays golf. Oh, and because Hegseth lies like you and I breathe, it's worth noting that his characterization of Biden having "cratered" in the face of the threat from Houthis is an out-and-out LIE.------Meanwhile, under the gold dome in Georgia's capitol city of Atlanta, "religious freedom" zealots are continuing their decade-long quest to codify protections for bigotry and bias under the thin veil of religion. With me to discuss his and his organization's efforts to (again) stifle it and combat another round of anti-trans legislation, Georgia Equality executive director Jeff Graham. Also, how is it that LGBTQ+ sports organizations have been working for nearly half a century to find a place for any and everyone who wants to play sports - even heterosexuals - yet the notion befuddles anti-trans activists on the right in 2025?

A Georgia legislator hailing from a county of less than 15,000 people thinks it's a perfectly fine idea to limit early voting to one day and one centralized location per county. Voting rights advocates and Democrats, notably potential gubernatorial candidate Jason Esteves, made a lot of noise in opposition - and dozens more spoke out this afternoon at a Senate subcommittee hearing on the bill targeting voter turnout via early voting. Joining me today to discuss this bill and a host of other voting-related issues is Marilyn Marks, executive director with the Coalition for Good Governance. ------While we wait on whatever the next jaw-dropping Trump/MAGA bombshell to take "Signal-gate" off our radars, Ronny Chieng and The Daily Show staff poked some holes through the three-pronged response: "it was a mistake," but "it was an awesome mistake" and "the journalist who revealed the mistake is a 'doo-doo head.'"

Group texts are the scourge of modern communication technology, sure, but when you find yourself somehow looped in on a juicy conversation you know you're not meant to be privy to, who wouldn't stick around to see how it continues?That's the situation Atlantic editor-in-chief Jeffrey Goldberg (likely "JG" in Mike Waltz' phone or Signal app contacts) found himself in two weekends ago when he was inadvertently (we presume) looped into a curious mixture of Trump Cabinet officials, Pentagon brass, Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth (and later we learned, another unqualified individual - Joe Kent, as the New York Times reports, "Trump's nominee to run the national counterterrorism center has been acting as a chief of staff to Ms. Gabbard. A confirmation date for Mr. Kent has not been set."Today a Senate subcomittee got to grill Gabbard and CIA director John Ratcliffe on this, and while Ratcliffe insists the conversation wasn't classified, he and she both answered (and dodged) questions as if the information in the conversation was. "You can't have it both ways," exclaimed Senator Mark Warner (D-Va). The one consistent response from Trump officials has been to be smug and disimssive in smearing Goldberg - while also not denying he was erroneously looped in. It's always the journalists with that tribe and never the scandal they created, after all.For his part, Goldberg not only exonerated himself with Jen Psaki, he made the rounds to CNN, and to The Bulwark with Tim Miller, where he claimed an undercover CIA operative was identified (though he's not revealing that agent's name). But remember ... not classified. *wink*Meanwhile, a foul-mouthed Pete Buttigieg did a rare social media take on his own before landing on CNN to weigh in further. Secretary Buttigieg, someone who in a military and political capacity, had to handle classified information, knows the ins and outs of NIPR and SIPR, but the general public of course doesn't. A friend of mine with a two-plus decade career in service gave me a primer on it overnight, insisting "I have a government-issued “secure phone”. It's an iPhone. What makes it “secure” is the Microsoft Azure platform that holds my email certificates; but that's still only NIPR - USG SIPR isn't broadcast in any form via a cellular tunnel. My gov phone is basically software-hardwired to a VPN to the gov non-secure  network. It's ridiculous. To put signal on my gov phone I'd have to establish an Apple ID with my gov email (but the gov server would filter the confirmation, so it wouldn't/shouldn't  happen) or login to Apple with my personal account on my gov device (I ain't doing that) - and no, Signal isn't available on a ‘government device storefront' so yeah - the whole thing is ridiculous."The whole Chinese spy balloon stuff seems kind of trivial now, no?

Governor Brian Kemp got the 'tort reform' he wanted this legislative session, and there were three House Democrats among the 91 votes he can thank for it. One of those votes came from Rep. Dr. Michelle Au (GA 50) , who penned a two-page letter-explanation to share on her social media. She's catching a lot of heat from her base for it. So are the handful of Republicans - including one who lost his jobs hours after voting against SB 68. Wow. Mob-like, no?------Meanwhile, Senator Jon Ossoff launched his re-election campaign in Atlanta over the weekend with a lot of fiery rhetoric - both supporters and critics noting how much attention he gave to Trump - to kickstart the 2026 cycle. With no current primary opposition (Esther Panitch being a 'hard no' now), all eyes are on who Ossoff will face. Right now, he's aiming at MAGA. It's a tactic.------Last week, Jay Bookman penned a piece equating the deconstruction of federal agencies to a 'giant game of Jenga.' He and I caught up to take that conversation a little further. Always an insightful conversation with the longtime writer/journalist.

George Chidi, journalist with The Guardian, Rolling Stone and the man behind The Atlanta Objective, sat in on recent town halls hosted by Reps. Nikema Willilams and Hank Johnson and came away with more questions than answers - not unlike their constituents. He and I had a free-wheeling conversation about a lot of what's going on, politically. Preparing the American population for Medicaid cuts shuttering nursing homes and families having to take their loved ones in ... the "fajita sizzle" media manipulation with ICE raids not adding up in gaudy numbers despite the salacious headlines ... news nuggets he brought that included the date we learn the fate of Rep. Williams as head of the Georgia Democratic Party ... his sense that there's a bubbling scandal in Atlanta City Hall ... his FOIA request for benign documents from Fulton District Attorney Fani Willis.Chidi - like many of us - is wondering who's going to step up and "do something!" to take on MAGA. Hear us discuss all that and project towards 2026 and beyond (if it even matters) ... Oh, and I promised I'd let y'all know: Georgia is looking for a freelance writer (or multiple) to help him cover the stories he's known for covering in the Atlanta Objective. If you're interested, drop him an email: george@atlantanext.com

Governor Brian Kemp got what he (and his 'dark money' donors) sought: legislation to try and limit lawsuits and suppress massive jury verdicts (rare as they actually are, actually) . On today to discuss the kinds of impact this bill will have on everyday Georgians and particularly plaintiffs seeking damages, my good friend Nick Utley with Utley Law Firm took my call. ------Columnist Jay Bookman likened the Trump Administration's stripping away of federal agencies' workforce to a "giant game of Jenga," and honestly, it's the most appropriate framing I've read of this push to gut the U.S. government. ------Cautiously excited about the Georgia Department of Transportation is at the 'seeking input' stage of exploring an Atlanta-to-Savannah rail option. Before anyone gets too excited, though, this is like "step two" in a long list of steps before a shovel moves a patch of dirt, but still ...

Senator Nabila Islam Parkes joined me today to talk 'tort reform' with me, and actually has personal background.on the matter. While she was in high school, her mother was injured at a warehouse job. She saw, firsthand, the failures of both the American healthcare system and the challenges in getting justice in the legal system when taking on 'big business.'We discussed Governor Brian Kemp's fixation on tort reform and where SB 68 stands now. Also, dueling op/eds dropped today, weighing in on the pivot made by Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens regarding Beltline rail. Maria Saporta ripped into the decision while Bill Torpy pronounced the Eastside trail line plans a "boondoggle" while thinly veiling his cynicism that any of the rail gets done at all. Then today it hit me: his action (to give Atlanta voters more inaction on transit) is PRECISELY why Democrats as a party have a 27% favorability rating, nationwide. Democrats are THE party in the city and can do just about what they wish, ideologically, so when they get voters' backing on "big ticket" projects, then fail to even come close to following through - now at nine years after the "more MARTA" ballot measure & with the promise of years' more in delays - is it any wonder Democrats appear ineffective to even their own base?

When Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth carried out President Donald Trump's will to end "the tyranny of so-called Diversity, Equity and Inclusion policies " one initiative in particular - a planned two-day workshop nd performance with gifted high school musicians of color and the U.S. Marine Corps Band - got whacked. The workshop & concert was salvaged, somewhat, thanks in large part to the same CBS News and '60 Minutes' in the Trump FCC crosshairs. [See the full performance here]With black and brown students suffering more from a lack of access to arts education than their white and Asian students, the organization Equity Arc works to connect student musicians of color with mentors and opportunities; opportunities just like the Hegseth-cancelled collaborative effort.At least these kids can't feel targeted or singled out; there's also inexplicable base name changes and the scrubbing of Department of Defense web pages honoring veterans of color, too. However, thanks to Equity Arc, some noble military music veterans and, yes, CBS News and '60 Minutes' bravely contributing to the cause (in the face of Trump's threats to target media outlets not beholden to him), the mentorship and the concert, went on anyway.

Yesterday's 'Meet the Press' was DE-pressing for "D" party folks. When Steve Kornacki rolled out the latest NBC News poll, it showed the party with a meager 27% approval rating. It's a three-decades long low, and after Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer rallied enough Democrat Senate votes to pass a continuing resolution to keep the federal government (somewhat) churning, there's every likelihood a poll number like that could go lower.Lower than an all-time low.If ever a term defined the Democratic Party, that's it.Joining me today to discuss where the party can/should/might go from there, local liberal political consultant Andrew Heaton. The former Warnock campaign aide and I discuss various liberal politicians and their various means to message and resist (or iwhatever you call what Schumer did). Is there a leader among the current crop? Plus, hear the one name I'm REALLY high on who isn't even in office right now (but Trump wasn't in 2015 either) but who seems to have a lot of the skills and attributes that could resurrect the Democratic Party - even though he's been quite a critic of it the last two-plus decades.

Mayor Andre Dickens surprised (sort of) many when he and his staffers announced a change in priority for the Atlanta Beltline's transit future. They made this news at Thursday's MARTA board meeting and reaction was swift. Among the sharpest critics, the Beltline rail advocates at Beltline Rail Now! Matthew Raoe, chair of BRN, joined me today at Condesa Coffee in Old Fourth Ward for a spirited discussion panning the mayor's decision.

The chilling detainment of green card holder Mahmoud Khalil, a Syrian national and recent Columbia graduate, raises a lot of questions about the rights of permanent residents, most notably freedom of speech. To answer the sort of questions that came to my mind, immigration specialist Kate Lincoln-Goldfinch, managing partner at Lincoln-Goldfinch Law in Austin, TX, graciously took the call. We also delved a little into some "great replacement theory" conversation, on the heels of news that the U.S. population only increased from 2022-2023 because of immigration. In other words, the U.S. future (and current) economy needs an influx of immigrants to meet demand.-------Later today, Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens announced (through a spokesperson) that he was backtracking on his support for Beltline rail expansion on the trail's east side, instead looking to the south portion. Beltline rail advocates are none too pleased; neither am I. As I'd said last week, Mayor Andre Dickens is uniquely positioned to be an advocate for mass transit growth in not only his city but in all of the metropolitan area (he is chair of the Atlanta Regional Commission, after all). Instead, he's making the same mistake made when the downtown streetcar was plotted out (to go to and from nowhere essentially). His mis-direction compounds what already makes pitching mass transit in Atlanta and throughout the state so difficult: MARTA already goes nowhere people need it to, too.

Always a joy to have Melita Easters - executive director at the Georgia WIN List - on the show, and today was no exception. As of this episode posting she's interviewing author Elaine Weiss, whose latest book, "Spell Freedom," looks back at the underground schools that built the civil rights movement, The discussion is one previously scheduled at the Jimmy Carter Presidential Library. Jennifer Schuessler first reported on this and two otther book event cancellations in late February for the New York Times, "raising questions about whether leadership changes at the National Archives and Records Administration were affecting programming at the 13 presidential libraries it oversees."So a speaking event for books on civil rights, homelessness and climate change have no home at the Carter Presidential Library under the Trump presidency. The National Archives chalked it up to "facing staff cuts," with fuure Carter Library events "now needs approval from Washington for all programming."Whatever the case, the broad and thorough "reach" of the Trump administration into every nook-and-cranny of federal governance is obviously concerning. Weiss' book is notable in that - as we speak - Trump and his Department of Education head is seeking to dismantle the federal agency altogether - which puts more power at the state level. What could go wrong except the return of "Lost Cause" history curriculum like that taught to current GOP Senate leaders like Marsha Blackburn and Lindsey Graham?Well Melita and I discussed the Carter Library / National Archives concern, along with a host of other topics (as we usually do). She's rightfully proud of previous WIN Leadership Academy products like Senator Kim Jackson, who managed to craft productive legislation to address homelessness (unlike that of Houston Gaines, who sought to score political points and exacerbate the problem in larger cities). We talk Lucy McBath, Stacy Abrams & so much more.PLUS: The AJC's Patricia Murphy and Jeremy Redmon both dive into the renaming of "Fort Benning" near Columbus, Georgia, and how clumsily Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth manages to dishonor the man and family he chose to rename the base (simply because he shared a last name with a 'mediocre' Confederate general and secessionist slave owner) and the Army veteran and wife whose names were previously affixed to the base.

The Zoom call dust-up between state Senator Elena Parent and the mother of a trans child continues to catch the attention of local media and the political consultant class; the latest to chime in being the Atlanta Journal Constitution's Bill Torpy, who zeroed in on an angle: that Parent is one of four Democrats who voted for a GOP-led bill (four others skipped the vote altogether) to limit taxpayer-funded gender-affirming care for trans convicts while in prison, and of those four, (eight if you include the four who didn't vote) Parent is the only one who's white. Torpy also noted that the backlash Parent is enduring on her social media is also coming from angry white constituents (assuming they're all her constituents. This all gets back to points I made last week: this aggression solves nothing, nor would Parent's vote have, were it to have gone the other way. We keep doing this to ourselves, on the left. "Incremental" isn't a sexy term, particularly when invoked in politics, but "ideological purity" is the enemy not just of "progress, but eveen just "incrementalism," too. Hell, I got a testy email over it. Not to foster a conversation or enlighten (plenty of opportunity to win hearts and minds with personal stories) but more to manifest division (and derision, but I'm a big boy; I can handle it). - - - - - - - - As damaging as Kamala Harris' campaign having no answers for the barrage of 'anti-trans' attack ads that lead some Democrats now to be more calculating with their support, so, too, was the perceived 'gaslighting' by the Biden White House (and re-election campaign) about Joe Biden's ageand mental fitness. At least that's what an aide to the First Lady became the first to say publicly from within that White House staff. Infuriating to hear, but unsurprising, too.

Atlanta mayor Andre Dickens gave his "state of the city" address in a typically "Atlanta Way" ... a flashy high society pep rally of sorts, with civic leaders and local music icons both in the wings and on the stage, too. While he touched on (of course) all his perceived high marks (and there are enough, for sure), leave it to me to douse a little reality on the feting, too.Oddly enough, though, his second-term fortunes could be transformational for both the city and metro area it anchors, plus provide a canvas for a liberal resurgence in the state and nationally, too. Of course, there are the usual "anti-urban" right wing (and thus, 'man-made') obstacles to overcome, but Dickens has made alliances across the aisle before, so perhaps he can call in some favors?I'll explain ...