The Brief from WABE

Gwinnett County Republicans have a redistricting map that looks... different...than the one the current all-Democratic county commission drew up. That's not going over so well; state GOPers want to put $6,000 vouchers into parents' hands so they can choose where to send their kids to school--public or private; and a second day of bomb threats against HBCUs has the FBI and APD combing Spelman's Wes...

A federal judge strikes down plea agreements in the hate crimes trial for the men convicted of murdering Ahmaud Arbery; Gov. Kemp tours a metro school to tout his education agenda (but says nary a word about proposed state laws banning Critical Race Theory and some books); and Georgia Power sunsets all of its remaining coal fired powerplants. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Baby, it's cold outside--the coldest weather metro Atlanta's seen in at least four years is upon us; Turns out that tossing an old M-60 battle tank followed by parts of a defunct bridge into the ocean can really help the underwater ecosystem off Georgia's coast; and a local coalition says the best way to cut down on former inmates returning to prison is to remove questions about convictions from c...

Teachers aren't happy about two bills from the Ga State Senate that would ban "divisive concepts" from their classrooms. The head of Georgia's largest educator organization says they plan to let lawmakers know it; East Cobb gets the greenlight to cityhood--why one official is asking to pump the breaks; and housing appreciated in value a staggering 20% in metro Atlanta last year. See omnystudio.com...

Banning Critical Race Theory in Georgia becomes an official Senate proposal. And while it's top-of-mind for many state lawmakers, it's not tip-of-tongue, as the bill never mentions CRT specifically; mental health improvements get wide support; and the pandemic's effect on Georgia restaurants. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Calling it illegal governmental overreach, Georgia's Attorney General celebrates victory after the Biden administration withdraws its OSHA-enforced vaccine mandate; the GOP-controlled Georgia Senate says banning critical race theory, stipulating conditions for when and how social media companies ban politicians, and preventing women from having abortion pills mailed to them are top of their legisl...

Fulton's DA gets her wish for a special grand jury to dig deeper into Pres. Donald Trump's alleged election metaling efforts; A potential state constitutional amendment sees a majority of Senators support it. It died anyway. And how do you overcome the 90-foot elephant in the room when discussing the future of Stone Mountain Park? Point a finger and plan anyway. See omnystudio.com/listener for pri...

Years into a public health crisis and state health officials still have to bargain hard to get an adequate cut of the budget pie; Fulton County writes a seven-figure check to study building a new jail; and a conversation with researchers who say Black women in rural Georgia are dying unnecessarily and disproportionately from cervical cancer. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Georgia's Sec. of State said it would take a subpoena before he'd cooperate with Fulton County's investigation into whether former President Donald Trump broke Georgia election law. Mr. SOS, your wish might just be a Special Grand Jury's command; Georgia sets a new record for the number of residents with a job; and AirBnB says Midtown, Atlanta is where it's gonna set up shop for its big, corporate...

Stacey Abrams stumps for the first time since launching her gubernatorial re-bid; Behind on your mortgage or utilities because of the pandemic? Georgia has $350-million for folks in that position; and a conversation with the head of Georgia's AME Church, whose op-ed in the New York Times questions whether Democrats have abandoned the Black community because of their softness on voting rights legis...

COVID's Omicron variant shows an initial decline; Georgia's University System treats every employee like smokers; and a look at trends emerging this week at the Gold Dome as Georgia's focus turns to paying the bills. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Why Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s family says don't poach his words if you're not going to embody his beliefs; State agencies are fixin' to come to the governor with hands extended; and remembering MARTA CEO Jeff Parker, who died by suicide on Friday. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The COVID-19 numbers are out, and Georgia is seeing an exponential number of new cases; What's good on the environment front as we kick off 2022; and COVID pills? What COVID Pills? Georgia's largest hospital system hasn't seen a single pill yet. But, hey--they're comin'. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The governor touts record tax revenues in his State of the State, and pledges to give a big chunk of the surplus to teachers; Democrats respond with, "Hey--Remember that Medicaid expansion thing you swore was too expensive?"; and why the head of GSU's Economic Forecasting Center says he's stocking up now on things he'll need a few months out. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Tax refund, everyone? Gov. Kemp brings the bacon to the annual Eggs and Issues breakfast; If the Omicron strain is less severe than other COVID-19 variants, you wouldn't know it by looking at area hospitals; and the father convicted in 2016 of purposefully leaving his child in a hot car to die will argue before the Supreme Court of Georgia that the original trial court made lots of mistakes. See o...

The reason COVID data was nonexistent this week? IT at DPH is so Y2K, apparently; The President and Vice President pick Atlanta's AUC to push for federal voting rights protections; and it's easy for UGA fans to overlook that 40+ year championshipless stretch when ya Dawgs end the season at the top. Crimson who? See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The President and VP head to Atlanta tomorrow to push for federal voting rights legislation, but some voting rights groups say they should stay in DC; Georgia's COVID-19 numbers reported in one day top the six figure mark; and not that UGA fans are worked up about it, but the Bulldogs are vying for the national football championship tonight. Go Dawgs. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy inform...

Life in prison. That's the sentence for three men convicted of murdering Ahmad Arbery; Georgia's tax revenue picture is so good... [How good is it?!] It's SO good, the governor wants to give every state employee a $5k annual pay bump; and what the head of Atlanta Public Schools (which holds WABE's broadcast license) has to say to parents who were upset this week at a last-minute shift to virtual l...

The person who decides what ideas get consideration under the Gold Dome says 2022 will not be the year when distracting topics like abortion get a reading. No sir, no ma'am. Instead, the GOP will stick to things like expanding access to guns and how race is taught in public schools; We can't tell you how many COVID infections the state saw today because for the second time this week, officials say...

Governor Kemp gets fired up about folks being able to carry guns without a permit; A prominent name in the state's GOP says the party will get it all wrong if it focuses on guns and abortion and other incendiary topics during the upcoming legislative session; and it's not felt like winter across the state. But is it about to? See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Thousands across Georgia remain without power after storms, heavy wind and even snow in some parts brought down power lines; Atlanta has a new mayor as Andre Dickens is sworn in; and if 2021 was an 'off' political year in Georgia, someone forgot to pass along that memo. Hear those stories and lots more in the first episode of The Brief from WABE for 2022. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy in...

Infections of the record-breaking Omicron variant are starting to sound like a broken record; hospitals across the metro aren't preparing for a crisis--they say that crisis is here; and just as Gov. Kemp signs into law new, Republican-favoring legislative districts for Georgia, the ACLU sues to stop them on the basis they violate the 1965 Voting Rights Act. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy...

Omicron continues its rapid rampage across Georgia, with the National Guard on standby to help at state testing centers; a warning from top health officials and the state's attorney general about fake COVID tests; and the area could see a lot of rain as strong storms move through the region in the coming days. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Omicron's spread leads to the single biggest day for new COVID-19 infections so far this pandemic, with Fulton County reporting more than 14,000 cases; the peach will have to wait another year to drop; and implicit racial bias and its potential influence on Georgia's high infant mortality rates. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.