Political Rewind: Dems and GOP rally over the weekend; Student loans debate; Sandra Deal's memorial

Caption

At the top Herschel Walker, Gov. Brian Kemp, and Burt Jones pose for photo at GOP fish fry in Perry. At the bottom Stacey Abrams poses with candidates at Democrats convention in Columbus, GA.

Credit: @staceyabrams, @HerschelWalker

The panel:

Edward Lindsey, @edlindsey14,  former Atlanta state representative

Melita Easters, @GAWINList, founder and director, Georgia WIN List

Patricia Murphy, @MurphyAJC, political reporter and columnist, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Tammy Greer, political science professor, Clark Atlanta University

The breakdown: 

1. Perry fish fry heats up GOP alliances. 

• For the first time, incumbent Gov. Brian Kemp, Senate candidate Herschel Walker, and Republican lieutenant governor nominee Burt Jones come together for a public event during the midterm cycle.  

• In Buckhead, U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz headlined a super PAC’s “Together for Truth” conference.

2.  Over in Columbus, Democrats hold their convention. 

• The top two Democrats, Stacey Abrams and Sen. Raphael Warnock, never shared the stage during the convention. 
  • Abrams and Warnock are longtime political allies. Abrams convinced the pastor to run back in 2020. 
•  In the latest polling from the AJC, Warnock pulls slightly ahead of his conservative opponent Herschel Walker.
  • Meanwhile, Abrams trails Kemp by a much wider margin in their 2022 rematch.

3. Abortion remains a key item for candidates across Georgia, and the country. 

• Pat Ryan is a Democrat who campaigned almost solely on the right to choose and won a special election in New York.

  • Recent polling from Georgia voters shows that only 31% of voters agreed with the Supreme Court's decision to overturn Roe v. Wade. 

4. Debate over student loans continues.

• Patricia Murphy points out that the most vocal critics of Biden's student loan forgiveness plans have accepted PPP loans during the pandemic. 

• Clark Atlanta University's Tammy Greer emphasizes the impact this plan will have on HBCUs.

5. Sandra Deal's funeral held over the weekend. 

• Georgia's most recent former first lady died last week after a battle with breast cancer.
  • A public memorial service for Deal was held Saturday afternoon on the campus of Lanier Technical College in Gainesville.

Tuesday on Political Rewind: The AJC's Tamar Hallerman joins the panel.