by Dave Williams | Jan 2, 2025 | Capitol Beat News Service
ATLANTA – A co-founder of the Savannah College of Art and Design (SCAD) is being awarded a Presidential Citizens Medal Thursday at a White House ceremony.
President Joe Biden named 20 recipients of the award this week, including Paula Wallace, 76, who launched SCAD in 1978 with her then-husband, Richard Rowan. She became the private college’s president in 2000 and continues to serve in that role.
The Presidential Citizens Medal is awarded to U.S. citizens who have performed exemplary deeds of service for their country or their fellow citizens.
SCAD, a private college, now numbers more than 17,000 students, with campuses in Savannah and Atlanta, as well as study abroad opportunities in Lacoste, France, and other locations. The school also offers online degrees.
“A lifelong educator and trailblazer of the arts, Paula Wallace dreamt of a school that would transform how we think about professional education,” according to a White House news release. “By establishing the esteemed Savannah College of Art and Design and serving as its president, she has guided thousands of students into creative industries.”
The list of Presidential Citizens Medal recipients includes several well-known politicians, among them former U.S. Rep. Liz Cheney, a Republican from Wyoming who lost her seat in Congress after serving on the House committee that investigated then-President Donald Trump’s role in attempting to overturn the results of the 2020 election, and Rep. Bennie Thompson, the Mississippi Democrat who chaired the January 6th Committee.
Other prominent former politicians receiving medals include former U.S. Sen. Bill Bradley, a New Jersey Democrat who ran unsuccessfully for his party’s presidential nomination in 2000; former Sen. Chris Dodd, a Democrat from Connecticut; and former Republican Sen. Nancy Kassebaum of Kansas.
by Dave Williams | Jan 2, 2025 | Capitol Beat News Service
ATLANTA – Georgia’s two U.S. senators have landed plum committee assignments as the 119th Congress prepares to convene on Friday.
Democrat Jon Ossoff will serve on the powerful Senate Appropriations Committee, which has jurisdiction over the federal budget.
“I look forward to serving on the Senate Appropriations Committee in the new Congress, where I will continue working across the aisle to deliver for Georgia,” Ossoff said Thursday.
Meanwhile, fellow Democrat Raphael Warnock has been appointed to the Senate Finance Committee, which handles federal tax and trade policies.
“I will be a guardian on the committee against any efforts to gut critical safety net programs like Social Security, Medicaid, and Medicare … against expensive tariffs that will hurt Georgians’ pockets and bottom lines, and against any attempts to give massive tax cuts to the top 1% at the expense of working families and communities,” Warnock said.
Republican President-elect Donald Trump has said he will push to extend the tax cuts he steered through Congress in 2017 during his first term in office and impose heavy tariffs on imports from China, Mexico, and Canada. Trump will take the oath of office on Jan. 20.
Ossoff will continue serving on the Senate Intelligence and Rules committees, while Warnock will return to the Senate Agriculture and Banking committees.
by Dave Williams | Jan 2, 2025 | Capitol Beat News Service
ATLANTA – The filing deadline for federal Disaster Unemployment Assistance (DUA) for victims of Hurricane Helene has been extended to Feb. 7, the Georgia Department of Labor announced Thursday.
DUA is a federal program established to help workers whose primary income is lost or interrupted by a disaster declared by the president. It differs from regular state unemployment insurance in that it provides benefits to Georgians who aren’t eligible under the state’s program. That includes the self-employed, farmers, loggers, and workers who are paid by commission.
Hurricane Helene rampaged through South Georgia and north through the Augusta area in late September, killing 34 Georgians and causing heavy rainfall and widespread flooding as well as extensive power outages.
Gov. Brian Kemp said last month that he will propose a state disaster relief package early in this year’s legislative session for those who suffered losses due to Helene. Lawmakers will convene under the Gold Dome Jan. 13 to begin the 2025 General Assembly session.
Georgia counties affected by Helene include Appling, Atkinson, Bacon, Ben Hill, Berrien, Brantley, Brooks, Bryan, Bulloch, Burke, Butts, Camden, Candler, Charlton, Chatham, Clinch, Coffee, Colquitt, Columbia, Cook, Dodge, Echols, Effingham, Elbert, Emanuel, Evans, Fulton, Glascock, Glynn, Hancock, Irwin, Jeff Davis, Jefferson, Jenkins, Johnson, Lanier, Laurens, Liberty, Lincoln, Long, Lowndes, McDuffie, McIntosh, Montgomery, Newton, Pierce, Rabun, Richmond, Screven, Stephens, Taliaferro, Tattnall, Telfair, Thomas, Tift, Toombs, Treutlen, Ware, Warren, Washington, Wayne, Wheeler, and Wilkes.
Applicants may be eligible for a weekly benefit of up to $365 retroactive to the week of Sept. 29. Eligible individuals must first apply for regular unemployment insurance on the state Department of Labor website at dol.georgia.gov or in person at one of the agency’s career centers.
Income verification may be required when applying for DUA benefits. Acceptable proof of earnings includes copies of the most recently completed tax returns, quarterly estimated income tax payment records, or similar documents.
by Dave Williams | Dec 30, 2024 | Capitol Beat News Service
ATLANTA – Flags flew at half-staff across the nation Monday, a day after former President Jimmy Carter died at age 100 at his home in Plains.
Gov. Brian Kemp issued two executive orders following the passing of the longest living ex-president, one ordering all U.S. and Georgia flags to fly at half-staff at all state buildings and grounds for 30 days and the other declaring a state of emergency in Carter’s home county of Sumter through Jan. 12 to bring all state resources to bear for the influx of visitors expected to attend funeral services.
President Joe Biden ordered an official state funeral for fellow Democrat Carter to be held at the National Cathedral in Washington, D.C., on Jan. 9, a national day of mourning, while Congress extended an invitation to the Carter family to have the former president lie in state inside the U.S. Capitol Rotunda.
“Over six decades, we had the honor of calling Jimmy Carter a dear friend,” Biden and First Lady Jill Biden said in a statement late Sunday. “But what’s extraordinary about Jimmy Carter, though, is that millions of people throughout America and the world who never met him thought of him as a dear friend as well.
“With his compassion and moral clarity, he worked to eradicate disease, forge peace, advance civil rights and human rights, promote free and fair elections, house the homeless, and always advocate for the least among us. He saved, lifted, and changed the lives of people all across the globe.”
Carter was born in Plains in 1924 to James and Bessie Carter, owners of a local peanut farm and warehouse. He attended the U.S. Naval Academy in Maryland and went on to serve seven years as a naval officer, rising to the rank of lieutenant.
After his father’s death, Carter resigned from the Navy and came home to manage the family business. From there, he ran for the state Senate, serving two terms before being elected Georgia’s 76th governor in 1970.
He won the presidency in 1976, running as a Washington outsider in a post-Watergate era that found voters tired of the scandal and corruption that had led to the resignation of then-President Richard Nixon in 1974.
After a single term marked by inflation at home and the Iranian hostage crisis overseas, voters turned to Ronald Reagan in 1980, sending Carter back to Georgia.
But the nation’s only president from the Peach State thus far was nowhere near done with his career. He founded the nonprofit Carter Center in Atlanta in 1982, which continues to promote international human rights and global health initiatives.
Carter was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2002 for his efforts as a humanitarian and philanthropist.
Carter entered home-hospice care last February, several months after traveling to Atlanta to attend former First Lady Rosalynn Carter’s funeral.
Georgia Republicans and Democrats alike praised Carter Sunday for his contributions to the nation both during and after his presidency.
“President Carter was an exemplary statesman who was respected by many and served our nation with skill and experience,” GOP Lt. Gov. Burt Jones said. “President Carter’s legacy will live on in the numerous nonprofits, charities, and organizations Rosalynn, his family and he started.”
U.S. Sen. Raphael Warnock, D-Ga., called Carter one of his heroes.
“His leadership was driven by love, his life’s project grounded in compassion and a commitment to human dignity,” Warnock said. “For those of us who have the privilege of representing our communities in elected office, Jimmy Carter is a shining example of what it means to make your faith come alive through the noble work of public service.”
U.S. Rep. Nikema Williams, D-Atlanta, who also chairs the Georgia Democratic Party, named her son, Carter, after the former president.
“Throughout his extraordinary life, President Jimmy Carter was a force for peace, human rights, and a voice for marginalized communities,” Williams said. “The once peanut farmer from Plains, Ga., became a Nobel Peace Prize winner, reminding us that everyday people have the power to change the world.”
by Dave Williams | Dec 29, 2024 | Capitol Beat News Service
ATLANTA – Jimmy Carter, the 39th president of the United States, died Sunday afternoon at the age of 100 at his home in Plains.
Carter, a Democrat and the only Georgian to serve as the nation’s chief executive, served a single term in the White House from 1977 until 1981, losing to Republican Ronald Reagan in 1980 after a presidency marred by high inflation, an oil crisis, and the kidnapping of 53 U.S. diplomats and other American citizens held hostage by Iranian militants for 444 days.
“He showed the world the impact our state and its people have on the country,” Gov. Brian Kemp said Sunday. “And as a son of Plains, he always valued Georgians and the virtues of our state, choosing to return to his rural home after his time in public office.”
Carter, the only former U.S. president to live to 100, made important contributions for decades after leaving the White House. The Carter Center in Atlanta continues to address global health issues, while Carter worked to support various charities including Habitat for Humanity.
“President Carter’s lifetime of work and dedication to public service changed the lives of many across our state, our country, and around the world,” said U.S. Sen. Jon Ossoff, D-Ga. “Among his lifetime of service and countless accomplishments, President Carter will be remembered for his commitment to democracy and human rights, his enduring faith, his philanthropic leadership, and his deep love of family.”
Carter’s most significant accomplishment as president was bringing together the leaders of Israel and Egypt in 1978 to hammer out the Camp David Accords, a pair of peace agreements between the two countries that have held up for nearly half a century.
Before running for president, Carter served as a state senator and as Georgia’s 76th governor.
Carter entered home hospice care in February 2023. His wife of 77 years, Rosalynn Carter, died in November of last year at the age of 96.
Carter is survived by sons Jack, Chip, and Jeff, as well as daughter Amy. Grandson Jason Carter ran for governor in 2014.
