SPLIT SCREEN: GOP Causes Chaos; Georgia Democrats Deliver

In the past two weeks, Georgians across the state have seen the sharp contrast between Georgia Democrats and Republicans on full display: While Republicans in the U.S. House continue to cause chaos with their infighting and inability to govern, Georgia Democrats continue to deliver for Georgians – from new good-paying jobs to public safety resources to supporting Georgia farmers.

“While Georgia Democrats have been delivering on the issues that matter to Georgians, Republicans – including all nine of Georgia’s GOP representatives – have done nothing but sow chaos in Congress with their partisan infighting,” said Ellie Schwartz, spokesperson for the Democratic Party of Georgia. “Republicans can’t even set aside their personal political agendas to govern themselves. How can Georgia voters trust them to govern the country?”

Here’s what Georgians are seeing as Republicans cause chaos… 

AJC: Opinion:  They can’t run their caucus. How can Republicans run a country?

• In the same period of time that the House has been leaderless, Hamas launched a deadly massacre against Israel, with more than 1,000 Israelis dead and at least 22 Americans killed. Israel responded by bombing Gaza, and Secretary of State Anthony Blinken traveled to the Middle East with the United States’ hostage specialist to seek the return of Americans held there.
  
• […] U.S. Rep. Austin Scott told CNN, “It makes us look like a bunch of idiots.” He’s not wrong. By Friday, Scott was so exasperated he ran for speaker himself, only to lose a secret-ballot vote about three hours later.
  
• Luckily for the Republicans, this problem may eventually solve itself since their sheer inability to govern themselves may convince voters they can’t be trusted to govern the country either. In the next Congress, it may be Democrats who get to pick a speaker instead and they’ve already voted for theirs, unanimously.

The Hill: Schumer says Senate must move first to pass aid for Israel amid Speaker fight

• Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) said Monday the Senate must take the lead in passing aid for Israel as the GOP-led House works to unify amid a vacancy in the Speaker’s chair.
  
• “We want to move this package quickly. The Senate must go first,” Schumer said before pointing to “disarray” in the House as Republicans struggle to unify behind a new leader following a historic ouster of former Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) earlier this month.

…And Georgia Democrats deliver:

Atlanta Journal-Constitution: Suniva to reopen solar plant in Georgia, citing Biden climate law

• Solar cell manufacturer Suniva plans to reopen a shuttered Norcross factory and create as many as 240 jobs amid a surge of new tax incentives aimed at shoring up the U.S. green energy manufacturing supply chain.
  
• The company closed the factory and filed for bankruptcy in 2017 after falling victim to plunging prices for solar power cells and a crush of cheaper Chinese-made solar imports.
  
• But now it stands to benefit from a wave of federal incentives and other tax breaks embedded in sweeping green energy measures signed into law by President Joe Biden and backed by U.S. Sens. Jon Ossoff and Raphael Warnock.
  
• The company specifically cited a provision Ossoff pushed for in the Inflation Reduction Act, Biden’s signature climate change and health care law, that provides $10 billion in tax credits for firms to build solar manufacturing facilities.

WGXA: Senator Ossoff secures federal funds to combat violent crime in Macon and Middle Georgia

• U.S. Senator Jon Ossoff (D-Ga.) has announced that he has secured new federal resources to help fight violent crime in Macon and Middle Georgia.
  
• Sen. Ossoff is delivering $133,917 through the U.S. Department of Justice’s Project Safe Neighborhoods program to coordinate federal, state, and local law enforcement efforts and help reduce violent crime in Middle and Southwest Georgia.
  
• “Violent crime is impacting Macon and communities across Georgia,” Sen. Ossoff said. “Better coordination between law enforcement agencies at the federal, state, and local levels can help us protect families from gun violence and gang activity.”

Atlanta Journal-Constitution: Warnock seeks to expand high-tech agriculture through farm bill

• Despite the chaos in Washington and the looming threat of a government shutdown next month, U.S. Sen. Raphael Warnock, D-Ga., is setting his sights on another major piece of legislation that Congress needs to pass soon: the farm bill.
  
• On Wednesday, with negotiations over the huge package well underway, Warnock traveled an hour east of Atlanta to Madison to outline his priorities for the bill and meet with a farmer.
  
• “Farmers are in a tough business,” said Warnock, who serves on the Senate Agriculture Committee. “Everything we can do to give farmers a boost, we ought to do that.”

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