AG Report 3.30.2023
New Facts on How GA Governor Stood Up to Lockdown Don
A defining issue in a potential Republican primary showdown will be the management of Covid-19 and related government policies. This is an area in which Trump is particularly weak, as many Republican voters feel the government way overstepped and did things that were not in the country’s best interests.
While Republican Governors in states like Florida and Georgia tried to balance the threat of the virus with the calamity of government lockdowns and restrictions, the federal response seemed only focused on the former. That’s why we ended up with business closures, school closures, and nonsensical mandates that far exceeded what was necessary or justifiable. Trump openly handed the entire response to a few bureaucrats, and it will be hard for Trump to deflect given he publicly admitted to putting Dr. Fauci in charge and bragged about completely deferring to Fauci and others.
One defining moment in that period was when Georgia’s Brian Kemp decided to become the first Governor to push for reopening businesses in his state — something that was met with insane levels of media criticism. The Atlantic went as far as to declare that Georgia was embarking on an experiment in “human sacrifice.” Trump, immediately wilting to media criticism, publicly criticized Kemp for the decision.
Now, a WSJ article has more details about a private exchange between Trump and Kemp. The president was furious with Georgia’s governor because of the media backlash and tried to pressure him to keep non-essential businesses closed. Kemp responded that he needed to prioritize the constituents wondering who was fighting for them, and who risked losing everything because of the lockdowns. The account is very consistent with what Trump said publicly at the time.
This disconnect is likely a major reason why Trump’s anti-Kemp efforts during the last election led nowhere, and why Kemp was re-elected by a significant margin.
Rolling Stone Editor Changed Story to Deceive Readers About FBI Raid
In October 2022, Rolling Stone published a story about the FBI raiding the home of ABC News producer James Gordon Meek. The story highlighted the producer’s news accomplishments related to national security, which gave readers the impression that the raid was related to that work.