Democrat and Republican head to Georgia runoff election for Marjorie Taylor Greene’s seat – US politics live | Trump administration
Democrats eye rare window of opportunity in Georgia runoff to replace Marjorie Taylor Greene
Hello, welcome to the US politics live blog.
Democrat Shawn Harris will face leading Republican Clay Fuller in a runoff Tuesday night in the special election to replace Marjorie Taylor Greene in Congress.
The election for the state’s 14th congressional district is seen as a test of Donald Trump’s influence and could provide a rare opportunity for Democrats in the deep-red part of Northwest Georgia.
Fuller, the former prosecutor, has Trump’s endorsement and raised more than $1 million for Tuesday’s vote, but Harris, a retired army general who faced Greene two years ago, raised more than four times as much.
Fuller said he was confident he could bring Republicans together. Speaking on Tuesday evening, he said:
I think the Republican party will unite around us because they know the Democrats are very dangerous. We can’t have a Democrat representing the Georgia 14. That would be a tragedy for our community, a tragedy for Georgia 14, and a tragedy for the Maga movement.
Although four Republican candidates dropped out before the election, the Republican field was split among more than a dozen candidates; among them was former state senator Colton Moore, a combative agitator who was to the right of most Republican lawmakers in Georgia.
Harris, by contrast, contradicts Greene’s bomb-throwing style and says practical-minded Republicans should vote for her because she’ll work for voters “not for someone else who’s already in D.C.” He said:
The way I go to Congress will be as a coalition of Democrats, independents and Republicans.
Fuller and Harris will face off again on April 7, with the winner serving out the remainder of Greene’s term with hopes of re-election by the end of this year.
Read our full report here:
In other developments:
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Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth warned Tuesday will be the “most intense” day of US strikes so far: He even blamed Iran for civilian casualties, claiming that Iranian forces had fired missiles from schools and hospitals. Speaking alongside the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Gen. Dan Caine, Hegseth claimed that Iran had deliberately fired missiles from schools and hospitals, describing the country’s leadership as “desperate and struggling like terrorist cowards.” More here.
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The minesweepers near the Strait of Hormuz are among several Iranian vessels removed by US forces today. According to a post from US Central Command. One Publish on XThe military released unclassified images of some ships after Donald Trump warned Iran against laying mines in the critical waterway.
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US House Speaker Mike Johnson has refused to condemn Republican lawmakers who have recently made Islamophobic comments: he said he only talked to them about their “tone.” Democrats and groups advocating religious tolerance condemned the statements by congressmen Andy Ogles of Tennessee and Randy Fine of Florida, and House minority leader Hakeem Jeffries called on Johnson to discipline the latter. More here.
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Donald Trump said this America First Refining plans to open a new oil refinery in Brownsville, Texas. As part of a $300 billion deal. “THE LARGEST IN US HISTORY, A HUGE WIN for American Workers, Energy, and the GREAT People of South Texas! Thank you to our partners in India and their largest private Energy Company, Reliance, for this tremendous Investment,” Trump said in a post on Truth Social on Tuesday.
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Donald Trump appointed Erika Kirk, the widow of slain right-wing activist Charlie Kirk, to the important advisory board of the US Air Force Academy. The 37-year-old joins a number of president loyalists on the 16-member board of visitors panel that “investigates the morale, discipline, curriculum, instructions, physical equipment, financial affairs, academic methods and other matters” of the Colorado Springs military training facility, according to the academy’s website. More here.
important events
Richard Kahn, Jeffrey Epstein’s former accountant who later became the executor of his estate, will face closed-door questions before the House Oversight Committee today.
Kahn, who has been associated with a pedophile for more than a decade, was managing investments and finances in his final years. He was also responsible for renovations on Epstein’s Caribbean island.
He was one of two executors of Epstein’s estate; the other was that attorney Darren Indyke was scheduled to answer questions next week.
In February, Epstein’s estate agreed to pay as much as $35 million to settle a class-action lawsuit accusing two consultants of aiding and abetting sex trafficking of young women and girls, according to a court filing.
In the 2024 lawsuit, attorneys at Boies Schiller Flexner said Indyke and Kahn helped Epstein create a complex network of companies and bank accounts that allowed him to hide his abuses, pay victims and recruiters, while also leaving them “rich compensation” for their work.
Democrats eye rare window of opportunity in Georgia runoff to replace Marjorie Taylor Greene
Hello, welcome to the US politics live blog.
Democrat Shawn Harris will face leading Republican Clay Fuller in a runoff Tuesday night in the special election to replace Marjorie Taylor Greene in Congress.
The election for the state’s 14th congressional district is seen as a test of Donald Trump’s influence and could provide a rare opportunity for Democrats in the deep-red part of Northwest Georgia.
Fuller, the former prosecutor, has Trump’s endorsement and raised more than $1 million for Tuesday’s vote, but Harris, a retired army general who faced Greene two years ago, raised more than four times as much.
Fuller said he was confident he could bring Republicans together. Speaking on Tuesday evening, he said:
I think the Republican party will unite around us because they know the Democrats are very dangerous. We can’t have a Democrat representing the Georgia 14. That would be a tragedy for our community, a tragedy for Georgia 14, and a tragedy for the Maga movement.
Although four Republican candidates dropped out before the election, the Republican field was split among more than a dozen candidates; among them was former state senator Colton Moore, a combative agitator who was to the right of most Republican lawmakers in Georgia.
Harris, by contrast, contradicts Greene’s bomb-throwing style and says practical-minded Republicans should vote for her because she’ll work for voters “not for someone else who’s already in D.C.” He said:
The way I go to Congress will be as a coalition of Democrats, independents and Republicans.
Fuller and Harris will face off again on April 7, with the winner serving out the remainder of Greene’s term with hopes of re-election by the end of this year.
Read our full report here:
In other developments:
-
Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth warned Tuesday will be the “most intense” day of US strikes so far: He even blamed Iran for civilian casualties, claiming that Iranian forces had fired missiles from schools and hospitals. Speaking alongside the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Gen. Dan Caine, Hegseth claimed that Iran had deliberately fired missiles from schools and hospitals, describing the country’s leadership as “desperate and struggling like terrorist cowards.” More here.
-
The minesweepers near the Strait of Hormuz are among several Iranian vessels removed by US forces today. According to a post from US Central Command. One Publish on XThe military released unclassified images of some ships after Donald Trump warned Iran against laying mines in the critical waterway.
-
US House Speaker Mike Johnson has refused to condemn Republican lawmakers who have recently made Islamophobic comments: he said he only talked to them about their “tone.” Democrats and groups advocating religious tolerance condemned the statements by congressmen Andy Ogles of Tennessee and Randy Fine of Florida, and House minority leader Hakeem Jeffries called on Johnson to discipline the latter. More here.
-
Donald Trump said this America First Refining plans to open a new oil refinery in Brownsville, Texas. As part of a $300 billion deal. “THE LARGEST IN US HISTORY, A HUGE WIN for American Workers, Energy, and the GREAT People of South Texas! Thank you to our partners in India and their largest private Energy Company, Reliance, for this tremendous Investment,” Trump said in a post on Truth Social on Tuesday.
-
Donald Trump appointed Erika Kirk, the widow of slain right-wing activist Charlie Kirk, to the important advisory board of the US Air Force Academy. The 37-year-old joins a number of president loyalists on the 16-member board of visitors panel that “investigates the morale, discipline, curriculum, instructions, physical equipment, financial affairs, academic methods and other matters” of the Colorado Springs military training facility, according to the academy’s website. More here.
