Upcoming elections in Georgia will test Donald Trump’s power
| 'Stacey, would you like to take his place?'  Stacey Abrams on October 17, 2021, in Norfolk, Virginia.  It's as clear as moonlight through the pines that a world often horrified by America's extreme political gyrations will spend 2022 fixated on Georgia. Upcoming elections in the Peach State will test former President Donald Trump's power as he works to stack Georgia's electoral system ahead of his own potential presidential run. They will also offer a crucial marker of President Joe Biden's viability for a second run, after the state voted for a Democratic President for the first time since Bill Clinton in 2020.
Expect a volcanic clash between Republican-backed laws that make it harder for Black Americans to vote and Democratic rising star Stacey Abrams, who just announced another bid to be the state's first African American governor. A year ago, Georgia was the epicenter of Trump's effort to hijack the 2020 election, when he infamously demanded that officials "find" a few more votes to overturn Biden's win. Now his handpicked candidate and big lie-adherent David Perdue is challenging sitting GOP Governor Brian Kemp, who pushed back on Trump's anti-democratic claims.
In another Georgia race, Trump has already muscled his favored candidate, former college football star Hershel Walker, into the battle for the Republican nomination to take on Democratic Sen. Raphael Warnock. And Trump loyalist Rep. Jody Hice is running for secretary of state – a role that oversees elections. The ex-President, by the way, is still the subject of a criminal probe into his pressure on Georgia's election officials.
The stakes here are huge. Trump's meddling in Georgia politics could trigger a backlash that Abrams is well-positioned to exploit. But if his picks win, he will have demonstrated his utter dominance of the Republican Party – and more ominously, he will have put in place acolytes who will run the next presidential election in this crucial state.  'Stacey, would you like to take his place?' Abrams, a voting rights advocate, tweeted her intention to run last week, saying it's "because opportunity in our state shouldn't be determined by zip code, background or access to power." The world and America Saudi authorities say a man detained in Paris had "nothing to do" with the killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi.
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Hello, Mr. President  Biden and Russian President Vladimir Putin met virtually on Tuesday in a much-anticipated summit as Russian forces muster near the Ukrainian border. According to readouts from both governments, the leaders largely focused on US concerns about potential military escalation in the region and Russian concerns about Ukraine's potential membership in NATO, among other topics.
"We believed from the beginning of the administration that there's no substitute for direct dialogue between leaders, and that is true in spades when it comes to the US-Russia relationship," national security adviser Jake Sullivan told press after the meeting.
"We still do not believe that President Putin has made a decision" on whether to invade Ukraine, he also said. "What President Biden did was lay out clearly the consequence if he chooses to move." 'US politicians need not flatter themselves' Chinese government officials responded with heat after the US announced a diplomatic boycott of the Beijing Winter Olympic Games, saying American politicians hadn't been invited anyway. "No invitation has been extended to US politicians whatsoever, so this 'diplomatic boycott' simply comes out of nowhere. Such a pretentious act is only a political manipulation and a grave distortion of the spirit of the Olympic Charter," Chinese Embassy spokesperson Liu Pengyu told CNN on Tuesday.
China's Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Hua Chunying also tweeted, "The Beijing Winter Olympic Games is a party 'by invitation only'. Some US politicians need not flatter themselves by 'weaponizing' their attendance. One can't decline an invitation without first receiving one." Thanks for reading.
On Wednesday, it's finally farewell to Angela Merkel, with Germany's parliament expected to approve Olaf Scholz as chancellor. Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis visits Russia. Cryptocurrency CEOs testify before the US House of Representatives Financial Services Committee. And closing arguments begin in the hate crime hoax trial of American actor Jussie Smollett. View in browser | All CNN Newsletters
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