Georgia Today: Biz owners react to possible tariffs; Arbery prosecutor gets one charge dismissed

Peter Biello: Welcome to the Georgia Today podcast from GPB News. Today is Tuesday, Feb. 4. I'm Peter Biello. On this podcast, you'll hear the latest reports from GPB news team. Send feedback, story tips and suggestions to GeorgiaToday@GPB.org. On today's episode: Georgia business owners react to possible tariffs. A former Georgia prosecutor accused of meddling in the Ahmaud Arbery murder trial has one charge dismissed. And House Speaker Jon Burns introduces new school safety legislation.

Jon Burns: Measures that will save lives and supporting our students' well-being at every stage of their academic careers and beyond.

Peter Biello: These stories and more are coming up on this edition of Georgia Today.

Story 1:

Peter Biello: Georgia business owners are worried about proposed tariffs on the country's biggest trading partners. Kirk Halpern supplies meat and seafood to Georgia restaurants through his business, farmers and fishermen purveyors. He says tariffs on Canadian products would come at a bad time for his customers.

Kirk Halpern: So at a time when restaurant tours are battling cost increases, the American consumer has less money in their pocket. So any price increase has a negative impact.

Peter Biello: Joseph Cortez of the Georgia Craft Brewers Guild says a possible tariff on Canadian barley, wheat and oats could hurt his industry.

Joseph Cortez: Breweries are, especially in Georgia, going through a tough time recently, so anything that impacts their ability to succeed and do well across the state is something we're concerned about.

Peter Biello: The Trump administration was set to impose 25% tariffs on goods from Canada and Mexico today, but abruptly paused them after the countries pledged to boost border security.

Story 2:

Peter Biello: The U.S. Senate has confirmed former Georgia congressman Doug Collins as secretary of Veterans Affairs. The vote this afternoon was 77 to 23, with both Georgia Sens. Jon Ossoff and Raphael Warnock voting yes. The former Air Force chaplain's confirmation brings the Georgian into President Donald Trump's cabinet. Collins represented a Northeast Georgia district in the U.S. House from 2013 to 2021. The outspoken conservative and close Trump ally made an unsuccessful bid for the U.S. Senate in 2020, but lost the Republican primary to Kelly Loeffler. Trump tapped Loeffler, a major GOP donor, to lead the U.S. Small Business Association.

Story 3:

Peter Biello: A former prosecutor took the witness stand today to deny charges that she abused her power to protect the men who chased and killed Ahmaud Arbery nearly five years ago. Former Glynn County District Attorney Jackie Johnson told the jury that she immediately stepped away from the case because it involved a former employee. That employee, Greg McMichael, initiated the deadly pursuit and his son Travis McMichael fatally shot Arbery in the street. But no one was arrested in Arbery's death for more than two months — not until cellphone video of the shooting leaked online and state investigators took over the investigation. State prosecutors allege Johnson worked behind the scenes to influence the investigation in her former employee's favor. The case against her suffered a major blow yesterday when the trial judge dismissed a charge of obstructing police. She remains on trial for the remaining charge, violating her oath of office.

​​​​​​​Story 4:

Peter Biello: Georgia House Speaker Jon Burns introduced school safety legislation yesterday inspired by last year's school shooting in Barrow County that killed two teachers and two students. GPB's Sarah Kallis reports on the Republican's proposal.

Sarah Kallis: Burns' plan includes a system for students to anonymously report threats to authorities, require schools to create a threat management program and mandates a statewide student information database.

Jon Burns: The People's House is committed to leaving no stone unturned when it comes to securing their safety, enacting measures that will save lives and supporting our students' well-being at every stage of their academic careers and beyond.

Sarah Kallis: Burns also said the House will introduce a bill to create voluntary tax incentives for safe gun storage devices. The family of a coach killed in the Appalachee High School shooting attended the announcement. Burns says the proposed legislation is designed to prevent another tragedy. For GPB News, I'm Sarah Kallis at the state capitol.

Peter Biello: Gun safety advocates today applauded the move, but they say it didn't go far enough. Leila Contreras said her mother and sister were inside the high school during the shooting. She says storing guns should be mandatory.

Leila Contreras: We don't just encourage parents to put their babies in a car seat. It's the law. We don't just recommend seatbelts. We expect to wear them because they save lives. Firearm safety should be no different.

Peter Biello: She spoke at a news conference announcing a Democratic-sponsored bill that would make it a misdemeanor for guns to be where children can access them.

​​​​​​​Story 5:

Peter Biello: The American Lung Association and the Ad Council today unveiled a new campaign to highlight early detection of lung cancer. It's the leading cause of cancer deaths, according to the association's latest report. GPB's Ellen Eldridge has more.

Ellen Eldridge: If you were a current or former smoker, a one-minute lung scan can save your life by catching cancer early. Dr. Bobby Mahajan is with the Lung Association. He says people between 50 and 80 who smoked 20 "pack years" are most at risk.

Dr. Bobby Majahan: Meaning we multiply the number of packs per day by the number of years they've smoked. So one pack per day for 20 years, or 20 pack years. Or someone who has smoked, is currently smoking, or has quit in the last 15 years. Those people qualify for lung cancer screening.

Ellen Eldridge: He says patients can check their eligibility for lung screening online and discuss the results with their doctor. For GPB News, I'm Ellen Eldridge.

​​​​​​​Story 6:

Peter Biello: A European jet engine manufacturer plans to build its North American headquarters in Roswell, north of Atlanta. Czech Republic-based PBS Aerospace said yesterday that its $20 million investment will create at least 95 new jobs. The company plans to conduct manufacturing and research and development operations at an existing facility and the new one to be operational by April.

Caption

Anna Lange, a sergeant in the Houston County Sheriff’s Department, at her home in Georgia. After coming out as transgender, Lange found that her county’s health plan would not cover any of the medical procedures needed to treat her gender dysphoria.

Credit: Annie Tritt, special to ProPublica

​​​​​​​Story 7:

Peter Biello: Today, the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals heard the case of Anna Lange, a sergeant with the Houston County Sheriff's Office in Middle Georgia. Lang sued her employer and other officials after they refused to allow her insurance to cover what for many transgender people is considered medically necessary health care. For Lange, that was a surgery that would help her transition. The outcome of Lange's case could impact transgender people across the South and the nation. GPB's Sofi Gratas spoke with Lange late last year.

Anna Lange: I started out in patrol. And then I got promoted to investigator and worked in the investigations division. And now I'm over the property in evidence. I love it.

Sofi Gratas: You feel like this is your forever job?

Anna Lange: Well, I've been in law enforcement for 27 years, so I figure, yeah, I'll be there, you know, till I can retire.

Sofi Gratas: At a point in her career. Lange would begin her gender transition.

Anna Lange: So we had a staff meeting of the investigations division, so I had to come out to all of them, you know, at one time. Yeah, I was nervous about it. But, you know, the — the scary part of being trans is you have to live, like, your biggest secret. You have to live it out loud. I didn't start out going, okay, I'm going to have surgery. But, you know, as I progressed, you know, I was still uncomfortable. I was decided that probably the best course of action would be to have surgery. When I first came out, they would cover my medication. But then everything else, like when I would go to the endocrinologist visit, that would be denied. If it was coded trans health care, it was automatically denied. And so I was like, "Hey, well, it's you can't discriminate against transgender people, so let me call the insurance company and see if I'm covered." And so I called them and I was told that I was covered. So then I called my surgeon's office. They called and said I was covered. So I booked a plane ticket to New York where my surgeon was and had my consult, got a surgery date, came home. And then two weeks later, I got denied for the surgery.

Sofi Gratas: Houston County maintains that Lange was denied surgery because the county health insurance doesn't cover specific procedures and not because she is transgender. The decision to deny what Lange's doctors had deemed medically necessary took a toll.

Anna Lange: You know, I was in such a depressive state, to be honest. It's like you — you get to a point where you just don't even really want to live anymore. When I first brought the lawsuit, you know, a lot of people were like, "this is absolutely crazy." You know, this is — "this is a cosmetic procedure." "This is elective." This isn't, you know, life-saving.

Sofi Gratas: Ultimately, last summer, a district court judge and two judges from the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals disagreed when they ruled that Houston County had discriminated against Lange. She was awarded damages and the county was told they had to include coverage for gender-affirming care.

Anna Lange: Now, post- having surgery, I'm happy. I wake up every day with a smile on my face. I just don't have those issues that I used to have anymore. And that's just liberating. It's — it's like how life is supposed to be for me.

Sofi Gratas: Houston County did not stop its battle in court. Now, a full panel of U.S. 11th Circuit judges will decide whether or not employers are breaking the law if they exclude coverage for gender-affirming care. Lange had support from the U.S. Department of Justice in her case until the department pulled out just days before the hearing on Tuesday. For GPB News, I'm Sofi Gratas.

​​​​​​​Story 8:

Peter Biello: The Atlanta Dream introduced the team's newest star player today, Brittney Griner. Griner thus far has played for the Phoenix Mercury since she was drafted in 2013. She appeared at a news conference today with other new Atlanta Dream players Brionna Jones and Shatori Walker-Kimbrough. She was asked what she was looking forward to the most about being in Atlanta.

Brittney Griner: One, getting out and running. Honestly, I know some people think that's a little surprising to hear me say it, but I'm looking forward to getting out and running with them. You know, setting that screen and seeing that ball go up over my head and to that goal is gonna make me very happy. So just everything that you do out on the perimeter — and it's going to make my life easier, too. Also on the on the flip side, down low and you know, when they start to, you know try to double in, I know I got shooters out there that's going to knock it down for me.

Peter Biello: Griner 'ssigning is the biggest free agent deal in Atlanta Dream history and brings the city one of the league's top players. Griner missed the 2022 season when she was detained for nearly 10 months in Russia after authorities said a search of her luggage revealed vape cartridges containing oil derived from cannabis. She was later released during a prisoner swap.

Caption

Waffle House

​​​​​​​Story 9:

Peter Biello: And finally, the next time you visit Waffle House, double check the price of that omelet or scrambled eggs you were thinking of ordering. The Norcross-based restaurant chain is adding a 50 cent per egg surcharge because of the soaring price of eggs known for their 24 hour breakfast menu. Waffle House says the surcharge is only in place until the price of eggs comes down. In a statement, the company says customers and restaurants are being forced to make difficult decisions.

Peter Biello: And that is a wrap on this edition of Georgia Today. We do appreciate you tuning in and we hope you will come back tomorrow. Remember to subscribe to this podcast, so we pop up automatically tomorrow afternoon. And for all the latest headlines, visit GPB.org/news. Thank you so much for listening. I'm Peter Biello. Back tomorrow.

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