Sunday Solutions — Feb. 2, 2025
Good morning! Happy Groundhog Day! In the spirit of the beloved movie “Groundhog Day,” almost everything involves a do-over of some type — a second presidential term, another perspective on a problem or ways to learn from research and experience. Will we see shadows? Here at The Current, we always vote for sunlight. Let’s go look.
EXPLAINER: ENVIRONMENT
A day monitoring right whales
The Current’s Mary Landers and Justin Taylor joined hard-working researchers and headed out to sea last week to look for North American right whales. The whales aren’t always easy to find, since there are so few of them. Coastal Georgia waters provide calving ground for the endangered species, which has only 70 females left out of the 300 total. And if you find one, how do you know which one it is? They’ll show you the hard work the state researchers put in to find out.
NEWS: GOVERNING
Following: Elected officials & their work
- After a judge’s death, renewed scrutiny for a Georgia loophole that can nullify elections: Before a state court judge Stephen Yekel died, he sent the governor a resignation note that, if accepted, would allow Gov. Brian Kemp to bypass the results of the November election and appoint a new judge for a two-year term. Kemp refused, but he’s used the loophole in the past. This story from Bolts, an independent nonprofit news site, explains how that works.
- Georgia House committee votes to expand grant eligibility for college students: Students nearing graduation could get boost to finish. From Georgia Recorder
- Georgia Power cancels coal plant closures, chooses fossil fuels to meet demand: Plan goes to Public Service Commission members for approval. From Grist/WABE
- Transgender sports ban advances out of Georgia Senate committee; gender-affirming care under fire: One of two bills starts march to General Assembly vote. From Georgia Recorder
- Kemp-backed lawsuit overhaul seeks to limit large verdicts, but without explicit damages caps. Governor brings specifics to the table for the legislature. From Georgia Recorder.
Test how well you spy details in Coastal Georgia. Give us the location of the spot in the photo below. Some may be easier than others; some will be tougher. We’ll collect correct answers each week and draw for a weekly winner.
Our first winner!
Congratulations to Tbolt for being drawn from the 16 correct answers. Last week: The Smallest Church in America, off U.S. 17 near Townsend. Here’s this week’s spot:
NEWS: GOVERNING
New orders: What do they mean, Part 2
In the spirit of explainers and Sunday Solutions, we continue a thread from last week where we link stories from the past week that go beyond the headlines.
- The 19th* Explains: What sex trafficking is — and isn’t: A number of high-profile recent criminal and civil cases have involved allegations of sex trafficking.
- Did Donald Trump’s firing of aviation officials make the DC crash likelier? Doubtful, experts say: Aviation veterans say any changes wouldn’t have had time to take effect. From Politifact.
- ‘A Direct Attack on Science:’ Trump’s Return Is Rattling Gun Violence Researchers. Days after the inauguration, White House directives and pledges to cut public health funding are already causing chaos and uncertainty. From The Trace
- ‘People Will Die’: The Trump Administration Said It Lifted Its Ban on Lifesaving Humanitarian Aid. That’s Not True.: In a public statement Wednesday, the State Department defended the foreign aid freezes and said the government has issued dozens of exemption waivers in recent days. From ProPublica
- Trump’s education department says book bans are a ‘hoax.’ Teachers disagree.: In South Carolina and nationally, the push against censorship continues under a Trump administration that denies reading restrictions are happening. From The 19th*
The Current GA is a community sponsor of the Savannah Book Festival, Feb. 6-9, Click here for more details.
- REVIEW: ‘John Lewis: A Life’ by David Greenberg
- REVIEW: ‘House on Biscayne Bay’
- REVIEW: ‘The Librarian’
Come visit The Current in Telfair Square on Free Festival Saturday!
EXPLAINER: RESEARCH
☕ Your second cup: When research really isn’t
Last week during a U.S. Senate confirmation hearing, the nominee to run the Department of Health and Human Services mentioned research about vaccines that has been proven faulty, not reviewed and retracted. Experts say fake studies are rampant and slowing legitimate medical research. They say finding and shooting down bogus research has turned into a full-time game of Whac-A-Mole that’s dangerous, especially when it comes to earnest work to understanding and cure cancer and other chromic diseases. Here’s an in-depth look from The Conversation that explains what’s happening, why and how the system trying to stop it.
Warnock questions RFK Jr.’s commitment to reducing health care costs in Georgia
By Ellen Eldridge/GPB
Georgia U.S. Sen. Raphael Warnock will be voting no on the nomination of Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to lead the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. He says the candidate is manifestly unqualified for the job.
Georgia House committee votes to expand grant eligibility for college students
By Ross Williams/Georgia Recorder
A House committee has unanimously passed a bill to expand eligibility for the Georgia College Completion Grant, which provides up to $2,500 for students close to graduation but low on money, to include Technical College System of Georgia students who have completed 70% of their course of study.
Georgia Power cancels coal plant closures, chooses fossil fuels to meet demand
By Emily Jones/WABE, Grist
Georgia Power’s 2025 integrated resource plan proposes a major increase in energy demand, with a focus on fossil fuels and a smaller role for renewables, despite previous commitments to transition to cleaner energy sources.
A look at the search for endangered right whales off Coastal Georgia
By Justin Taylor
Journalists accompany researchers to monitor presence of the rare North American right whales off the Georgia coast.
Transgender sports ban advances out of Georgia Senate committee; gender-affirming care under fire
By Ross Williams/Georgia Recorder and Jill Nolin/Georgia Recorder
Georgia lawmakers have advanced a bill expanding the state’s ban on transgender athletes in girls’ sports and other bills targeting gender-affirming care, including for adults, in the Senate, despite opposition from Democrats who argue it will invite new lawsuits and prioritize a “level playing field” for female athletes.
Kemp-backed lawsuit overhaul seeks to limit large verdicts, but without explicit damages caps
By Maya Homan/Georgia Recorder
Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp has introduced a nine-pronged plan to overhaul the state’s legal landscape, aimed at reducing insurance prices for businesses and consumers, but critics argue that the proposed changes may not address the root causes of rising premiums.
‘The House on Biscayne Bay’: A Miami mansion tale of wealth, deceit, and scandal
By Robin Kemp
‘The House on Biscayne Bay’ by Chanel Cleeton is a historical fiction novel that explores the early days of Miami’s colonization by wealthy Northerners and land-boom speculators, told through the voices of socialites and social climbers.
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