All eyes on Brian Kemp as ‘Decision Day’ 2026 gets underway
Today’s newsletter highlights:
- The Trump administration plans to scale back medical care at Fort Gordon.
- Burt Jones paints rival Rick Jackson as soft on illegal immigration.
- Geoff Duncan outlines how he’ll win over the Democratic Party’s most loyal voting bloc.
Spending showdown
Veto Day could get messy.
One Republican lawmaker predicted a “bloodbath.” Another warned of a “fiscal massacre.” And at the Capitol, they weren’t being melodramatic.
Gov. Brian Kemp is set to sign Georgia’s multibillion-dollar budget Tuesday, the final day he can sign, veto or quietly allow bills to become law. But the real suspense is what he plans to cut.
Lawmakers are bracing for Kemp to strip hundreds of millions of dollars in discretionary spending they inserted into the budget, a move that could help offset the sweeping income tax cut he signed Monday.
That tax package, House Speaker Jon Burns said, will return $2.9 billion a year to taxpayers. It will also mean $2.9 billion less in state revenue.
That leaves Kemp in a familiar but uncomfortable spot. He doesn’t want to end his final legislative session by undercutting a tax cut that has long been a top GOP priority. But he also doesn’t want to drain a shrinking state surplus.
Kemp isn’t saying much yet, only that “we’re good fiscal stewards of our resources.” He’ll say more Tuesday. Lawmakers are already expecting the knife.
Meanwhile, the governor has dozens of other proposals pending his signature.
We’re closely watching the fate of a GOP-approved measure to make some local races in Clayton, Cobb, DeKalb, Fulton and Gwinnett counties nonpartisan starting in 2028. It would apply to district attorneys, tax commissioners and other local posts.
Stripping party labels from those offices would make it easier for Republicans to make inroads into Georgia’s most reliably Democratic region, while also punishing Fulton District Attorney Fani Willis and other local officials Republicans see as too liberal. Expect a speedy legal challenge if Kemp signs it.
We’re also watching the fate of what lawmakers have dubbed the “Epstein amendment,” tacked on to separate proposals that would expose the details of abuse and harassment claims against legislators to new public scrutiny.
Things to know
Good morning! Here are three things to know for today:
- A federal judge declined to unseal a lawsuit brought by two Democratic-backed candidates for the Georgia Supreme Court, Adam Beam reports.
- Policymakers across the country are debating how to govern artificial intelligence while negotiating President Donald Trump’s staunch warnings to avoid “onerous and excessive” AI laws, the AJC’s Taylor Croft and Caleb Groves report.
- Kemp signed some tax cuts into law on Monday. Now, state officials must figure out how to pay for it, writes the AJC’s David Wickert.
Fort Gordon cuts?
The Trump administration plans to scale back medical care at Fort Gordon in Augusta. Members of Georgia’s congressional delegation are not happy about it.
WRDW reports the Defense Health Agency has told Congress it plans to permanently close most inpatient care at the Eisenhower Army Medical Center. The agency also plans to turn the emergency room into an urgent care center.
DHA Director Vice Adm. Darin K. Via said the decision will assure “safe quality and timely access to care for our warfighters and all beneficiaries.”
U.S. Sen. Raphael Warnock isn’t convinced. The Atlanta Democrat said he is “deeply troubled” by the proposed cuts, saying Augusta’s “already-strained civilian health care system is not equipped to handle the influx of military personnel.” Nearly 30,000 people, both military and civilian, work on the base, and about 4,000 family members live there.
“At minimum, the Defense Health Agency should delay this decision until there is a full plan in place to take care of our military heroes and their families,” Warnock said.
U.S. Rep. Rick Allen, the Augusta Republican who represents the base, was the first to raise the alarm about the unit’s closure and ask the DHA to reconsider. U.S. Sen. Jon Ossoff, an Atlanta Democrat, has also weighed in.
Jackson on ICE
Lt. Gov. Burt Jones, a Republican candidate for Georgia governor, has been painting rival Rick Jackson as soft on illegal immigration after Jackson said in a recent debate that he didn’t know if he had immigrants in the country illegally who were working on his property in Forsyth County.
But a different picture emerges when you consider Jackson’s company, Jackson Healthcare, is one of several companies awarded a joint $2.6 billion contract with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement to provide on-site medical staffing at ICE detention facilities around the country.
A spokesperson for Jackson said the indefinite delivery contract has not yet yielded any revenue for Jackson Healthcare Government Services, a subsidiary of Jackson Healthcare. But it could in the future.
The original contract was awarded in 2023 during the Biden administration. Since then, the Trump administration announced plans to build more than a dozen new ICE detention facilities for mass deportations, including two in Georgia. Those plans were put on hold after massive pushback in local communities where the centers were planned, including Social Circle.
Jackson Healthcare’s contract with ICE expires in 2028.
Christmas in May
It’s never too early for a Christmas tree at the Georgia Capitol.
Kemp on Monday signed Senate Bill 556 into law. The law contained multiple pieces of legislation that were attached to the original bill. Such bills are known as “Christmas trees” in legislative parlance.
The law does a lot of education-related things, including setting rules for the state’s need-based college scholarship program — one of Kemp’s priorities this session. It also includes an homage of sorts to former state Sen. Jason Esteves, who is running for governor in next week’s primary as a Democrat.
The bill increases the cap on contributions to 529 college savings plans — which is similar to a bill Esteves sponsored back when he was in the Senate.
“Thank you so much for adopting a great Democratic idea,” state Sen. Kim Jackson, D-Atlanta, told her Republican colleagues after they passed the bill last month.
Duncan’s reset
Former Lt. Gov. Geoff Duncan is trying to answer one of the biggest questions hanging over his Democratic campaign for governor: how a former Republican leader plans to win over Black voters, the party’s most loyal voting bloc.
In a new memo, Duncan outlines a broad agenda aimed at Black Georgians, including Medicaid expansion, new protections for voting rights, more support for HBCUs, stronger minority contracting rules and a proposed “Jumpstart Fund” using part of Georgia’s $17 billion rainy-day fund.
Most of these proposals have been mainstays of his agenda. But repackaging them into a four-page packet is a reminder of Duncan’s positioning in the race.
Locked in a battle for a spot against former Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms in a potential June runoff, Duncan casts himself as a Democrat willing to confront Trump in court over tariffs, airport contracting rules and voting rights.
There are also clear nods to issues where Duncan has political repair work to do. He says he was wrong on abortion and pledges to push to repeal Georgia’s restrictive 2019 abortion law. He also says he would veto any redistricting plan he views as gerrymandered and support an independent commission to draw maps.
Listen up
Today on the “Politically Georgia” podcast, former state Sen. John F. Kennedy joins the show to talk about his campaign for lieutenant governor.
You can listen and subscribe to “Politically Georgia” for free on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts.
Have a question or comment for the show? Email us at politicallygeorgia@ajc.com or give us a call at 770-810-5297 and you could be featured on a future episode.
David Scott’s legacy
As promised, the late U.S. Rep. David Scott’s daughter has qualified to run in the special election to fulfill the remainder of his term.
Marcye Scott was among three candidates who signed up on the first day of qualifying for the special election. The other two, Fayth Park and Caesar Gonzales, are Republicans.
Everton Blair, who is already campaigning for the full two-year term in Georgia’s 13th Congressional District, said previously that he also plans to compete in the special election. He and any other potential candidates have until Wednesday at 1 p.m. to submit their paperwork.
The election is July 28. If no one receives more than 50% of the vote, a runoff will be Aug. 25.
Today in Washington
- Trump will depart for his official trip to China.
- The House has evening votes scheduled.
- The Senate could vote on whether to confirm Kevin Warsh as the new chair of the Federal Reserve.
Housing bill
The Rev. Al Sharpton, the high-profile civil rights activist, is lending his voice to the pressure campaign urging members of Congress to back off from a push to prevent corporations from buying up rental properties.
The Senate’s housing bill includes the ban on investor-owned properties, and it has bipartisan support in that chamber. Ossoff and Warnock both support it.
But there is bipartisan support in the House to either remove this section or revise it substantially. The House version of the bill could be released at any moment.
Sharpton, in letters to Senate and House leaders, said the provision would reduce rental housing and therefore could make it harder for families to find affordable places to live.
“For these families — families saving toward a down payment, rebuilding credit, or simply trying to put their children in a safe neighborhood with good schools — single-family rental homes are often the only door open to them,” Sharpton wrote.
Trump weighed in Monday via a post on Truth Social and affirmed that he still backs the Senate bill with the ban language intact. The senators who support the bill said that investors owning homes and putting them up for rent is making it harder for families who want to purchase homes.
Shoutouts
Today’s birthday:
- State Sen. Drew Echols, R-Gainesville.
Want a birthday shoutout in the Politically Georgia newsletter? There’s a form for that. It’s not just birthdays. We’re also interested in new jobs, engagements, birth announcements, etc.
Before you go
Keep Our Republic, the nonpartisan civic education organization that promotes trust in elections and constitutional checks and balances, announced its Georgia Advisory Council on Tuesday. It includes former state Sen. Don Balfour; Bartow County Elections Board member Dexter Benning; former Secretary of State and current President of Georgia College & State University Cathy Cox; Lynne Riley, the former president of the Georgia Student Finance Commission; former state Rep. Calvin Smyre; former state Rep. Scot Turner; and Billy Wooten, a former Chatham County elections superintendent.
That’ll do it for us today. As always, you can send your best scoops, gossip and insider information to greg.bluestein@ajc.com, tia.mitchell@ajc.com, patricia.murphy@ajc.com and adam.beam@ajc.com.
About the Authors
Greg Bluestein is the Atlanta Journal Constitution's chief political reporter. He is also an author, TV analyst and co-host of the Politically Georgia podcast.
Tia Mitchell is the AJC’s Washington Bureau Chief and a co-host of the "Politically Georgia" podcast. She writes about Georgia’s congressional delegation, campaigns, elections and the impact that decisions made in D.C. have on residents of the Peach State.
Patricia Murphy is the AJC's senior political columnist. She was previously a nationally syndicated columnist for CQ Roll Call, national political reporter for the Daily Beast and Politics Daily, and wrote for The Washington Post and Garden & Gun. She graduated from Vanderbilt and holds a master’s degree in journalism from Columbia University.
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