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Georgia Today: Trump orders affect Ga. industries; Kemp tort reform; R.E.M.'s one-night reunion
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On the Feb. 28 edition of Georgia Today: A pause on federal programs by the Trump administration could have big effects for some Georgia industries; Gov. Brian Kemp continues to follow through on his promise for tort reform; and Georgia music legends R.E.M. reunite briefly at the 40 Watt Club in Athens.
Orlando Montoya: Hello and welcome to the Georgia Today podcast from GPB news. On this podcast, we feature the latest reports from the GPB news team. You can send us feedback or story tips to GeorgiaToday@GPB.org. Today is Friday, Feb. 28. I'm Orlando Montoya. On today's episode: a pause on federal programs by the Trump administration could have big effects in Georgia's peanut industry. Brian Kemp continues to follow through on his promise for tort reform. And Georgia music legends R.E.M. reunite briefly at the 40 Watt Club in Athens.
MUSIC: R.E.M., Michael Shannon and Jason Narducy - "Pretty Persuasion"
Orlando Montoya: These stories and more are coming up on this edition of Georgia Today.
Story 1:
Orlando Montoya: Several Social Security Administration regional offices in Georgia are slated for closure after Trump administration budget cuts. GPB's Sarah Kallis explains.
Sarah Kallis: The Department of Government Efficiency has terminated the leases for five of Georgia's 34 Social Security offices. Offices in Brunswick, Gainesville, Columbus, Vidalia and Thomasville will close, according to the Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE, website. The department claims the closure will save the federal government hundreds of thousands of dollars. Georgia's Sen. Raphael Warnock condemned the closures, saying they will make it harder for seniors to access services they need. Physical Social Security offices serve as a point of contact for seniors and others using the service. Georgia has lost the most locations of any state so far. For GPB News, I'm Sarah Kallis.
Story 2:
Orlando Montoya: Among the federal programs on pause and the new Trump administration is the effort to transition the nation's school buses from fossil fuels to electricity. GPB's Grant Blankenship is here to talk about what that means for Georgia schools and business. Hey, good afternoon, Grant.
Grant Blankenship: Hey. Good afternoon, Orlando.
Orlando Montoya: Well, first of all, tell me more about these federal programs for electric school buses. When did they come about and what kind of funding are we talking about?
Grant Blankenship: So most of what we're talking about is $5 billion set aside during the Biden administration to be spent through 2026. That's mostly through the Environmental Protection Agency's clean school bus program, funded through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law.
Orlando Montoya: So Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. How did the schools get this money, exactly?
Grant Blankenship: Well, local school districts had to apply for it. And the winners in this case are all over the state. In Clayton County, they've been waiting for over $20 million for some 50 buses. Here in Bibb County, where I live in Middle Georgia, they're waiting for just over $6 million to be freed up.
Orlando Montoya: And so I'm guessing that when Trump took office, that's when the money was stalled, along with other spending.
Grant Blankenship: Yeah, that's exactly right. Yeah. There's officially a 90-day pause for review that began on Inauguration Day. And according to data kept by the Environmental Protection Agency, it looks like there's something like 320 electric school buses total across Georgia districts that are just, you know, on standby. The districts are waiting to buy.
Orlando Montoya: And so a big picture: What are some of the reasons why these buses are important for addressing climate change?
Grant Blankenship: Well, you know, it's about those carbon dioxide emissions, right? Which are warming the planet. And so these buses that the schools are waiting for in Georgia would keep as much as 79,000 tons of carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere over their lifespan compared to the diesel buses that you're used to.
Orlando Montoya: So that's what's in it for the climate and for Georgia schools. But there's a business angle on this story as well, right?
Grant Blankenship: Yeah, absolutely. I mean, you probably know Bluebird Buses. You probably have ridden on one at some point. They're based in Fort Valley in Middle Georgia, and they're one of three manufacturers of electric school buses in the country. And the way these grant programs work, Bluebird helped a ton of school districts across the country with their grant proposals. So Bluebird is technically the grantee in places like Oklahoma and Texas. During their recent earnings call, the now-former CEO Phil Horlock reminded investors that the federal Department of Energy had also agreed to shoulder half the cost of Bluebird's new electric bus production facilities so they can meet this new demand.
Phil Horlock: Per the president's executive order, this grant funding is presently paused, although we are confident it will proceed following review. As a reminder, this project adds 400 well-paying American jobs with clean buses built by a century-old American company located in Middle Georgia, providing our children with health and safety benefits of clean air.
Orlando Montoya: So does that mean that this new production line is idle?
Grant Blankenship: No, actually. I mean, if there is good news from Bluebird, it's that they're still working through a backlog of orders dating back to about a year ago for these electric buses. So work's still going on there. But Horlock told investors, by about six months from now, Bluebird is going to be looking for new orders.
Orlando Montoya: Okay, so what is the EPA saying about all of this?
Grant Blankenship: So I asked them about the status of the bus grants this week. And what I got was a one sentence response via email. And it said, "EPA worked expeditiously to enable payment accounts for grant recipients, so funding is now accessible to all recipients."
Orlando Montoya: So that means things are moving.
Grant Blankenship: It's not clear at all, actually. So far, no one I've spoken to from the ground level can confirm that, from their end, that they have access to the grant money. And when I asked EPA some followup questions about this statement, I got no response.
Orlando Montoya: So it sounds like we'll just have to wait and stay tuned for the federal government to give us a definitive answer. Thanks very much, Grant, for the update.
Grant Blankenship: Yeah, thank you for the time.
Story 3:
Orlando Montoya: Moves by the Trump administration to dismantle the U.S. Agency for International Development have led to the cancellation of $12 million in supply contracts for a Georgia company. The contracts have been terminated for Mana Nutrition, a nonprofit that makes peanut butter-based food for severely malnourished children. Mana's co-founder Mark Moore says that's 90% of their business.
Mark Moore: We're a nonprofit. So we were not looking to make money, but we do really love our jobs. And we have 130 of us working at Mana, who — it is our livelihood. But more than that, it's our passion to do it.
Orlando Montoya: Mana's manufacturing plant is located in Fitzgerald, Ga., in the southern part of the state.
Story 4:
Orlando Montoya: The second part of Gov. Brian Kemp's priority legislation, the session to limit lawsuits, passed the state Senate yesterday with unanimous support. Senate Bill 69 requires third-party entities that invest in litigation to register with the Department of Banking and Finance and bans foreign adversaries and governments from investing in litigation. It also limits how much litigation financiers can use to influence civil litigation proceedings and the people involved.
Story 5:
Orlando Montoya: Tybee Island City Council voted last night to spend more than $200,000 on security measures for Orange Crush this year — this after residents expressed safety concerns about the spring break event in previous years. City Manager Brett Bell:
Brett Bell: This is a significant cost to Tybee Island that's not included in the 2025 budget. We do believe strongly that these measures are needed. It worked last year and we feel like it's needed again.
Orlando Montoya: About two-thirds of the money would be spent on barricades and fencing, ensuring drivers keep moving to avoid gridlock, and not parking on private property. The event is scheduled to take place on Tybee Island on Easter weekend.
Story 6:
Orlando Montoya: Georgia's Supreme Court justices have unanimously elected a new top judge. Presiding Justice Nels Petersen is set to become the state's Supreme Court chief justice on April 1. That's according to a news release from the court yesterday. He will succeed Chief Justice Michael Boggs, who announced earlier this week that he plans to step down at the end of March. Gov. Brian Kemp will appoint a new justice to replace Boggs on the court. Chief justices serve as the voice of the court and the state's entire judiciary and preside over the high court's deliberations.
Story 7:
Orlando Montoya: The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers says they've completed various types of debris removal in six Georgia counties following damage caused by Hurricane Helene in September. The Corps of Engineers says they have removed more than 2,800,000 cubic yards of downed trees, branches and other vegetative debris in Brooks, Montgomery, Lounds, Candler, Laurens, and McIntosh counties. The Corps of Engineers says they have an overall goal of clearing 3.1 million cubic yards of debris within 10 Georgia counties, and 108 civilian personnel and one military member are actively working towards the mission.
Story 8:
Orlando Montoya: A new report finds Atlanta's first-ever e-bike rebate program has decreased the amount participants drive to work or school by 40%. GPB's Amanda Andrews has more.
Amanda Andrews: The program was popular, with over 11,000 applicants, but the Atlanta Regional Commission only had funding for about 600 e-bike rebates. Reports show over 80% of recipients chosen through a random lottery with low-income households. Bennett Foster works on mobility services for the Atlanta Regional Commission. He says rebate recipients tell him they're saving money on gas.
Bennett Foster: You know, half of all trips that we take In the region are less than 3 miles. And the purpose of these e-bikes was to gobble up those short trips and essentially replace those car trips with the e-bike. And that's exactly what it's doing.
Amanda Andrews: The program partnered with 12 local bike shops to sell and repair the e-bikes, generating $1.2 million in bike sales. For GPB News, I'm Amanda Andrews.
Story 9:
Orlando Montoya: The Academy Awards are Sunday evening, and this year no one film or actor seems to have a lock on the win. GPB's Kristi York-Wooten breaks down the Oscar nominees and favorites with Atlanta movie expert Steven Brown.
Kristi York-Wooten: Welcome, Stephen.
Stephen Brown: Thank you so much, Kristi. It's an honor.
Kristi York-Wooten: Let's start with Best Picture.
Stephen Brown: Most people have seen Wicked because that's so popular. But a lot of these movies are sort of topical or interesting or maybe straight-out-of-the-headlines type issues. Emilia Pérez went from leading to Anora being the one that was leading. And then as of the Screen Actors Guild Awards, Conclave was the winner there. So there's definitely now a feeling that Anora or Conclave could be the one.
Kristi York Wooten: Yeah, it feels like there could be some upsets or a wild card that jumps in there. I know that there was a lot of talk about The Brutalist. And I had a sort of mixed reaction — some beautiful elements to that film, but it also felt a little bloated to me, personally. I thought it was going to be about architecture altogether, but nope. Especially for someone who is from Atlanta and knows John Portman, who kind of was a brutalist and a modernist in his own right, with all his concrete buildings in downtown Atlanta. But also A Complete Unknown: Do you think there's any chance there, that that biopic about Bob Dylan starring Timothée Chalamet can make it all the way to Best Picture?
Stephen Brown: I do feel it could. There is definitely a notion in Oscar races that it's all about timing.
MUSIC: Bob Dylan - "Like A Rolling Stone"
Steven Brown: The Best Actor: Throughout the entire season, Adrien Brody has been the leading contender and award winner for The Brutalist. However, this week, we've had a little shocker because the Screen Actors Guild just anointed Timothée Chalamet for playing Bob Dylan in A Complete Unknown. So, that shook up the race a little bit. I think come Oscar night, Sunday night, you can see it go either way.
Kristi York Wooten: Demi Moore won at the Golden Globes and has been kind of a favored actress to win this year. What do you think?
Stephen Brown: Absolutely. So, Demi Moore has the body of work, but she was also in a "body horror" movie, The Substance, which is a little grisly and gross for some people's tastes. However, I believe that many Academy voters aren't even watching the movie. They realize that she's someone who's gone unrecognized. She's given great speeches. However, if they have seen the movie, it's really good. There is another actress, Fernanda Torres, who's in I'm Still Here. Mikey Madison, in Anora could also be a dark-horse contender. She won at BAFTA.
Kristi York Wooten: We've got also Cynthia Erivo in that category.
Stephen Brown: You know, she's spectacular. In a different year, she would have a really huge shot. I think the fact that the Wicked movies have been divided in two has sort of the Lord of the Rings effect.
Kristi York Wooten: All right. Actress in a Supporting Role?
Stephen Brown: This race has gone for Zoë Saldaña in Emelia Perez nearly every single time. And so I think Zoë Saldaña has been seen as somebody who did a great job in Avatar movies and Guardians of the Galaxy movies, and they hadn't seen her sing and dance and speak Spanish and do all the things that she does in Emelia Perez. So, I think a lot of people will reward her for that.
Kristi York Wooten: You know, I really want to talk about Isabella Rossellini for a minute. Her facial expressions and everything were just incredible in Conclave. She's kind of my secret favorite! Let's talk about the Actor in a Supporting Role.
Stephen Brown: Almost every awards precursor that's happened so far has gone for Kieran Culkin, who plays one of the two mismatched cousins on the trip in A Real Pain. I think if there were any strange upset, it could be Edward Norton, who plays Pete Seeger in A Complete Unknown.
Kristi York Wooten: This was just a very sweet turn for him.
Stephen Brown: It was! A most sweeter, gentler side of Edward Norton, that we think of as Fight Club and American History X.
MUSIC: Pete Seeger - "The Lion Sleeps Tonight"
Orlando Montoya: And you can see their complete picks at GPB.org.
Story 10:
Orlando Montoya: Georgia music legends R.E.M. reunited briefly last night at the famed Athens nightclub the 40 Watt. All four members of the band — Peter Buck, Bill Berry, Mike Mills and Michael Stipe — shocked an audience there to see an R.E.M. tribute band helmed by actor/musicians Michael Shannon and Jason Narducy. They performed their 1984 classic "Pretty Persuasion".
MUSIC: R.E.M., Michael Shannon and Jason Narducy - "Pretty Persuasion"
Orlando Montoya: Before last night, the group had performed in public only once since 2008. They played together at their introduction into the Songwriters Hall of Fame last year in June. They were all together, but did not perform at a Shannon/Narducy tribute at the 40 Watt last year in February. Their appearances give fans hope that the disbanded group one day might not be disbanded.
And that's it for today's edition of Georgia Today. And that'll also do it for the week here on Georgia Today, as we have all reached the weekend. Before I get there, I'd like you to hit subscribe on this podcast. We always remind you to do that so you stay current with this in your feed. If you have feedback, send that to us at GeorgiaToday@GPB.org. And as always, go to GPB.org/news to learn more about Georgia news. I'm Orlando Montoya. I'll be back again on Monday to talk with you next week.
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