Political Rewind: State of the State address; Dickens on Buckhead cityhood; Civility in government

Caption

Gov. Brian Kemp delivers the 2022 State of The State address on Thursday.

Credit: GPB Staff

The Panel:

Kevin Riley — Editor, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Rep. Chuck Efstration — State representative (R-Dacula)

Sen. Sonya Halpern —  State senator (D-Atlanta)

Stephen Fowler — Politics reporter, Georgia Public Broadcasting

The Breakdown:

1. Gov. Brian Kemp delivers the State of the State address from the Georgia Capitol. 

• Tonight, GPB-TV's Lawmakers will have an extended response to the speech, and the Democratic response at 7 p.m.
• Rep. James Bradley is scheduled to deliver the Democratic response this afternoon. Listen in on our website. 
• At Wednesday's Eggs and Issues breakfast, Kemp promised $1.6 billion in tax refunds to Georgians after the state has bolstered its surplus to record levels. He reiterated that proposal during today's speech before lawmakers.
• Meanwhile, Speaker David Ralston is pushing for fiscal conservatism when it comes to the budget. 

2. Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens looks to smooth over relations between his city and state officials. 

• Dickens was sworn in Jan. 3 and is less than two weeks into his new post.
• At the Eggs and Issues breakfast, he announced he would open a police precinct in Buckhead and try to deepen his relationship with residents of the neighborhood there. The move is seen as a clear attempt to slow down the Buckhead secession movement. 
• Meanwhile in the General Assembly, state Rep. Shea Roberts filed legislation that, if passed, would change Georgia law related to the creation of new cities. 

3. Push for voting rights act continues at the state and federal level 

• President Joe Biden is visiting Congress today. This comes after his trip to Atlanta, where the president stumped for voting rights.
• Notable absences included top Democrats like Stacey Abrams. Republican lawmaker Rep. Chuck Efstration said that is a signal the president has an uphill battle within his own party.

• GPB's Stephen Fowler said bigger divides at the state level are not along party lines, but instead between the Senate and House of Representatives in the General Assembly.

Tomorrow on Political Rewind: 

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution's Patricia Murphy joins us.