Sally’s Senate Snapshot #3

The Sun Will Come Out

As the week started off rainy and cold, it reminded me that this time last year, both of my kids were starting new schools on college campuses in cold, rainy January weather. I told them to hang in there because soon spring would come when they could enjoy their campuses more. The same can be said for these rainy days for our state and country. There will be better days ahead!

Brighter Days Ahead for Vaccines

Slow vaccine rollouts, difficulty obtaining appointments, and the threat of new virus variants are tempering the elation we all felt with the good news of effective vaccines last December. But it’s important to remember that it’s only been 6 weeks since the first vaccine was administered in Georgia. Already, almost all long term care residents have been vaccinated (where 40%+ of the deaths occur), most healthcare workers, plus the age 65 and up Georgians who have been lucky enough to get an appointment. If you’re a math person, you’ve already calculated how long it will take to vaccinate the rest of us and the numbers aren’t good — but I believe the pace will speed up.

Increased Supply: The Biden administration announced that states will soon receive a 16% increase in the amount of vaccines and Governor Kemp announced that CVS and Walgreens have almost finished their contracts with nursing homes which will free up an additional 40,000 vaccines per week. The maddening web of systems to find a vaccine should also improve when Georgia’s centralized vaccine system goes online in a couple of weeks.

Georgia Dept. of Public Health: If you qualify for stage 1A+, you can go to any public health site in Georgia to get a vaccine and you may have better luck if you are willing and able to drive outside of metro Atlanta. You can find a full list of sites on the Georgia Department of Public Health website at https://dph.georgia.gov/locations/covid-vaccination-site

Grocery Stores: You can also periodically check Ingles, Publix and Kroger. Walmart will participate as well, but right now most Walmart vaccination sites are outside the Atlanta area.

Private Providers: Be sure to ask your doctor to see if they have vaccines, or if they will get them soon. Some small pharmacies may be administering the vaccine and may have a waitlist. Follow your county health department on social media. Some like Dekalb may announce when they have new appointments available.

Text Notifications: The text notification system I announced last week has a new number, 844-554-4024. Text VAX to this number, or visit https://discodroid.ai/vaxapp/, and the system will alert you when appointments open up in the following counties: DeKalb, Fulton, Clayton, Gwinnett, Rockdale and Newton. Unfortunately, all of these systems require computer access and literacy, which leaves too many of our citizens behind, especially the elderly. We need to find better ways to make vaccines accessible to everyone.

Weathering the Pandemic at the Capitol

Masks and twice-weekly testing continue to be the norm at the Capitol. I was happy to see House Speaker Ralston, who expelled one of his members for failing to get tested, taking things very seriously. Since session began, six Senators have tested positive, two of whom are in the hospital. Testing has helped to limit viral spread, but I was shocked to discover that no formal contact tracing is being done, after learning through the grapevine the entire Gwinnett Senate Delegation was exposed to a colleague that tested positive last week. After speaking with Minority Leader Gloria Butler, I hope that will be remedied soon.

So much of our work relies on conversations between colleagues, which is tough when you’re wearing masks and wanting to keep interactions as brief as possible. Many meetings are done via Zoom, including the Women’s Legislative Caucus, which I co-chair again this year with Representative Kim Alexander. We held our first Zoom meeting this week and heard from the Georgia Budget and Policy Institute about how the pandemic has affected working women.

The “Small” Budget Moves with Lightning Speed

The “small” budget that adjusts current fiscal year spending flew through the House and into the Senate to get it done as soon as possible in case the pandemic worsens and we have to cut session short. After back to back appropriations subcommittee meetings, the House passed the budget on Thursday and immediately transmitted it to the Senate so that the Senate could start our subcommittee process bright and early at 6:30 am the next morning.

Despite being in the midst of a global pandemic and state revenues being up 4%, Governor Kemp’s recommended budget included only a 2.5% increase, opting instead to rely primarily on federal funds and preserve the state’s $2.7 billion “rainy day” fund while it pours down rain on hard working Georgians. The House added funds to cover several new senior level public health positions, replace our state’s outdated vaccination tracking system, boost funding to nursing homes and a program that provides HIV/AIDs medication to low income Georgians, and purchase 500 new school buses to replace a third of the state’s aging fleet.

There were no new funds for the Georgia Department of Labor, even though the Georgia Budget and Policy Institute estimates that there are nearly 10 times the number of Georgians in our unemployment system than this time last year. In an unplanned coincidence, two of my colleagues and I took to the Senate well (video) on Wednesday to speak about how we are frustrated and failing hard working families that can’t get their unemployment benefits. Speaking from the well, especially en masse, helps to amplify issues, especially for those of us that don’t serve on the appropriations subcommittees. I will continue to push these issues to help as much as I can.

Bringing Sunshine to Issues

The Senate Democratic Caucus began rolling out our legislative agenda that focuses on our priorities of expanding voting access and helping our struggling working families. Here are some bills to watch:

• SB 26: Requires dropboxes at all early voting locations
• SB 35: Allows poll workers to be from any county to address poll worker shortages
• SB 36: Establishes a pilot program for voting awareness grants, particularly in rural areas
• SB 37: Joins the National Popular Vote Interstate Compact, an agreement among a number of states to award all of our electoral votes to the presidential candidate that wins the national popular vote
• SB 38: Allows people to request to permanently opt in to vote by mail
• SB 39: Restores voting rights for people with drug offenses
• SB 40: Allows counties to start counting absentee ballots before Election Day
• SB 24: Raises the Georgia state minimum wage from $5.50 to $15
• SB 25: Provides childcare tax credits to Georgia families

Democratic Caucus Whip Senator Harold Jones asked me, along with Senator Tonya Anderson, to be Assistant Whips, which means that we will help ensure our party stays unified on key votes.

In the coming week, I’ll begin rolling out my own legislative agenda that focuses on issues I know are important to you: expanding access to affordable health care, eliminating barriers to voting, saving our environment, tackling gun safety, making higher education more affordable, and improving our educational environment.

The Local Forecast

Our county delegations heard from a member of Congress and our county commissioners this week. It’s so important that all levels of government are connected so that we can serve you as effectively as possible. I was elected Vice Chair of the Dekalb Senate Delegation and I look forward to working closely with Dekalb Caucus Chair, Senator Emmanuel Jones. Cityhood is a major topic of discussion in Dekalb as we have active cityhood initiatives in both Central and South Dekalb. We now have the opportunity to look at cityhood thoughtfully and holistically, and to think through how these initiatives impact the entire county.

The Gwinnett Senate Delegation met with newly-elected Congresswoman Carolyn Bordeaux of the 7th Congressional district. Her district office is now up and running and she would very much like to hear from her constituents about what you need from our federal government. Her district director is Arthur Tripp and you can reach his office at 770-232-3005.

Storm Clouds Ahead: Redistricting

The ACLU presented to the Democratic Caucus on redistricting this week, a topic that is increasingly top of mind and anxiety-provoking for all of our elected officials. The legislature is responsible for redrawing district lines every 10 years just after the Census to make sure our districts account for population shifts. This means that all of our districts will look different the next time we run for re-election. We already know that Census data is running late this year due to the pandemic and other factors, so we believe that the Governor won’t be able to call the special redistricting session until mid to late fall.

In the meantime, I encourage you to learn about redistricting, demand an open and transparent redistricting process, and keep a close eye on the redistricting session to ensure that the General Assembly draws districts that allow voters to choose their representatives and not the other way around. As you often hear me say, redistricting will require us all to use our voices and to Be Loud!

Sally’s Senate Snapshot #1

Finding Normal in the Sea of Anomaly

As I arrived at the Capitol Monday morning for the start of the 156th Georgia General Assembly, I felt a little like Nemo trying to find his way through the sea anemone. I admit I was scared. It’s not the first time I felt scared at the Capitol, so I told myself I knew I could push through it — like the time in the early 2000s when in order to get to my office I had to push a baby stroller through a swarm of angry men waving 1956 Confederate flags.

As the week progressed, I realized the only way to govern through scary times is to look for the “normal.” Experiencing the rites and rituals of the legislative process, and dealing with the necessary mundane business of organizing, gave me the stable ground I needed to calm my nerves.

Many of you have reached out to express your concern for my safety and health. Your concern has sustained me. And, you’ll be pleased to know that the legislature will not be in session next week. It is a longstanding tradition that following the MLK holiday, we recess for budget hearings, and I will watch those budget hearings from the safety of my own home. Security at the Capitol has been ramping up all week, though I must say, it is very disconcerting to see State Troopers all decked out in military garb and holding M4s. Sadly, it is necessary.

Georgia’s Vaccine Rollout is having a Whale of a Time

There is no doubt Georgia is having a difficult time rolling out vaccines and that people are very frustrated. The hope we felt when we first heard of the vaccines has unfortunately turned to frustration at the difficulty of getting it into people’s arms. Like everything else about this pandemic, the Trump administration has punted the vaccine deployment to the states, and Georgia is relying on a public health infrastructure that has been severely underfunded for decades. As recently as January of 2020, during good economic times, Governor Kemp asked public health to make draconian cuts to their budgets. Even Republican legislators thought this was a shortsighted move.

That being said, help is on the way and I am confident the situation will improve. There’s talk of a centralized, statewide registration system being developed and many commercial entities such as grocery and drug stores are signing up to be providers. There’s also a massive effort to recruit volunteers, including healthcare and non-clinical volunteer positions. If you are interested, please apply through Georgia Responds (https://dph.georgia.gov/georgia-responds).

Out to Sea: The First Legislative Week 2021

At my first freshman legislative training, a veteran legislator said travelling to the Capitol for the legislative session felt a little like being on a ship out at sea.

I personally think it would have been more responsible to postpone Georgia’s legislative session until things settle down from the election, and vaccines are rolling out more smoothly. By Georgia’s constitution, we must begin the second Monday of January, but we could have all been sworn in, then gone back home. The General Assembly is the perfect superspreader event. We bring people to Atlanta from every corner of the state, put them together in two big rooms, then send them back out. And we do this every week for about three months. The Governor, public health, GEMA and the National Guard don’t need the distraction of the legislature right now. That being said, the legislature is taking the virus much more seriously now than they have in the past.

COVID Testing: My first trip back to the Capitol since June began the week before session, as I went for my first COVID test. Many years ago I learned from Speaker Tom Murphy that the legislative desks in the chamber used to all have spittoons so legislators could spit their tobacco. Now legislators are spitting into plastic specimen cups!

Last fall, I learned about Georgia Tech’s very effective COVID surveillance testing through my own Tech student’s experience. I was so impressed, I called Georgia Tech to suggest they offer the same service to the General Assembly. I’m thrilled to report that Georgia Tech is now on-site at the Capitol doing mandatory testing for all staff and members twice a week. Four Senators (out of 56)  have already tested positive, including the Majority Leader.

This is the kind of testing program that should be provided to every K-12 public school in the state, so that teachers are safe, and kids can return to the face-to-face learning and the socialization that they so desperately need.

Swearing-In: Following Monday morning COVID testing (which almost half the House skipped), members of the Senate were sworn-in by Georgia Supreme Court Justice Charlie Bethel. For me, taking the oath is always highly emotional. Two years ago, fresh on the heels of winning a very intense campaign, I could hardly get the words out. I did much better this time. This year I chose to place my left hand on the Constitution of the State of Georgia, since in the oath I promise to “support the Constitution of the state and of the United States.”

Rules & Preachers: This year’s Senate Rules passed easily and without controversy. Instead of the volatile changes we saw last term, we approved some minor rule adjustments to allow for flexibility due to COVID safety. Though guests are not allowed this year in the Senate chamber, we still have our Chaplain of the Day. As I’ve said before, I enjoy a moment of quiet reflection in the morning, and many of the preachers do a good job of offering thoughtful and appropriate words. But too often that is not the case.  Monday was the first time I needed earplugs. The Preacher of the Day spoke of love, but yelled it so loud it hurt! Wednesday’s preacher was a bit rattled because he had a car accident that morning with the Preacher of the Day scheduled to address the House!

Committee Assignments: This year, I hoped to be placed on either Health & Human Services or Appropriations. I did not get either of these committees, and instead was placed on Retirement. I will continue to serve on Ethics, Higher Education, Natural Resources & the Environment, and State Institutions and Property. You might have heard that three prominent Republicans were stripped of their Committee chairmanships ostensibly due to their participation in promoting voting conspiracy myths. Ironically, these three legislators are ones I found reasonable to work with last term. Only three Senate committee chairs this term are women, out of 26 committees, and these three committees are relatively minor committees that don’t receive many bills.

Senate Resolution 5: The Senate Democratic Caucus filed Senate Resolution 5 this week, condemning the disgraceful action of right wing violence and sedition that took place in the United State Capitol on January 6th, 2021.

The Big Fish: Governor Kemp’s State of the State

On Thursday, Governor Kemp gave his State-of-the-State address to a Joint Session of the House and Senate. In order to properly distance, only three members of the Senate sat in the House chamber, while the rest of us watched through video streaming in our offices. The State-of-the State address tends to establish the “tone” of the legislative session, since Georgia’s government is structured so the Governor is the “big fish” with the resources available to push through a strong agenda. The Governor’s 2021 – 2022 budget was released to legislators following the address, and next week we will focus on presentations from the executive branch on proposed departmental budgets. The state fiscal year runs from July 1 – June 30.

Here are some highlights from the Governors address:

• No additional departmental budget cuts or furloughs have been requested (though the budget is still lean and most cuts from last year have not be restored)
• $20 million for Rural Broadband Grants and $10 million in each year moving forward (Bringing broadband to all rural households will cost around $3 billion and would need federal intervention)
• $76 million to GA Pathways and Access, the Governor’s Medicaid Waivers. (Please read my analysis of these waivers in my Op-Ed published by the AJC)
•  Restoration of $647 million of the previous billion dollar cut from the education budget
•  The Governor is committed to holding schools harmless for pandemic related enrollment reductions.
• The Governor wants to use Federal stimulus money allocated to local school districts to provide $1000 bonuses to teachers and other school personnel (although final decision about how to spend the funds will be left to local school districts)
• $10 million in Governor’s emergency funds for care of special needs children
• $5 million in grants for public university Juniors and Seniors to help them stay enrolled in classes
• Reform the Citizens Arrest Statute.
• Legislative packages for Adoption Reform, reduce Human Trafficking, and assistance for victims.

New Office & Staff Introductions

Many of the decisions about who gets what in the Senate are based on seniority. Last year I ranked 53rd out of 56. Now I rank 42nd. This earned me an office inside the Capitol (110-D), which will make it easier to get around, rather than having to trudge across the street to the Legislative Office Building.

I’m thrilled that the same team that served me so well last year will be in place once again.

Amy Swygert, Communications Director: I’m thrilled that Amy will be continuing as my Communications Director. Amy has three decades of communications experience that she’ll be using to keep all of you informed and to help amplify my work. Amy serves as my chief aide and helps me with my legislative agenda and other duties. You can reach her at amy@sallyharrell.org.

Laurie Lanning, Political Director: Laurie, who has been a devoted volunteer since the beginning of my campaign, will again serve as my Political Director. In this role, she keeps her ear to the ground and monitors which issues we’re hearing most about from you. You can reach Laurie at laurie@sallyharrell.org.

Jay Harrell, Operations and Strategic Advisor: Jay keeps the wheels turning and the train on the track.  jay@sallyharrell.org

Administrative Assistant, Keridan Ogletree: Keridan will continue as Administrative Assistant to both me and Senator David Lucas, with whom I now share an office suite in the Capitol building. Keridan is a Georgia native and Georgia State political science graduate. I owe so much to Keridan who has been on the front lines answering phone calls, keeping my meeting schedule updated, and helping to address constituent needs. You can reach her at (404) 463-2260 or Keridan.Ogletree@senate.ga.gov.

   

Resources for Tracking the Georgia General Assembly

I always love seeing constituents at the Capitol, but during the pandemic, for the safety of members and staff alike, certain operations like the rope lines, the Senate page program, and access to the Senate gallery have been suspended. I invite you to watch our chamber sessions and committee meetings online. Here’s a great guide for how to tune in. Also, Georgia Public Broadcasting’s show “Lawmakers” is very informative.

Please look for my next Snapshot, where I will highlight pieces of my own legislative platform, as well as the legislative agenda for the Senate Democratic Caucus.

Fever Dreams

Lately, I’ve been waking up wondering if what is happening around us is really real. A virus that sneaks around spreading itself without symptoms, mixed with conspiracy theories of massive election manipulation make me keep hoping that one day, I will wake up and everything will be normal again. This all just feels like we are living in some strange fever dream.

But the agonizing reality we cannot avoid is that virus deniers continue to knowingly spread a killer virus, and angry citizens are making death threats against public servants who are doing their duty by our constitution.

A Tale of Two Senate Committee Meetings

Last Thursday two Senate Committee Meetings met. Both meetings dealt with election integrity, but the meetings were as different as night and day.

Government Oversight Committee: Speakers invited to the Senate Committee on Government Oversight included Georgia Secretary of State’s staff as well as staff from various County Election Offices. Election Office staff were unable to attend because they were still busy completing President Trump’s requested recount of votes. The format of the meeting allowed legislators to ask questions of staff.

The presentation by the Secretary of State staff was an impressive description of several of their more than 250 investigations of election irregularity complaints. For example, many of these reports were made by voters who showed up to vote in-person and were surprised to be told they had already received an absentee ballot. Upon investigation, most of these voters had forgotten that they had “checked the box” to automatically receive a ballot for the next election. These checks in our system are there to prevent people from voting multiple times. These reported “irregularities” actually helped to prove that the system worked to deter and avoid voter fraud.

Judiciary Committee: Speakers invited to the Senate Judiciary Committee included members of Trump’s legal team, led by Rudy Giuliani, and several witnesses who weren’t from Georgia and appeared via “Zoom.” The two main points Giuliani made during the six hour meeting were that Georgia’s November election was fraught with extensive fraud and that the election didn’t follow Georgia election law.

Legislators were incorrectly told that according to federal law, which they claim supersedes state law, legislators can call their own special session to choose electors. They believe that they can bypass Georgia’s constitutional requirements that a special session must be called by the Governor or 60% of the legislature. Furthermore, Giuliani stated that a simple mistake such as a voter being allowed to cast a vote in a county that has not been that voter’s primary residence for at least 30 days is an example of the legislature’s election law not being followed — and that alone is enough to disenfranchise millions of Georgia’s voters by choosing a different slate of electors.

Giuliani’s team presented numbers that were impossible to believe, for example claiming tens of thousands of ballots were cast by underage voters. But the Acting Chair of the Judiciary Committee didn’t have any staff members there from the Secretary of State’s office to address these claims, or answer the questions of legislators.

Several legislators in attendance, many of whom were not actually members of the Judiciary Committee, made closing remarks that voiced support for calling an immediate special session. Sen. Elena Parent (D) pointed out how witness affidavits described seeing things that looked suspicious, but many of these concerns have been easily addressed by experts who know the entire election process. Sen. Parent concluded we lack the actual evidence for taking further action.

Sen. Bill Heath (R), Chair of the Senate Committee on Government Oversight, warned his colleagues to be careful about taking legislative action they might later regret, pointing out that perhaps some of the witnesses were not telling the entire truth.

Sen. William Ligon (R), on the other hand, who chaired Thursday’s Judiciary Committee meeting (but who is not the appointed chair), is now circulating a petition requesting that a special session of the legislature be called by Tuesday, Dec. 8th.

We are in a very serious situation. All legislators are getting bombarded with very angry emails and calls and are under tremendous pressure. Administrative assistants are being cursed. But saying something happened doesn’t mean it’s true. I’m left to wonder if they aren’t the ones in the grip of a fever dream. Giuliani, at least, was coming down with COVID-19 when he visited our Capitol without a mask last week.

Now, it is more important than ever that we are watchful, aware, and informed. We must be vocal and active in our support for our elected officials who have been threatened, and we must work hard to remove the chokehold on our democracy. We must speak up against this attempted coup because it is corrosive to our democracy.

Make your plan to vote in the run-off, and don’t just assume that other people around you are planning to vote because they voted before. There are lots of distractions right now, so spread the word to everyone you know to vote as soon as possible. Our country needs every one of us.

If you are like me, you are feeling extremely anxious right now. Will voters be safe Tuesday? Are we going to win? When will we know? If we do win, how are Trump and his followers going to react?

As we fasten our seat belts for this wild ride, remember that we are all in this together. Take a moment to ponder with me your answer to one very important question —

What if we win? What if we take the Presidency, the U.S. Senate and the U.S. House?

We must not think our work is finished. We must prepare to work even harder to bring about the change our country so desperately needs.

We’ve built an incredible network of grassroots advocates over the last four years, but we need to keep our eye on the prize.

We didn’t build our network to defeat Trump, and we didn’t build it to elect Democrats.

We built it to ensure everyone has healthcare and quality public education, from cradle to career.

We built it to enact environmental policies that reverse global warming and save our earth from harm.

We built it to pass gun safety laws, to close the income equality gap, and to bring about racial justice.

Don’t expect policy changes to happen quickly just because we elected candidates with “D”s after their names. We, the People – the ones who put our leaders in power – must lead our communities to progress.

And if we are loud enough, the leaders we elected will follow us.

We must push our leaders to act decisively and boldly. We have so much damage to our nation, our processes, and our people to repair.

First, we must communicate with our elected officials that now is not the time for status-quo. The Republican party has taken a chainsaw to our government, and we cannot allow them any further opportunities to destroy our democracy. We will not turn a blind eye nor compromise on issues critical to our survival.

Second, we must insist that our elected officials respond first to us, rather than the powerful corporate lobbyists who hang out in the halls of our Capitol.

Many pundits are estimating that we’ll only have a narrow window of two years to get our most important work done. History has shown that two years into a new administration, the House can shift back. The first year, we must restore trust, get the virus under control, and a vaccine rolled out. And to demonstrate the government can work for the People, we also must enact progressive economic policies to deal with the economic impact of the virus, like enacting a minimum living wage, no-interest small business loans for entrepreneurs, especially entrepreneurs of color who have been hit hard by the pandemic. We need bailouts for daycares, and subsidies for childcare for working parents and all caretakers, to allow everyone to get back to business. We need paid leave so workers can stay home when they are sick, or need to care for sick family members. And we need healthcare for everyone.

If We the People remain focused and active in civic life, we can help make sure our politicians do the work we need them to do now, and this will in turn help them get reelected. It will help us heal the rifts in our communities. 

We know that some Trump supporters, who have believed every lie they have been told, will continue to feel fear, hatred, and anger if we win.

We cannot and will not tolerate hateful actions, threats, and violence.

We must also ignore the far right’s attempts to bait us. This may mean we walk past former friends, family members, and colleagues with whom we disagree vehemently, or who we feel have hurt us through their support for Trump.

We will have a job to do: we must work even harder than we did to win these elections. We must double down to promote and protect human rights, justice, and equality for everyone in our communities.

We will make sure our voices are louder than conspiracy theories, hate, and corporate interests. We will make sure our democracy stays a democracy that reflects the will of the People.

So first, make sure you and all your friends vote so that we have a chance at winning. Then, think about what you will do next to help us move forward if we win.

Photograph credit, Tina Gutierrez, my friend from college. Check out her social justice photography, as well as her amazing underwater photography. https://www.tinagutierrezartsphotography.com

Right Now It’s Bad.

For most of my life, I’ve heard the Republican Party spin doomsday scenarios should Democrats gain political control. They’ve claimed the economy would suffer due to higher taxes and big government. Affordable Care Act death panels would hand out death sentences to those unworthy of healthcare.  Al Qaeda would gain influence under Obama. And yet when Democrats won, none of those things happened.

Today is no different. If Biden wins, they say Communism would take root in our country. If people vote by mail, they say voter fraud would undermine our election.  We’re all sick and tired of hearing this false rhetoric.

The reality is, the Affordable Care Act has saved hundreds of thousands of lives simply by making healthcare available and affordable to more Americans. And Bin Laden was taken down during Obama’s administration. And Democrats pulled us out of the Great Depression and the Great Recession.

It seems that Republicans have found themselves caught in a “Chicken Little” loop – if anyone they disagree with is in power, a mysterious and terrible “threat” to their idea of America is at risk.

But the irony is that while Republicans wallow in the doom of what “could be,” a different dystopia is already here: our for-profit healthcare system of “haves” and “have nots” is already choosing who lives and dies. Our citizens are being kidnapped or killed by law enforcement officers and plain clothed para-military. Our economy is in the tank because of the uncontained spread of COVID-19. And right here in Georgia we elected a woman to Congress who is willing to show off military-grade guns in preparation for acting out against other politicians who simply disagree with her ideas.

These atrocities against our Constitution, our human rights, our human decency, and our democracy have happened because of Republican fear mongering.

But the future has yet to be written. 

In Georgia, Republican budgets have cut ten billion dollars from our public schools over the last decade while offering tax credits for private and religious schools. Our Governor is proposing to dismantle access to the national Affordable Care Act website, replacing it with for-profit brokers selling plans directly, including junk plans that rip-off hard working Georgians, leaving them with huge gaps in care in the middle of a pandemic.

By submitting your ballot, you can do something about it.

We can rebuild Georgia’s economy by ensuring that people are safe when they venture out to do business. We can make sure our unemployed have the money they need to live, and the training they need to re-enter the workforce.

We can make sure every Georgian has healthcare.

We can protect our school children from gun violence with gun safety reform.

We can treat undocumented immigrants with dignity, and protect their human rights.

We can end police and criminal justice system brutality against Black citizens through greater social services funding and stronger measures to hold law enforcement accountable for abuse of their power and malpractice.

Any one of these is reason enough to build a better now… and the future will take care of itself.

Give what you can. Make a plan to vote. Volunteer your time, if you are able. We have until November 3rd to save our country.