Funeral set for Rabun County man killed in Burton Dam Road wreck

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January 4, 2023

A memorial service will be held this weekend for a Rabun County man who died from injuries he sustained in a wreck on Burton Dam Road.

25-year-old James Matthew Foster of Tiger died New Year’s Day. He was fatally injured on December 30 when the car he was driving ran off the road in a curve and struck a group of mailboxes and a power pole near Limber Lost Trail.

State troopers investigating the crash charged him with DUI.

The wreck also injured two passengers in the car – Graeme McKinney Watson, 29, of Clarkesville, and Zoe Elizabeth Brown, 25, of Rabun Gap. Both were transported to the hospital with suspected serious injuries, the Georgia State Patrol reports. A third passenger, 24-year-old Christopher Michael Clarke of Clarkesville, sustained minor injuries but was not transported.

Foster’s family will hold a memorial service for him on Saturday, January 7, at 3 p.m. in the chapel at Hunter Funeral Home in Clayton.

James Matthew Foster obituary

Willene English Sosebee

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Now Habersham

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January 4, 2023

Willene English Sosebee, age 93, of Demorest, Georgia, took her heavenly flight home to be with the Lord on Wednesday, January 4, 2023, following a courageous battle with cancer.

Born in Habersham County, Georgia, on December 07, 1929, she was a daughter of the late Clyde David & Kathleen Ophelia Smith English. Willene was a graduate of Clarkesville High School, Class of 1949. She was a hard-working mother who provided for her family for many years by caring for other children in her at-home daycare, sewing, quilting, embroidering, and gardening until retirement. Most of all, Willene cherished precious time with her children, grandchildren, & great-grandchildren. She was a member of Fairfield Baptist Church.

“Give her of her of the fruit of her hands; And let her own works praise her in the gates.” ~ Proverbs 31:31

In addition to her parents, she was preceded in death by her sister & brother-in-law, Doris & Jackie Thomas; brother, Harold English; and son-in-law, Troy Baker.

Survivors include her children, Patsy Baker of Mount Airy, GA; Kathy & Steve Harwood of Cornelia, GA; David Sosebee of the Batesville Community, Clarkesville, GA; Ricky & Donna Sosebee of Demorest, GA; Dennis & Penny Sosebee of Alto, GA; Jeff & Nancy Sosebee of Demorest, GA; sisters & brothers-in-law, Coma Lee & Duane Black of Demorest, GA; Ethelene & Bruce Minish of Sautee, GA; Dianne & James Colston of Demorest, GA; brother & sister-in-law, Charles & Betty English of Demorest, GA; sister-in-law, Vivian English of Demorest, GA; 12 grandchildren; 14 great-grandchildren; 6 great-great-grandchildren; a host of nieces, nephews, other relatives, & friends.

Homegoing services are scheduled for 2:00 p.m. Saturday, January 07, 2023, at Hillside Memorial Chapel in Clarkesville, Georgia, with Rev. Doug Porter & Rev. Kenneth McEntire officiating. Interment will follow in the Fairfield Baptist Church Cemetery.

The family will receive friends at the funeral home from 1:00 p.m. until the service hour on Saturday, January 07, 2023.

Flowers are accepted, or memorials may be made in memory of Willene Sosebee to Habersham Baptist Church, 506 Old Habersham Mills Road, Demorest, GA. 30535

An online guest registry is available for the Sosebee family at www.HillsideMemorialChapel.com.

Arrangements are in the care & professional direction of Hillside Memorial Chapel of Clarkesville, Georgia. (706) 754-6256

Dan C. Chitwood

By

Now Habersham

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January 4, 2023

Dan C. Chitwood, age 94, of Baldwin, Georgia, went to his heavenly home on Tuesday, January 3, 2022.

Mr. Chitwood was born on April 23, 1928 in Habersham County, Georgia, to the late Elijah and Ellie Scroggs Chitwood. In addition to his parents, he was preceded in death by his daughters, Janice Chitwood and Donna Sue Chitwood; brothers, Joe Chitwood and Grady Chitwood.

Mr. Chitwood was a member of Alto Congregational Holiness Church. He was a Veteran of the United States Army, having served during the Korean Conflict. Dan will always be remembered for being a loving and dedicated husband, father, grandfather, and great-grandfather.

Survivors include his loving wife of 66 years, Wanda Meeks Chitwood, of Baldwin; sons and daughters-in-law, Pete and Tonya Chitwood, of Yonah; Danny and Louvene Chitwood, of Mt. Airy; sister, Mary White, of Nicholson; grandchildren, Cody Chitwood, Megan Carder, Kristy Woltz; great-grandchildren, Sheldon Woltz, Sophia Woltz, Hudson Carder, Kohen Carder, Briggs Chitwood, Alyssa Chitwood, Annabelle Chitwood.

Funeral Services will be held at 11:00 a.m., Friday, January 6, 2022, at the Whitfield Funeral Home, South Chapel, with Rev. Scott Ledbetter officiating. Interment will follow in the Level Grove Cemetery.

The family will receive friends from 2:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. and 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m., Thursday, January 5, 2022, at the funeral home.

Arrangements have been entrusted to the Whitfield Funeral Homes & Crematory, South Chapel, at 1370 Industrial Boulevard, Baldwin, Georgia 30511. Telephone: 706-778-7123.

Lola Mae Burnett

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Now Habersham

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January 4, 2023

Lola Mae Burnett, age 94, of Gainesville, entered rest Tuesday, January 10, 2023, at the Northeast Georgia Medical Center, Gainesville.

Lola Mae was born March 10, 1928, in Gainesville to the late Edgar Garland & Katie Gaddis Murphy. She retired from New Holland Mill as a weaver and was a member of Eastview Baptist Church. She was preceded in death by her husband, John William Burnett; son, James Burnett; daughters, Janice Gee & Angela Stevens; brothers, Ernest Murphy, Charlie Murphy, Lewis Murphy & Clarence Murphy; sister, Betty Canup.

Left to cherish precious memories, daughters, Gail Millwood, Joyce Sosebee, Hazel Ford, Kathy (Stark) Deaton & Lisa Ann Burnett; son, Wilburn Burnett; brothers, Robert Murphy & Grady Murphy; sister, Gladys Smith; a number of grandchildren, great-grandchildren, great-great-grandchildren, nieces, nephews & other relatives also survive.

Funeral services honoring Lola Mae will be held at 2:00 p.m. Friday, January 6, 2023, at the Ward’s Funeral Home Chapel, with Rev. Grady White officiating. She will be laid to rest by her husband at Memorial Park Cemetery. The family will receive friends from 5:00 p.m. until 7:00 p.m. Thursday at the funeral home.

You may sign the online guestbook or leave a condolence at www.wardsfh.com. Ward’s Funeral Home of Gainesville is honored to serve the family of Lola Mae Burnett.

State awards grants to boost internet access in rural Georgia

By

Joy Purcell

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January 4, 2023

Three Northeast Georgia counties are among 28 counties statewide that stand to benefit from grants aimed at expanding and improving their local internet service.

Spectrum Southeast in Banks County will receive nearly $7.5 million from Georgia’s Capital Projects Fund Grant Program. The company has also been awarded nearly $18.5 million to expand its broadband internet service in Madison County.

Comcast Cable Communications in Jackson County will receive $5.3 million.

In all, the state is investing over $234 million of federal COVID relief dollars to improve connectivity in some of the state’s least connected communities.

The grant awards will be combined with capital matches from the awardees, resulting in an overall investment of almost $455 million to improve high-speed internet access in over 76,000 locations.

“High-speed internet access is critical for both academic and economic opportunities, as well as the overall quality of life. These projects announced today will go a long way to helping Georgians in some of the most unserved and underserved parts of the state become better connected,” Gov. Brian Kemp said when releasing the list of grant recipients on January 4.

Georgia counties and the amounts to be awarded to them to boost internet access. (Source: Office of the Governor)

Last year, the state awarded $408 million in grants from the Capital Projects Fund Grant Program. The fund was created in 2022 utilizing money from the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) of 2021. Approved by congressional Democrats and signed into law by President Joe Biden, ARPA provided $350 billion in additional funding for state and local governments to help them recover from the pandemic. Georgia received $4.9 billion of that.

The Governor’s Office of Planning & Budget and the Georgia Technology Authority worked together to identify the most unserved and underserved counties in the state and establish a competitive grant program.

At present, nearly $650 million in grants have been awarded to assist with projects intended to serve roughly 200,000 of the remaining 455,000 unserved locations in the Georgia.

Grant recipients include a mix of internet service providers including EMCs, large telecommunications companies, and local Georgia-based companies.

James Matthew “Matt” Foster

By

Now Habersham

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January 4, 2023

James Matthew “Matt” Foster, age 25, of Tiger, GA, passed away on Sunday, January 1, 2023.

Matt was born on August 10, 1997, in Macon County to Gary Hopkins and Wendy Foster. Matt enjoyed being outside, whether he was fishing or working construction. He was passionate about cars and enjoyed working on them as well as racing them.

He is survived by his parents, Gary Hopkins of Tiger, GA and Wendy Foster of Yadkinville, NC; one brother, Dalton Hopkins his girlfriend, Haley Carpenter; grandparents, Marie Melrose, Lucile Hopkins, and Mitch and Avis Foster; three uncles, Danny Hopkins, Patrick Foster, and Sterling Foster; two aunts, Joan Hollifield and Linda Brown; and several cousins also survive.

A memorial service will be held on Saturday, January 7th, 2023, at 3:00 pm in the Chapel of Hunter Funeral Home with Tim Holcomb officiating.

The family will receive friends from 1:00 pm until the service hour on Saturday at Hunter Funeral Home in Clayton.

Georgia lawmakers plan to push for higher police pay, improved retirement benefits

By

Stanley Dunlap

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January 4, 2023

Georgia legislature committee recommends that incentives like tuition reimbursements and the establishment of a state-run public safety retirement plan could be options that help address police shortage. (Stanley Dunlap/Georgia Recorder)

(GA Recorder) — A quick survey of the salaries for police officers in rural southwest Georgia found that some officers started off earning $12.70 per hour, providing further insight into why so many local law enforcement agencies are struggling to recruit new personnel and keep experienced officers on staff.

In a fall meeting, a panel of state lawmakers, police chiefs, sheriffs, and state law enforcement officials discussed the pressing challenges facing their profession as Georgia ranks near the bottom of the nation in average law enforcement pay. The House Study Committee on State and Local Law Enforcement Salaries report could become the lynchpin for new legislation once lawmakers return next Monday after the committee signed off on recommendations granting local officers access to a statewide retirement plan, providing income tax breaks, and encouraging city and county leaders to adopt a minimum salary of $56,000 to match the national average.

By comparison, the average salary for rural southwest Georgia is about $35,000 per year.

In addition to a salary bump from local departments, the study committee recommends the University System of Georgia Board of Regents should consider creating a law enforcement bachelor’s degree and streamlining the transfer of credits earned at police academies.

It is up to city and county officials to determine how much money officers and other public safety officials make working in local jurisdictions. But the state can provide incentives like it did in 2021 with one-time $1,000 bonuses to nearly 81,000 police officers, firefighters, and other emergency responders and another bonus last year distributed from federal pandemic relief funds.

Committee Chairman Mike Cheokas, an Americus Republican, said that he’s hopeful the report will lead to more ideas about addressing salaries at the state and local levels.

“Our study committee wanted to look at issues and shine a line on what you guys face on a day to day basis and how we can create career opportunities for our young people and also have motivation to stay because it’s a grueling profession and dangerous profession” Cheokas said.

“We hoped that by getting this started, the ball rolling, shining some light on it, that the conversation will continue,” Cheokas said.

Brett Murray, who directs Southwest Georgia Technical College’s Law Enforcement Academy, said that the police force shortages are especially challenging for administrators in rural communities that lack the same resources as state agencies or in larger metropolitan areas that can often offer more money and better benefits.

Although state lawmakers can’t directly influence the salaries paid in places like Jackson and Americus, other methods exist to help recruit and retain officers, including bonuses, funding professional development, and allowing public safety employees to be covered by the same retirement benefits plan that would allow them to get hired by another agency without being penalized.

“There are places in south Georgia where the bean plant pays more than a police officer,” Murray said at a September committee meeting held in Americus.

“We need applicants in Lumpkin, Georgia, in Webster County, Georgia,” Murray said. “We are losing the five-to-15-year officers fast. Those are the bread and butter, they’re the experienced officers who protect our communities, and they’re next line of supervisors and managers.”

Deputies and officers who patrol the streets, work inside detention centers and perform other duties are also in short supply in Georgia’s larger cities as violent crime rates have spiked. With 23% vacancies in the Chatham County Police Department last year, some investigations slowed down, while the Atlanta Police Department launched a campaign to hire 250 officers.

And as the Cobb County Police Department struggles to fill about 100 jobs, it was among the suburban agencies that offered better wages and benefits rather than solely recruiting at job fairs and posting more ads.

Fulton County Sheriff Patrick Labat suggested at a committee meeting last month that Georgia consider emulating states like Florida, where employees are able to earn interest on their monthly retirement benefits and have the option of receiving a lump sum payment or rolling over into another plan.

Adding local law enforcement employees to a statewide retirement plan would take two years and require an actuarial study before legislation could be passed. Other law enforcement-focused legislation could become law in the upcoming session after moving through the public safety committee and both chambers.

Heavy rain floods streets in Cleveland

By

Dean Dyer

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January 4, 2023

Heavy rain and thunderstorms Wednesday morning kept emergency officials in White County busy. At least two homeowners reported lightning strikes and excessive rainfall in downtown Cleveland flooded some streets.

Flooding made the roads nearly impassable for drivers on South Main Street between Knights Inn and Burger King and on Quillian Street, behind Burger King. Firefighters and police blocked the road until the flood waters receded.

More rain is expected throughout Wednesday morning and motorists are urged to drive cautiously and watch out for flooded areas and debris in the roadway.

Rainfall should ease up during the afternoon hours, but more flooding is possible with the runoff of the heavy rain.

U.S. Senate opens a new session with a record set by McConnell

By

Ariana Figueroa

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January 3, 2023

Newly-Elected Senators Attend Ceremonial Swearing-In Event At U.S. Capitol — WASHINGTON, DC - JANUARY 03: U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris swears in Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY) and his wife Iris Weinshall in the old senate chamber for the Ceremonial Swearing on January 03, 2023 in Washington, DC. Today members of the 118th Congress will be sworn in and the House of Representatives will hold votes on a new Speaker of the House. (Photo by Tasos Katopodis/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON (GA Recorder) — U.S. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer welcomed reelected and newly elected senators Tuesday afternoon to a new session of Congress, highlighting the bipartisan success of the previous two years and outlining his optimism for a continued approach.

“There’s no reason why the success of the last two years needs to end today,” Schumer, a New York Democrat, said on the Senate floor.

The beginning of a new Congress also marked a milestone for Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, 80, a Kentucky Republican who now is the chamber’s longest-serving party leader ever.

Schumer, who became the longest-serving senator from New York, said he hopes lawmakers can come together.

The chamber has “a lot of work ahead of us,” Schumer said, but he did not go into detail on legislative priorities for Senate Democrats, who will have a slim majority of 51 members, including a trio of independents, and must contend with a GOP-controlled House.

“I hope we can find some ways to come together and not succumb to gridlock,” Schumer said.

He also noted several important historical moments, including the unanimous adoption of a resolution to name U.S. Democratic Sen. Patty Murray of Washington state as president pro tempore of the U.S. Senate. Murray is the first woman to hold the position.

In that role, Murray will be authorized to preside over the chamber in the absence of Vice President Kamala Harris and sign legislation, among other responsibilities. This also makes Murray third in line for the presidency.

McConnell praises Mansfield

Schumer congratulated McConnell on his accomplishment as longest-serving party leader, beginning in the 110th Congress.

“The greatest honor of my career is representing the Commonwealth of Kentucky in this chamber and fighting for my fellow Kentuckians,” McConnell said on the Senate floor. “But the second-greatest honor is the trust that my fellow Republican senators have placed in me to lead our diverse conference and help them achieve their goals.”

McConnell reflected on the leaders who came before him, particularly the late U.S. Democratic Sen. Mike Mansfield of Montana, who until Tuesday held the record for longest-serving party leader, for 16 years from 1961 to 1977.

McConnell said what he admired most from Mansfield’s leadership style was how he treated the Senate and protected the institution.

“He seems to have felt the most valuable end was the institution of the Senate itself,” he said. “Its processes and debates, its traditions and structures, and all 100 of its members.”

McConnell said during Mansfield’s time in the Senate, proceedings became more “orderly and less theatrical.”

“Crucial work migrated out of hallway confrontations and hideaway handshakes and into hearing rooms and committee offices,” he said. “The Senate was less defined by top-down dramatics than by bills and priorities percolating upward. A diligent, low-key leadership style from a serious, diligent, low-key person.”

Thune cites confirmations

During a Tuesday press call with reporters, Sen. John Thune of South Dakota, the Republican whip, said one of the ways McConnell has exerted the most influence is through confirmations for the federal judiciary.

McConnell guided 226 judicial nominations through the Senate under the Trump administration, and “the number of judges that we were able to process, the impact on the Supreme Court, has an intergenerational impact,” Thune said.

Thune said that McConnell “is somebody who plays a long game.”

McConnell has had immense influence on nominations to the U.S. Supreme Court.

While he was the majority leader, three of former President Donald Trump’s nominees were confirmed — securing a 6-3 conservative majority on the court. McConnell blocked former President Barack Obama’s nomination of Merrick Garland, who now serves as attorney general.

McConnell also moved to change the filibuster for Supreme Court nominees, lowering the 60-vote threshold to a simple majority in 2017.

Schumer has been able to confirm 97 judicial nominees during the Biden administration, including the first Black Supreme Court justice, Ketanji Brown Jackson.

A quicker turnaround for judicial nominations is expected in the 118th Congress because Senate Democrats hold a narrow 51-seat majority, and confirmations remain a priority for Schumer.

Among those notable senators sworn in on Tuesday were Democrats John Fetterman of Pennsylvania, who flipped a GOP-controlled seat, and Raphael Warnock of Georgia, who won a runoff election in a closely contested race.

During floor proceedings, Harris swore in 34 senators. Those senators signed an oath to uphold and defend the Constitution, a tradition established after the Civil War.

While Democrats will keep control of the Senate, one of their members, U.S. Sen. Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona, announced in early December that she would leave the Democratic Party and become an independent.

There are currently two independent senators who caucus with Democrats, Bernie Sanders of Vermont and Angus King of Maine.

Looking ahead

In 2024, Senate Republicans will have an opportunity to flip control of the chamber, as 23 Senate seats for Democrats are up for reelection, compared to only 10 seats for Republicans.

McConnell lost his position as Senate majority leader in 2021 after Democrats picked up two Republican-controlled seats in Georgia during a historic runoff election in early 2021, bringing Senate control to 50-50, with Harris as a tiebreaker.

McConnell easily fended off a challenge last year for his leadership post from U.S. Republican Sen. Rick Scott of Florida. McConnell prevailed in a 37-10 vote, with one senator voting present.

McConnell was first elected to the Senate in 1984 and has four years left of his current term. Democrats have tried to unseat him multiple times. During the last election in 2020, more than $90 million was poured into the campaign of his Democratic challenger, Amy McGrath, according to Open Secrets. He won by more than 57% of the vote.

Prior to serving as GOP leader, he led the National Republican Senatorial Committee — the campaign arm for Senate Republicans — from 1997 to 2001, voted to impeach former President Bill Clinton and twice voted against impeaching Trump.

On Wednesday, McConnell and President Joe Biden are scheduled to travel to Covington, Kentucky, where Biden will deliver remarks on how his economic plans are helping rebuild state infrastructure, such as $1.6 billion in federal funding for the Brent Spence Bridge Corridor project that connects Northern Kentucky and Cincinnati, according to the Northern Kentucky Tribune.

The Senate adjourned later Tuesday and is not set to return to Washington until Jan. 23.

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Seth Tupper contributed to this report.

Driver killed in wreck trying to elude Habersham County deputy, GSP says

By

Joy Purcell

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January 3, 2023

J Warren Road wreck after chase — A driver fleeing from a Habersham County deputy wrecked on J Warren Road around 12:17 a.m. on Jan, 3, 2023. He later died at the hospital. (photo by Red Bird Media)

A 34-year Gainesville driver was fatally injured early Tuesday when he wrecked while being pursued by a Habersham County deputy. William Timothy Myers crashed on J Warren Road shortly after midnight on January 3, the Georgia State Patrol says.

Myers fled north on J Warren Road in a Toyota Camry while being chased by a marked Habersham County sheriff’s patrol car with its emergency lights activated. The fleeing driver lost control in a curve near Jack Edwards Road and ran off the west shoulder of the road. The Camry ran up an embankment and struck several trees before crashing head-on into a tree and overturning into a ditch.

Officials say Myers was unconscious and unresponsive when Habersham County Emergency Services and Cornelia Fire Department personnel pulled him from the wreckage. First responders began CPR at the scene. Habersham EMS transported Myers to Northeast Georgia Medical Center in Gainesville, where he died from his injuries.

Attempted traffic stop

Contacted by Now Habersham Tuesday morning, Sheriff Joey Terrell refused to comment about the chase and deadly crash. The sheriff’s office did release the incident report Tuesday afternoon.

In that report, the sheriff’s office says the pursuit began at the BP Station at 3834 State Highway 365 in Alto. Habersham County deputy Joey Chapman reportedly observed the car pull out of the gas station and cross both northbound travel lanes. The car then reportedly crossed the solid white line dividing the turn lane and came to a stop.

“The vehicle then made a U-turn on Highway 365 to go South Bound [sic],” the report states. “The vehicles [sic] passenger front headlamp was not operational at the time.”

Chapman caught up to the vehicle and attempted a traffic stop. The sheriff’s office says the driver, later identified as Myers, refused to stop. He allegedly led deputies on a high-speed chase, at times reaching speeds of over 100 mph through the south end of the county before traveling north on J Warren Road where he crashed.

“While EMS was rendering aid on Myers, a small baggy of suspected methamphetamine was located on his person,” the incident report states. Deputy Chapman took the suspected drugs into evidence and will submit them to the GBI for testing, the sheriff’s office says.

GSP’s Specialized Collision Reconstruction Team was notified of the crash but did not respond since no other vehicles were involved, says Georgia State Patrol Post 7 Commander Donnie Sadler. Troopers from Toccoa handled the investigation.

Both the sheriff’s office and GSP reports indicated Myers was the only occupant in the vehicle at the time of the crash.

Second chase in three days

This is the second police chase in Habersham County this year. The first occurred New Year’s night when Baldwin police say the driver of a Dodge Charger refused to pull over for a traffic stop. Police pursued the Charger through Demorest and Clarkesville before losing sight of the vehicle on Highway 17 and calling off the chase.

Law enforcement later located the vehicle parked outside a Clarkesville residence and had it towed. Officers were able to identify the suspect the next day and arrest him.

Conservatives in U.S. House tank McCarthy bid to be speaker on multiple ballots

By

Jennifer Shutt and Ashley Murray

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January 3, 2023

Speaker Nancy Pelosi Holds Weekly Press Conference — House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON (GA Recorder) — Republican control of the U.S. House got off to a rocky start Tuesday when the party was unable to decide who should become speaker amid a sharp disagreement within the party’s more conservative faction.

California Rep. Kevin McCarthy didn’t clinch the backing of the 218 lawmakers he needed to become the head of the chamber during the first three rounds of ballots, marking the first time in a century the speaker’s election went to multiple ballots.

After the unsuccessful first day, where opposition to McCarthy increased as the day went on, House Republicans moved to adjourn until noon Wednesday.

The move gives McCarthy more time to negotiate with the 20 GOP lawmakers who oppose his bid for speaker, possibly changing the tally before voting resumes.

McCarthy received 203 votes to Democratic nominee Hakeem Jeffries’ 212 votes on the first ballot, with the remaining support going to other GOP lawmakers.

McCarthy said after that vote that GOP leaders want to pass legislation addressing the border and the economy, but can’t do that until the party elects a speaker.

“We’ve certain members right now that think they can use a small majority to try to get themselves the gavel,” he said. “That’s not how it works.”

Reps. Andy Biggs of Arizona, Dan Bishop of North Carolina, Andrew Clyde of Georgia, Eli Crane of Arizona, Matt Gaetz of Florida, Bob Good of Virginia, Paul Gosar of Arizona, Ralph Norman of South Carolina, Scott Perry of Pennsylvania and Matt Rosendale of Montana were among the Republican members to vote against McCarthy on the first ballot. All of those GOP lawmakers voted for Biggs after Gosar nominated him.

Other GOP votes went to Ohio Rep. Jim Jordan, Indiana Rep. Jim Banks, New York Rep. Lee Zeldin and Florida Rep. Byron Donalds. Banks, Zeldin and Donalds were not formally nominated for speaker during the first round of voting.

The 19 Republican lawmakers who opposed McCarthy on the first ballot also voted against him during the second ballot, though all moved to voting for Jordan, who has said he doesn’t want the role and nominated McCarthy ahead of the second ballot.

During the third ballot, Florida’s Donalds joined the McCarthy opposition, writing in a tweet that the House should adjourn so Republicans can “huddle and find someone or work out the next steps.”

“When the dust settles, we will have a Republican Speaker, now is the time for our conference to debate and come to a consensus,” Donalds wrote. “This will take time, Democracy is messy at times, but we will be ready to govern on behalf of the American people. Debate is healthy.”

Good called for McCarthy to step aside following the first ballot, saying he expects Jordan to pick up ballots.

“The sooner he pulls out — for the good of the country, for the good of the Congress, for the good of the conference – the better everyone is and that way we can move together to try to find who the best person is that can reach 218,” Good said.

Four-vote margin

House Republicans have an especially slim majority, with just a four-vote margin to pass bills across the floor or elect a speaker.

The impact of the razor-thin majority and divisions within the Republican Party about policy goals and its future were on full display Tuesday, with conservative members split over whether McCarthy should lead the party during the next two years or if another lawmaker was better suited to take the helm.

Gaetz said ahead of the first speaker vote that the group of conservative GOP lawmakers wants a commitment from McCarthy for balanced budgets, a Texas border plan, term limits and individual votes on earmarks.

Gaetz also said that incoming House Armed Services Committee Chair Mike Rogers, an Alabama Republican, told Gaetz he would be kicked off the committee if he didn’t back McCarthy for speaker.

Boebert told reporters the group presented a plan to McCarthy on Monday evening that could have gotten him the votes needed to become speaker on the first ballot, but he rejected the offer.

“I have been working every day to unify the Republican Party for the American people,” Boebert said before the vote. “And yesterday, we had a deal that was not a selfish deal in any way for Kevin McCarthy to get him the gavel on the first ballot, and he eagerly dismissed us.”

Boebert said one of the policy changes that is especially important to her is a single-member motion to vacate, which would allow any member of the House, not just a member of leadership, to call for a vote on the speaker.

“We were just told when we left this door, ‘We will give you single-member motion to vacate,’” Boebert said following the closed-door GOP meeting ahead of the floor vote.

Perry said the Tuesday morning meeting was “about a beat-down and a simulated unity in the room which really doesn’t exist.”

Perry also said anti-McCarthy Republicans are being “threatened with being kicked off your committees if you don’t vote as you’re ordered to.”

“We took an offer to him last night of things that are completely and wholly within his purview,” Perry said. “If he wants to accept the offer, we’re happy to join the discussion.”

D.C. ‘status quo’ criticized

Bishop of North Carolina wrote in a statement ahead of the vote that McCarthy is not the right candidate to be speaker.

“He has perpetuated the Washington status quo that makes this body one of the most unsuccessful and unpopular institutions in the country,” Bishop said. “This is not about personality differences or who has ‘earned’ the position. It’s about the American people.”

The last speaker’s election to go for more than one ballot was in 1923, when Frederick Huntington Gillett, a Massachusetts Republican, didn’t secure the gavel until the ninth ballot, according to the U.S. House Office of the Historian.

Of the 14 speaker elections that have gone to multiple ballots, the 34th Congress, which began in 1855, held the most votes, reaching 133 before electing Nathaniel Prentice Banks to the role.

The U.S. House can’t begin any of its work for the 118th session of Congress until it elects a speaker, putting GOP plans for legislation on hold for the moment.

House Majority Leader Steve Scalise, a Louisiana Republican, said the House GOP will bring “meaningful, ready-to-go” legislation in the House during the first few weeks of the 118th Congress as committees “organize and start moving legislation through regular order.”

Habersham County schools to operate on 2-hour delay Wednesday

By

Joy Purcell

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January 3, 2023

Habersham Central High School — (NowHabersham.com)

Due to the threat of severe weather, public schools in Habersham County will operate on a 2-hour delay on Wednesday, January 4, 2023.

The morning forecast calls for possible dense fog mixed with heavy rain and thunderstorms. Habersham County School Superintendent Matthew Cooper says administrators decided to delay classes after consulting with a meteorologist.

“We cannot recall a time when we have had dense fog mixed with heavy rain and storms. Our concern is for our school buses being able to navigate safely in the morning,” says Cooper. He adds the delay “will allow school buses and student drivers to deal with these unusual conditions in the daylight. Without a delay, our buses would have to deal with both the fog and storms in darkness.”

Wednesday marks students’ return to class after a two-week holiday break. Teachers reported back to work on Monday, January 2.