Political Rewind: Giuliani a target in Fulton probe; Abortion law stays in place; Medicaid expansion

Caption

Rudy Giuliani talks with Georgia State Sens. Jen Jordan (D-Atlanta) and Elena Parent (D-Atlanta) during a break in a Georgia State Senate hearing Thursday, Dec. 3, 2020, during which Giuliani made numerous false claims of voting fraud in the 2020 presidential election.

Credit: Stephen Fowler / GPB News

The panel

Adam Van Brimmer, @adamvanbrimmer, editorial page editor, Savannah Morning News

Emma Hurt, @Emma_Hurt, reporter, Axios Atlanta

Rafael Olavarría, @RafaelOlavarria fact checker, Factchequeado

Tamar Hallerman, @TamarHallerman, senior reporter, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

The breakdown 

1. Rudy Giuliani is now a target in the Fulton County probe.

• The news came less than two days before his scheduled testimony. 
• Sen. Lindsey Graham's appeal to not testify in District Attorney Fani Willis' probe into Donald Trump's role in the 2020 election was denied.
• Tamar Hallerman says the probe gets more combative as Willis gets closer to former President Trump's allies.

2. Georgia's six-week abortion law will stay in place while challenges to it move through the court. 

• Fulton County Superior Court Judge Robert McBurney ruled he did not have the authority to issue a preliminary injunction and block the law at this stage of the lawsuit.
• The lawsuit was filed July 26 and argues the state's abortion law violates the "fundamental rights to liberty and privacy" under the Georgia Constitution.
  • If you'd like a deeper dive into Georgia's constitution, check out this special episode of Political Rewind.

3. New support around the idea of expanding Medicaid. 

• Georgia is one of a dozen states still refusing the government’s offer to extend coverage.

  • If expanded it would cover a person with less than 19,000 in income.

• More than 500,000 Georgians could gain coverage if Medicaid is expanded. 

4. Herschel Walker defends himself against attack ad. 

• In a Wall Street Journal opinion piece, the Senate candidate defends himself as he addresses an attack ad where his wife talks about him holding a gun to her head. 
  • The snippet in the attack ad comes from an interview where they are both talking about his mental illness. 
    • Walker also talked about his mental health in his book. 

Wednesday on Political Rewind: The AJC's Greg Bluestein joins the panel.