Political Breakfast from WABE

Former Democrat-turned-Republican state Rep. Vernon Jones, who crowd-surfed at Georgia Trump rally, announced Monday he's running for the job of Georgia's chief elections officer. 

Jones joins a growing and competitive pool of candidates for Georgia Secretary of State. 

That includes former state elections official, Gabriel Sterling, who took a ton of heat in 2020 from Donald Trump and rebuked Trump's claims the 2020 presidential election results were rigged. 

Host Lisa Rayam, Democratic strategist Tharon Johnson and Republican strategist Brian Robinson debate if Jones has a chance to compete.

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On today's Political Breakfast: Republican candidates are beefing-up their war chests in hopes the money will talk enough to help unseat Democratic U.S. Senator Jon Ossoff next year. 

Ossoff's campaign reports he has 21 million in the bank. 

Democratic strategist Tharon Johnson and Republican strategist Brian Robinson discuss the numbers that are rolling in from his GOP opponents with host Lisa Rayam.

Political outsider Derek Dooley announced Monday that he's raised nearly 2 million in his first stretch of the race. He's also got the endorsement of Governor Brian Kemp.

Another GOP opponent, Congressman Mike Collins, went head-to-head with Dooley and said he's also raised $1.9 million, and that he is transferring another million from his congressional account. The final candidate, Congressman Buddy Carter, has not yet posted. 

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On this edition of Political Breakfast, it's week two of the federal government shutdown, and that's taking a toll on workers who are going without pay at the world's busiest airport in Atlanta. 

Many are already living paycheck to paycheck. Now: half a paycheck to half a paycheck, thanks to the stall in Washington.

Democratic strategist Tharon Johnson, Republican strategist Brian Robinson and host Lisa Rayam discuss how this is becoming more entangled in Georgia, and national politics. Plus, we hear from a local union representative for TSA workers, Aaron Barker. 

If the shutdown lags on, could this become a national security issue?

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This week WABE presents a special edition of Political Breakfast, broadcasting from the iconic Atlanta meet-up spot, Manuel's Tavern. 

Opened decades ago by Atlanta's own fiery politician Manuel Maloof, it's well-known watering hole where folks from both sides of the aisle have always sat together, enjoyed a beer or burger, and talked. 

Democratic strategist Tharon Johnson and Republican strategist Brian Robinson joined host Lisa Rayam to do a wrap-up of the month's top political stories in Georgia.

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On today's Political Breakfast, former Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms is the clear frontrunner in the Democratic Primary for Georgia Governor. 

The left-leaning Public Policy Polling group surveyed 620 likely Democratic primary voters earlier this month, and found Bottoms is leading by 38 percent. That's while Michael Thurmond got 12 percent, Geoff Duncan 9 percent, Jason Esteves 4 percent, Derrick Jackson 2 percent, and Olu Brown 1 percent. 36 percent of respondents said they were undecided.

Democratic strategist Tharon Johnson and Republican strategist Brian Robinson discuss the importance of name recognition and Bottoms' past decisions leading Atlanta, with host Lisa Rayam.

Plus, a quick look at the State Senate special election runoff results. Republican Jason Dickerson defeated nationally-backed Democrat Debra Shigley in a special election runoff  

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On today's Political Breakfast, Democratic strategist Tharon Johnson, Republican strategist Brian Robinson and host Lisa Rayam focus on the Tuesday State Sen. special election runoff. That's in deep-red District 21, that covers parts of northern Fulton and Cherokee Counties. 

It's getting national attention, as Democratic National Convention Chair Ken Martin is in Georgia campaigning for Democratic candidate Debra Shigley. 

Shigley is running to replace Brandon Beach, who resigned to join the Trump Administration. 

Voters will decide between Shigley and Republican Jason Dickerson. Is the GOP nervous? Shigley won 40 percent of the district's votes back in August. 

Plus, will the candidates running for Georgia Governor ever escape the shadows of the 2020 presidential election? Nearly six years later, what transpired between Georgia leaders and now-President Donald Trump is still on voter's minds.

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In the final episode of “Plugged In,” hosts Sam Gringlas and Rahul Bali, along with producer Brendan Rivers, discuss the last four unprecedented years in Georgia politics.

Plus, a preview of what the WABE newsroom will be keeping an eye on over the coming months.

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The pool of candidates running for Georgia Governor has grown by three this week alone.

Former Republican Lt. Gov. Geoff Duncan, now a Democrat, jumped in the race, along with Republican Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger. Then came the lesser known businessman and board chair of the YMCA of metro Atlanta, Clark Dean. 

That's who strategists Tharon Johnson and Brian Robinson wanted to talk about with host Lisa Rayam.

Plus, the team discusses the hundreds detained in an immigration raid at the multi-billion dollar Hyundai electric vehicle plant. More than 300 workers are now back in South Korea. 

The raid at the factory just outside Savannah was described as the largest immigration enforcement operation carried out at a single location by the United States Department of Homeland Security in its history.

It now puts Georgia Republicans like Governor Brian Kemp in an awkward position. He spent years building relationships with South Korean companies to grow Georgia's economy.

The raid alarmed South Korean leaders and also raised concerns about foreign companies investing in the United States in the future.

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On this week's Political Breakfast, Democratic strategist Tharon Johnson, Republican strategist Brian Robinson and host Lisa Rayam discuss the "amplified discussions" surrounding the assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk that are taking place online and around the coffee table.

Plus, a look back at political violence and its consequences throughout American history.

The team also talks about Atlanta Centers for Disease Control and Prevention workers returning to the office after working from home for nearly a month.

Many say they are still traumatized after a gunman shot-up the Atlanta campus, killing a DeKalb County police officer. Are they returning too soon?

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Georgia Republicans spent years building ties with companies in South Korea, culminating with Hyundai building a multi-billion dollar electric vehicle plant outside of Savannah.

But last week, a battery factory at the site was raided by federal immigration agents, who detained more than 300 South Korean citizens.

On this week’s episode of “Plugged In,” hosts Sam Gringlas and Rahul Bali take a closer look at the ongoing fallout from the Hyundai raid.

Plus, WABE Immigration Reporter Emily Wu Pearson takes listeners to a federal immigration detention facility in Georgia.

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