This week, the GOP primary for governor flew further off the rails as billionaire Rick Jackson and Burt Jones shoveled out millions to keep up their all-out MAGA ad war. Accusations of dark money spending and corruption continue to dominate this race, especially as it was revealed Friday that Jones paid $103,000 from his leadership committee to his own family’s business.
Here’s the latest on this nasty GOP primary:
JACKSON AND JONES LAUNCH COSTLY, CHAOTIC AD WAR: With Jackson now spending over $20 million in ads – including a $500,000 Super Bowl ad – Jones fired back with his own ad campaign.
- This comes as the candidates duke it out in an all-out civil war to prove their MAGA bona fides, with Jackson taking to The Erick Erickson Show this week to declare that he’s running to be Trump’s “number one favorite governor.”
- Jones prominently features Trump’s endorsement in his ad, which adds to a recent string of social media posts where he touts his support from the president.
- And Chris Carr also launched an ad on Wednesday displaying his MAGA bona fides, arguing that his record makes him “just like Trump.”
JACKSON KEEPS UP THE HEAT AS INFIGHTING INTENSIFIES: In his second full week as a candidate, Rick Jackson wasted no time attacking Burt Jones and the rest of the GOP field.
- Jackson’s campaign has routinely attacked Jones at every single turn, saying on Friday that Jones “doesn’t have conservative convictions – he only has political calculations” and that “Burt Jones only cares about Burt Jones.”
- Jackson also went after Jones for his Trump endorsement, with Jackson telling the AJC on Friday: “[Jones] has been completely lazy and hasn’t worked for [Trump’s] endorsement.”
- The infighting between all the candidates is ratcheting up, and after the Fulton County raid affidavit was unveiled Tuesday, Jones brutally took down Raffensperger, calling him “the worst Secretary of State in the country.”
JONES ENRICHES HIS FAMILY – TO THE TUNE OF $103,000: As Burt Jones faces major questions about his campaign’s finances, new reporting from the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reveals that his leadership committee paid at least $103,000 to his family businesses.
- The AJC reports that Jones’ leadership committee sent nearly $74,000 to Jones Petroleum Transport Company for plane and pilot services for about a dozen trips, as well as for sign delivery.
- To top it off, about $30,000 was spent to pay rent to JP Capital & Insurance, another family firm.
- A review of Jones’ leadership committee finance report also reveals that he paid his family’s business for fuel reimbursement, gift basket supplies, and FedEx charges, the latest example of Jones lining his own pockets in public office.
- This comes as Jackson clashes in court over Jones’ ability to raise unlimited funds through his leadership committee, with Jackson’s campaign “alleging Jones’ campaign financing is unconstitutional” and that “[t]he days of Burt Jones playing by his own set of rules to benefit himself are coming to an end.”
DARK MONEY SPENDING RAMPS UP AS ACCUSATIONS FLY: Dark money has been flooding the GOP race for governor, and mysterious group Georgians for Integrity has now spent more than $16 million attacking Burt Jones’ record of self-enrichment in public office.
- With Jackson’s entry into the race, accusations are flying about the source of the ads, with Jones’ campaign spokesperson calling Jackson “the likely funder of a $15 million subversion of Georgia ethics laws […]”
- And as accusations of corruption dominate this GOP primary, Carr once again doubled down his attacks against Jones’ long record of self-enrichment, sending out a memo this week following his longstanding accusations that Jones’ record of self-dealing in public office are deserving of a felony.
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