Patrick Swanson / May 25,2021

Divorce Financing in Georgia

Divorce can be devastating. It’s heartbreaking when parents lose custody of their children. Spouses end up having to pay agonizing amounts of financial support.

If you want to protect your rights, not wrongfully lose custody, and not get raked over the coals financially, learn about divorce loans and other ways of divorce financing or find ways to avoid this unpleasant procedure. Free consultations are first come first serve. We always run out of slots. Make sure you get yours locked in now.

Patrick Swanson / May 25,2021

CBD Oil in Georgia - Updated Guideline

Is CBD legal in Georgia? The short answer is yes! Let’s talk about what’s up with CBD in beautiful Georgia!

Patrick Swanson / May 24,2020

A Month Into Reopening And Georgia Jobs Have Yet To Return

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Two out of five people in Georgia — 40.3 percent of its workforce — have filed for unemployment since the state reopened its economy on April 30, the first to do so. But people are still staying close to home, making it harder for jobs to come back, according to a report in Politico on Thursday (May 21).

Georgia had more filings by percentage of its workforce than any other state, Politico’s review of data indicated. New jobless claims for loans in Georgia have varied since the state reopened, going up 243,000 two weeks ago and dropping to 177,000 last week. The state had commented that the increases in claims were due to jobs lost in retail, social services and health care.

“It’s nothing significant enough to say, ‘Oh, there’s a huge surge,’ — but certainly nothing to signal there’s any return to economic stability or recovery happening right now,” Alex Camardelle, a senior policy analyst with the nonprofit Georgia Budget and Policy Institute, told Politico.

Aside from being the first state to re-open, Georgia was also one of the last states to close its economy and impose stay-home mandates.

More layoffs are coming down the pike in Georgia as the state makes plans to eliminate over 1,000 jobs — educators, counselors, social services, administrators, clerks —  in a move to cut state budgets by 14 percent, according to an AJC report on Sunday (May 24). Revenue decline brought about by the pandemic was cited as the reason.

Further, some state employees not laid off will see their paychecks slashed.

Among the departments laying off or furloughing employees are the Georgia State Patrol and the Georgia Bureau of Investigation.

Patrick Swanson / January 27,2020

How Georgia’s Population Relates To The 2020 Census

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Georgia’s population of 10.6 million people makes it one of the largest states in the country. The state’s population grew by more than 100,000 from 2018 to 2019, according to the latest Census estimates. The state’s growing population relates to politics and the 2020 Census. However, more than 3% of the Georgia residents get payday loans at least once a year.

The Census counts every person living in the United States. The decennial count determines political representation and how federal money is distributed.

After the 2010 Census, Georgia’s population growth led to an increase of one congressional seat.

“An additional congressional seat means an additional vote in the electoral college, which is really important in helping to pick the President of the United States,” said Andra Gillespie, associate professor of political science at Emory University.

Gillespie also said having more members of Congress means more voices advocating for Georgia. 

“You want as many Georgians on as many committees as possible so that they are advocating for Georgia interests,” she said.

House committees that Georgia representatives serve on include Transportation and Infrastructure, Armed Services, Judiciary as well as Ways and Means. 

Georgia has 14 seats in the U.S. House of Representatives. In comparison, Florida has 27 and Alabama and South Carolina each have 7. California has the most seats, with 53.

Patrick Swanson / February 13,2023

Bill to raise Georgia’s tax on tobacco products gets bipartisan push intended to tamp down smoking

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Bill to raise Georgia’s tax on tobacco products gets bipartisan push intended to tamp down smoking

Bill to raise Georgia’s tax on tobacco products gets bipartisan push intended to tamp down smoking

Patrick Swanson / February 12,2023

North Georgia Democrats react to Rep. Greene’s SOTU actions

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DADE COUNTY, Georgia (WDEF) — Georgia Republican Marjorie Taylor Greene got plenty of national attention today following her words and actions at last night’s State of the Union address.

During Tuesday night’s address, Greene was one of many Republicans booing President Biden following comments on the nation’s economy.

As the GOP voiced their opinions in unison, Greene could be seen on television voicing another opinion of her own.

Greene could be seen nationwide calling President Biden a “liar” and is standing firm that her actions were warranted.

“I let him know exactly how the people feel,” Greene said. “I got more text messages last night and this morning than I did probably winning both elections, so I have no regrets. We aren’t planning to cut social security and because I called him a ‘liar’ on the House floor, we settled that issue right there at the State of the Union.”

Before the State of the Union even began, footage was released of Greene trolling the President by carrying a giant white balloon to bring attention to the Chinese spy balloon that was recently taken down.

In Georgia’s District 14, a pair of local Democrats are appalled by her behavior and say it’s not just blue voters who are upset.

“I know a lot of Republicans who don’t like her,” said Tom McMahan, Chairman of the Dade Co. Democratic Committee. “I know a number of them who did not vote for her and voted for Marcus Flowers, in fact — the Democratic candidate. There [are] a lot of Republicans who don’t like her and her behavior.”

McMahan says Greene’s behavior Tuesday night was part of “her brand,” which he believes involves publicly acting out for attention.

Patrick Swanson / February 12,2023

Georgia Trend Daily – Feb. 9, 2023

Patrick Swanson / February 12,2023

Georgia Politics, Campaigns, and Elections for February 9, 2023

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  • Georgia Politics, Campaigns, and Elections
  • Under the Gold Dome Today
  • On February 9, 1825, the United States House of Representatives elected John Quincy Adams as President of the United States, despite his having received fewer popular votes than Andrew Jackson. Congress voted for the President after no candidate received a majority of electoral votes in the 1824 election.

    The 12th Amendment states that if no electoral majority is won, only the three candidates who receive the most popular votes will be considered in the House.

    Representative Henry Clay, who was disqualified from the House vote as a fourth-place candidate, agreed to use his influence to have John Quincy Adams elected. Clay and Adams were both members of a loose coalition in Congress that by 1828 became known as the National Republicans, while Jackson’s supporters were later organized into the Democratic Party.

    Alexander Stephens was elected Vice President of the Confederate States of America on February 9, 1861.

    On February 9, 1926, the Atlanta Board of Education voted to prohibit teaching evolution in the Atlanta Public Schools.

    On February 9, 1964, the Beatles debuted in America on The Ed Sullivan Show.

Patrick Swanson / February 12,2023

How Georgia King Passes Away? Georgia King, a Civil Rights Leader from Memphis, has Died.

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  • How Georgia king Passes Away?
  • Who is Georgia king?
  • Tributes to Georgia king:
  • Georgia King, a civil rights leader from Memphis, has died. The Memphis trailblazer died on February 7, 2023. King, also known as “Mother King” in the community, is leaving a legacy of service to others. She began her advocacy career in her early twenties as a representative for the Memphis community’s homeless. She made it her personal goal to feed and care for the needy and oppressed. “I sow seeds,” she explained. “And seek courage and guidance from the Lord.” In 2012, King also created the Memphis Bus Riders Union to ensure equal treatment for riders of all races and creeds. In 2018, King received the MLK 50 Award for Leadership and Activism.

    How Georgia king Passes Away?

    The 82-year-old, who has been an icon for social justice and giving back to the community, died on Tuesday, Feb. 7, 2023, according to their family. She had recently suffered from health concerns, and her daughter and family had been fundraising to improve their own home for her. Mother Georgia King has been a Memphis icon for social justice and a Civil Rights pioneer for decades. In the 1960s, she was a member of the sanitation workers’ I Am A Man Movement and the Poor People’s Campaign. Mother King’s time and energy have since been devoted to action and advocacy for individuals who are homeless.

Patrick Swanson / February 12,2023

4 Georgia HBS Attorneys Honored in the 2023 Super Lawyers Magazine

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4 Georgia HBS Attorneys Honored in the 2023 Super Lawyers Magazine

4 Georgia HBS Attorneys Honored in the 2023 Super Lawyers Magazine

GEORGIA – February 9, 2023 – We are excited to congratulate John E. Hall, Jr., Rush S. Smith, Jr., C. Michael Johnson, and James B. Durham as they have been recognized for their outstanding legal service and selected to the 2023 Georgia Super Lawyers list once again.

John E. Hall, Jr.

John Hall was honored for his work in personal injury medical malpractice defense. This is the nineteenth time he has been recognized as a Super Lawyer in this field. John is one of the founding partners of Hall Booth Smith. He specializes in the defense of high exposure cases including medical malpractice, batch claims, construction, commercial litigation, mass torts, transportation, and products liability.

John has established himself as one of the top litigators in the health care field and has tried over 125 cases to resolution. His expertise in high exposure birth trauma and catastrophic cases resulted in his being named National Counsel for several major insurance carriers. John also maintains a robust corporate practice in International, International Trade and Finance, Arbitration/Mediation, Business Structures, Health Care, and Commercial Litigation.

Patrick Swanson / February 10,2023

Working Georgians Lack Housing Options

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This week’s Courier Herald column:

This week we’re going to dive deeper into Georgia’s challenge of providing workforce housing. While it’s not a new problem, the recent public remarks by Governor Brian Kemp and the state’s economist Dr. Jeffrey Dorfman have directly tied the lack of available and affordable housing as a hindrance not only to Georgia’s population growth, but also to the state’s economic growth.

The term “workforce housing” begins as a loaded term with its own political connotations, many of which have negative perceptions.  The rising cost of housing – both rental and owner occupied – cuts across many socioeconomic categories.  The challenges are unique to many different groups, and transcend the state’s disparate geographic areas.

That last paragraph is the sanitized way of saying that too many people hear terms like “workforce housing” and “affordable housing” as code words for “poor,” “urban,” “subsidized,” “minorities,” and “renters.”  To be more impolite and blunt, many people resist solving these problems in their communities because they want the people in these groups to live…anywhere else. 

Housing solutions for Georgians that fit in the above categories are a real problem.  The focus here isn’t meant to sidestep the underlying issues with housing for people within these groups, but to indicate that the problem is much more broad, and affects many more Georgians than are normally associated – even stigmatized – with the need for affordable housing options. 

Patrick Swanson / February 10,2023

Georgia Elementary School Principal, Gym Teacher, & 3rd Grade Teacher Resign After CRAZY Campus Affair Comes To Light!

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An elementary school principal, a gym teacher, and a third grade teacher have all resigned after a years-long affair came to light, sending shock waves through the small-town community in which they worked.

Media attention is coming down on Banks County Elementary School in the small city of Homer, Georgia this week. That rural town is the focus of serious fallout after a major investigation by the county’s Board of Education into an apparent affair involving two employees at the school.

Related: ABC News Had A ‘Rampant Culture Of Sex’ Long Before TJ Holmes And Amy Robach!

According to Atlanta-based WSB-TV, Banks County Elementary School principal Dr. Dana Simmons and physical education teacher Dylan Charles engaged in a “years-long” sexual affair. The two reportedly even had sex at the school where they worked. And, that affair supposedly came about with the full knowledge and apparent blessing (!) of Dylan’s wife Kelsey Charles, who was a third grade teacher at the institution! WTF?!?!

The affair first came to light in its own shocking way. Late last year, Simmons accused Charles of accessing “secret school district information” by having a source reporting to him from county school board meetings or by possibly “bugging her office,” per the New York Post. Mad at that accusation, Charles went to school district officials and revealed the affair he’d been having with Simmons. He told them the two had sex both off campus and on the grounds of the elementary school. At first, Simmons denied the affair, but the school board launched a full investigation.

Patrick Swanson / February 10,2023

“There are elements trying to undermine our partnership” – US Ambassador to Georgia

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“There are elements trying to undermine our partnership” – US Ambassador to Georgia

“There are elements trying to undermine our partnership” – US Ambassador to Georgia

Degnan on Georgia

There are elements in Georgia trying to undermine the partnership between the US and Georgia in order to create confusion and division between the countries, US Ambassador to Georgia Kelly Degnan said in an exclusive interview with Interpressnews. “This is a classic KGB/FSB strategy,” she maintained.

Degnan says that Washington has never put pressure on the Georgian government to impose sanctions on Russia, and the only discussion that took place with the government on this issue was about what kind of assistance Georgia could provide to Ukraine. The US has no evidence that Georgia is not complying with sanctions, the ambassador said:

“I don’t think anyone can say with 100% certainty, but customs and border control know exactly what they’re doing.”

Degnan also said that no matter how important it is to talk disagreements over, the main thing is to respect the truth and facts.

Patrick Swanson / February 09,2023

Georgian EU Membership in Jeopardy

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Members of the European Parliament are criticising the current leadership of Georgia, saying the country’s cruel treatment of its ex-president jeopardises its aspirations to attain EU membership.

A Georgian court on Monday, February 6th, rejected former president Mikheil Saakashvili’s appeal for release on medical grounds. Saakashvili called the court proceedings “a joke” and said,

The government’s experts did not even bother to see me once, but the court believed them, and not the international team that included a Nobel Prize winner, that said if I stay in prison I will die … Now I’ve basically got a death sentence.

The imprisonment by Georgian authorities of the former president, who Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky says is being “slowly killed” in prison, was condemned by EU lawmakers during last week’s parliamentary session. Saakashvili is under arrest on charges of corruption, but he claims the charges are politically motivated by rivals in his native Caucasus Republic, principally the ruling Georgian Dream party. This cruel treatment of an ex-statesman puts Georgia’s aspiration to join the EU into serious doubt. 

Speaking for the EPP Group, Slovakian MEP Maria Lexman stated that the former president’s treatment may endanger the nation’s application for EU membership. She criticised the current Georgian leadership, saying that the “games, tricks, and lies must stop. This shameful behaviour is in direct contradiction to the [Georgian] government’s stated European aspiration, and the very values and principles entailed.”