Tuesday, Oct. 8, 2024
Good morning! We start today with a U.S. presidential candidate returning to Coastal Georgia — again. We then look at some of the politics of disaster relief and a momentous but incomplete announcement by Hyundai. Finally, we note some things for your radar. Questions, comments, or story ideas? You can reach me at craig.thecurrent@gmail.com
NEWS: POLITICS
Trump to return to Savannah
Just four weeks after his campaign rally at the Johnny Mercer Theater — and two weeks before Election Day on Nov. 5 — Donald Trump will step into the Savannah Convention Center, where he will be the keynote speaker at a “Defend the 2nd” event sponsored by the National Rifle Association.
In a statement announcing the Oct. 22 speech, the NRA said the Republican presidential nominee has “never wavered in his support of the Second Amendment” and has solidified “his legacy as a true champion of the right to keep and bear arms.”
In an attempt to dispel Democratic stereotypes about guns and recast the debate around guns, Kamala Harris, Trump’s opponent in next month’s election, has told Oprah Winfrey that she owned a gun and that if someone breaks into her home, “they’re getting shot.” She also has promised Americans “the freedom to be safe from gun violence.”
Nonetheless, in his statement, the NRA says Harris has a “long record of support for radical anti-gun measures,” including “making government-dictated safe storage a punishable offense.”
Its opposition to such steps could put the NRA — and Trump — at odds with the GOP-dominated state legislature.
Led by the Republican Georgia Speaker of the House, Jon Burns of Newington, the state legislature is set to take up new measures to deter gun violence, following the Sept. 4 Apalachee High School shooting, which left two teachers and two students dead, along with nine others injured.
ANALYSIS: POLITICS
Stormy politics
As those hit by Hurricane Helene struggle to recover and brace themselves for a possible sequel, Coastal Georgia lawmakers and officials have set aside hyperpartisanship to help constituents — even as the presidential nominees of their parties seek to frame the disaster to their advantages.
Yet notably absent amid the hands-on efforts of these politicians, all of whom are standing for reelection, is any mention of assessing responses to the current disaster and how to fund relief efforts going forward not only for Helene, but for future storms, The Current’s Craig Nelson reports.
Instead, such discussion and debate are ensnarled in misinformation, much of it propagated by Donald Trump and his supporters seeking to win votes in a tight election.
NEWS: JOBS
Milestone for Hyundai
It was no doubt a cause for celebration.
Hyundai announced last week that the first EV had rolled off the assembly line at its sprawling, $7.6 billion manufacturing plant in Bryan County. The South Korean giant located its plant in the county in exchange for $2.1 billion in state tax deferments, subsidized construction costs, and other perks.
State officials praised the milestone and Hyundai’s decision to celebrate “this generational investment” with current employees — a choice, said Pat Wilson, commissioner of the Georgia Department of Economic Development, that shows “the value the company places in its current and future” employees.
In feting the occasion, however, what officials neglected to say was probably equally, if not more, important to state taxplayers, The Current’s Margaret Coker reports.
5 things for your radar
- Check out to Coastal Navigator podcasts by The Current’s Gillian Goodman. In her latest episode, she continues to unpack details of the ballot processes in interviews with officials and voters. Don’t miss her podcast and her 5 things to know about Georgia’s new election measures.
- Georgia is the second worst state for mental health care, according to Forbes Advisor. It has the highest percentage of adults who are struggling with mental health and could not see a doctor due to cost (34.4%) and the fourth fewest mental health treatment centers (10.05 per 10,000 businesses).
- “As affordable housing disappears, states scramble to shore up the losses” (The Associated Press, Oct. 6, 2024) “While Americans continue to struggle under unrelentingly high rents, as many as 223,000 affordable housing units… across the U.S. could be yanked out from under them in the next five years alone.”
- Watchdog finds Black girls face more frequent, severe discipline in school (National Public Radio, Sept. 19, 2024) “Over the course of the 85-page report, the GAO says it found that in K-12 public schools, Black girls had the highest rates of so-called ‘exclusionary discipline,’ such as suspensions and expulsions.”
- Party in the Pines for state Rep. Jesse Petrea (R-Savannah) will be held tomorrow at 6 p.m. at the Forest City Gun Club, 9203 Ferguson Ave. in Savannah. Attending guests include Gov. Brian Kemp and House Speaker Jon Burns. For more information, contact cnewman@alcovepropertiesllc.com.
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One hurricane over, another possible: Disaster relief becomes political football
Yet notably absent amid the hands-on efforts of these politicians, all of whom are standing for reelection, is any mention of how to fund future relief efforts, once the immediate needs of Helene’s victims are met.
5 things: What to know about Georgia’s new election measures
While lawsuits rage on, here’s what voters need to know about what these measures mean for them and how they got to this point.
Georgia elections chief doesn’t expect Helene damage to have big effect on state’s voting
Election equipment testing and poll worker training was paused in some locations immediately after the storm tore through, but that activity has largely resumed.
Hurricane Milton: Updates
As Hurricane Milton moves east, Coastal Georgia counties are watching closely for any effects.
Georgia faces numerous crises, but Board of Public Health hasn’t met since May
The nine-member board, which oversees and sets general policy for the Georgia Department of Public Health, has met just three times this year, most recently in May, canceling seven meetings including October’s.
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