A.M. ATL: How’s it going for Ga.?

Morning, y’all! It’s good to be back, and sorry to the handful of disappointed readers who thought our man Tyler Estep was back in the A.M. ATL BarcaLounger for good. Nope! You’re still stuck with me. We’re also still stuck with this cold: All of Georgia is under a freeze watch through Friday. Let’s get to it.

HOW IS GEORGIA DOING A MONTH IN?

Credit: Arvin Temkar/AJC

Credit: Arvin Temkar/AJC

I try not to lead with political news because it’s stressful and it inevitably makes people mad no matter what they believe. But! It’s also important, and I love a good recap like the one politics reporter Greg Bluestein and his colleagues put together on how President Donald Trump’s first month in office has affected Georgia.

Long story short, Trump’s fast-and-furious approach has touched virtually every corner of the state’s industry and government:

🚢 Economy and trade: A simmering tariff war could hit Georgia hard, especially since our presence on the international trade scene is growing and Trump’s targets happen to be some of Georgia’s biggest trading partners. Tariff proponents say it could clear some competition away for domestic production.

🧬 Science and health care: Cuts at the Centers for Disease Control and the National Institutes of Health have brought chaos to the state’s scientific communities.

When it comes to health care, Republicans have indicated they may be interested in making cuts to Medicaid in order to slash from the federal budget. That’s being echoed here, where Gov. Brian Kemp has proposed his own limited expansions to the program.

🤝 Social issues: Two of Trump’s biggest items on his social agenda have ripples in Georgia: The Laken Riley Act, named after an Augusta University student murdered in 2024, gives more power to local law enforcement to arrest immigrants.

Trump also signed an executive order banning trans girls and women from certain organized sports. Georgia Republicans are trying to pass a similar law at the state level.

🔎 There’s a lot more, so take a look at where the state stands on energy, funding and more here.

Trivia answer: It was Mexico. Georgia’s trade partnership with Mexico was worth $25B last year, according to a newly-released trade report. China was second, and South Korea rounded out the top three.

Not signed up yet? What’re you waiting for? Get A.M. ATL in your inbox each weekday morning. And keep scrolling for more news.

PROTECTING THE GULLAH GEECHEE

Credit: David Goldman/AP

Credit: David Goldman/AP

The fight to preserve a historic community along Georgia’s coast is heading for the Georgia Supreme Court this April, and it has to do with a precious, yet dwindling part of the South’s cultural heritage.

Let’s set the scene:

Sapelo Island is one of Georgia’s 14 barrier islands, located about an hour south of Savannah. It is home to Hog Hammock, a Gullah Geechee community.

The Gullah Geechee are a cultural group descended from West and Central Africans enslaved along the coast of the Carolinas, Georgia and Florida in the 1800s. Gullah Geechee culture and heritage is an important part of our living history, and many Gullah Geechee people still call places along the coastal south — like Hog Hammock — their home.

What’s at stake?

Last September, local elected officials decided to alter Sapelo’s zoning law, allowing larger houses to be built. Locals worry that this would turn the historically rich island into another tourist destination, and encroach on the Gullah Geechee community and efforts to preserve its ways. A November injunction halted the zoning law changes until the Georgia Supreme Court hears the case.

(MORE) MUST-KNOW POLITICS AND BUSINESS

👩🏼‍⚖️ The Senate confirmed former Georgia U.S. Sen. Kelly Loeffler to head the Small Business Administration. Loeffler has a close relationship with Trump, which led Democrats to criticize her nomination.

🧐 Was Atlanta’s first inspector general, Shannon Manigault, “too good at her job?” The AJC’s Bill Torpy takes a look at Manigault’s departure. The frustrated investigator said her office was subject to “threats, bullying, intimidation and harassment at the hands of people who have been the subjects of our investigations.”

🗳️ Republican state legislators want to pull Georgia out of ERIC, a voter list accuracy organization. Proponents say they can do a better job dealing with voter fraud on their own than as part of the multi-state partnership. Critics say they can’t.

🔋 Duracell’s opening a new global research and development headquarters in Georgia Tech’s Science Square. How big of a win is that? How about a $56 million investment and 110 employees big?

THE SEARCH CONTINUES ON OCONEE

Credit: WSB; Family photo

Credit: WSB; Family photo

Rain has continued to stymie recovery efforts on Lake Oconee, where authorities are still searching for missing track and field instructor Gary Jones. Today marks the 13th day of the search after a boat Jones and his fiancée Joycelyn Wilson were aboard was found abandoned on Oconee’s waters on Feb. 9. Wilson’s body was found not long after.

Here’s the latest:

Meanwhile, family and friends will gather today to honor Joy Wilson, a respected math instructor at Spelman College, in a private ceremony. The Joycelyn Wilson Memorial Scholarship has been established in her honor at Clark Atlanta.

NEWS BITES

Grocery costs have risen 25% since 2019

I am freshly flabbergasted at the Publix checkout every single time.

Atlanta United season preview: Meet the players

Some are tall, some are small. Some are coiffed and some are bald. Some are from the Ivory Coast, some are from Senegal.

Beware of black ice this AM after overnight lows

Black ice sounds like a rejected scent of Axe body spray, and is even more important to avoid.

Make Kinship Butcher’s crowd-favorite chicken liver pate

Something about putting meat in a blender I can’t abide, even if the result is good. If you make this one let me know.

Correction: A quote in yesterday’s item about airline safety was misattributed. It was actually Capt. Ross Aimer, a retired United Airlines pilot and CEO of Aero Consulting Exports, who said this: “Aircraft manufacturers are held to very, very high standards, and this is the reason: that we see people actually walking away from a horrific crash like this.”

ON THIS DATE

FEB. 20, 1961

Credit: AJC

Credit: AJC

From the front page of the Atlanta Constitution: Cars, Sign Damaged by Falling Wall. This 15-foot high brick wall on the lot of the Stanley-Masters Motor Co … collapsed early Sunday, damaging four cars and a half-ton pickup truck.

Though it’s a completely different circumstance, the picture reminds me of one of the treasures of Griffin, Georgia. This sign was installed after tall trucks kept hitting a local bridge: IF YOU HIT THIS SIGN YOU WILL HIT THAT BRIDGE.

Credit: AJ Willingham

Credit: AJ Willingham

Now it’s proudly displayed inside Southern Pit Bar-B-Que, which makes great crackling cornbread.

Can’t get much clearer than that.

ONE MORE THING

Hey, I’m on BlueSky if you want to be friends over there! I haven’t even posted anything yet because I’m nervous. So come say hi and make me less nervous.

Thanks for reading to the very bottom of A.M. ATL. Questions, comments, ideas? Contact me at amatl@ajc.com.

Until next time.