The buzz around Georgia this week has been whether former Congressman Newt Gingrich will run for president in 2012. He will meet Thursday with Gov. Nathan Deal and then speak to the media. Deal said previously he would support a Gingrich run, so many observers expect the former House speaker to announce the formation of a presidential exploratory committee.

Governor Nathan Deal says, he'll take up President Barack Obama's offer of an early opt-out of the federal health care law. Some health care advocates are skeptical the state can go its own way in so short a period of time.

The state House overwhelmingly passed a bill Tuesday that would overhaul Georgia’s college scholarship program. House Democrats and Republicans passionately debated Gov. Deal’s HOPE bill for 90 minutes. Republicans argued that HOPE is in serious fiscal trouble and the bill would shore up its finances for good.

The biggest obstacle to a Newt Gingrich presidential bid might be Gingrich himself. The twice-divorced former U.S. House speaker has admitted an affair with a former congressional aide who is now his third wife. His career in Congress is remembered as much for his dramatic fall -- the federal government shutdown, his censure and the loss of Republican seats in the House -- as his rise.

A bill to consolidate Macon and Bibb County governments passed the Georgia House of Representatives Monday. The legislation, now moves on to the Senate.