Georgia
Biden administration, Georgia officials applaud debut of Plant Vogtle expansion • Georgia Recorder
Officials with the U.S. Energy Department plan to celebrate the completion of Georgia Power’s controversial nuclear power expansion at Plant Vogtle in Waynesboro on Friday.
President Joe Biden’s National Climate Advisor Ali Zaidi and Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm are set to tour Plant Vogtle, which has become the nation’s largest nuclear power plant and the largest source of carbon-free electricity. In the next 60 to 80 years, the two new nuclear units are estimated to generate enough electricity for one million homes and businesses.
The historic occasion is also being celebrated by representatives from Georgia Power, Georgia Public Service Commission, top state lawmakers and a number of other business and community leaders who say the project is a shining example of how nuclear energy can create well-paying, high quality jobs while also producing electricity in a way that tackles the climate crisis.
The two Vogtle units are the first nuclear reactors to be built in the United States in more than 30 years and the project’s supporters say Vogtle demonstrates how nuclear energy can generate high-paying jobs while producing electricity in a way that combats climate change.
Six Georgia energy and consumer groups released a report Thursday analyzing the true cost of nuclear power, citing the severe problems while constructing Vogtle that resulted in seven years of delays and $21 billion of cost-overruns.
The two Vogtle units were under construction for 15 years at a cost of $36.8 billion. Unit 3 was completed in August while Unit 4 began producing electricity in April.
Vogtle could serve as the selling point for further nuclear development in the United States, with the Biden-Harris administration hosting a summit at the White House this week to highlight the ongoing collaboration between the public and private sectors.
The Biden-Harris administration announced Wednesday the formation of a nuclear power project working group composed of experts in nuclear power and mega-construction.
The White House released a statement this week that says that nuclear energy has been the largest source of clean energy for decades, currently accounting for 19% of national energy production and directly employing 60,000 workers.
“Alongside renewable power sources like wind and solar, a new generation of nuclear reactors is now capturing the attention of a wide range of stakeholders for nuclear energy’s ability to produce clean, reliable energy and meet the needs of a fast-growing economy, driven by President Biden’s Investing in America agenda and manufacturing boom,” the White House statement said.
However, a report released by Georgia consumer advocates contends that more nuclear development is not the best course of action for the future of the nation’s energy supply.
The report titled Plant Vogtle: the True Cost of Nuclear Power in the United States, was commissioned by Georgia consumer advocacy organizations like the Center for a Sustainable Coast, Concerned Ratepayers of Georgia and Cool Planet Solutions. It was authored by Kim Scott, executive director of Georgia WAND, Glenn Carroll, coordinator of Nuclear Watch South and Patty Durand, former president of the Smart Energy Consumer Collaborative and a Democratic Party candidate for the state PSC.
The average Georgia Power residential customer began paying an additional $5.42 per month, or a 3.2% increase, after Unit 3 began commercial operations last August.
The two Vogtle units prompted the latest in a series of rate increases Georgia Power customers will continue to bear in the coming months.
According to the report, the average monthly bill for Georgia ratepayers will increase by $35 over the next two decades as Vogtle’s Units 3 and 4 are operational, or more than twice the $15 increase Georgia Power currently estimates.
The report contends that Georgia Power’s average household bill will rise by $420 annually in order to cover the cost of nuclear power that is seven times as expensive to produce as wind, solar and natural gas.
The analysis says that shareholders of Georgia Power’s parent company Southern Co. will continue to benefit from Vogtle’s financial windfall as the utility significantly expands its base rate.
The report’s authors blame Georgia Power officials for a decade-long pattern of providing misleading costs estimates to state regulators in order to continue justifying the Vogtle expansion. The construction of Vogtle was plagued by delays due to worker shortages, a strike, technical problems and its original contractor Westinghouse Electric Co. filing bankruptcy in 2017.
Brionté McCorkle, report co-author and executive director of Georgia Conservation Voters, said that Plant Vogtle is a cautionary tale for the rest of the country and that Georgians deserve safe, clean and affordable energy instead of wasting money to bring Vogtle’s nuclear reactors online.
“Imagine all of the renewable power, battery storage and energy-efficiency investments we could have made in the time it took to build the two new reactors at Plant Vogtle at a fraction of the cost,” McCorkle said in a statement. “Imagine what we could have done with the $35 billion dollars instead of dumping them in this radioactive money-pit.”
Scott, the executive director of Georgia WAND, said that Georgia Power is more concerned with its own economic interests as Vogtle’s expansion is leaving its customers struck with paying exorbitantly high power bills.
“So it is clear that Georgia Power is looking out for its own economic interests and (is) not concerned about moving Georgia to a clean-energy economy, let alone protecting the health of Georgians who live in and around nuclear power Plant Vogtle,” Scott said.
Republicans Gov. Brian Kemp and House Speaker Jon Burns joined executives with Georgia Power and Vogtle co-owner’s Oglethorpe Power, Municipal Electric Authority of Georgia and Dalton Utilities to celebrate the Vogtle project earlier this week.
Georgia Power owns 45.7% of Plant Vogtle, followed by Oglethorpe Power Corporation at 30%, Municipal Electric Authority of Georgia’s 22.7%, and Dalton Utilities 1.6.%.
Kim Greene, chairman, president, and CEO of Georgia Power, said the new Vogtle units are a key component in supporting the company’s goal of meeting growing electricity demands in Georgia. A large share of that demand is driven by new data centers opening across the state.
“As we mark the completion of the Vogtle 3 and 4 expansion, we’re grateful for the leadership and foresight of the Georgia PSC, as well as the steadfast dedication from all of the project’s co-owners,” Greene said. “(Wednesday), we welcomed business and community leaders, as well as elected officials and other guests from across Georgia, to celebrate the first newly constructed nuclear units in the U.S. in more than 30 years – representing a long-term investment to benefit our customers and the state. It is truly a great day for Georgia.”
Originally, the five-member Georgia Public Service Commission approved a $4.4 billion construction budget for Vogtle, but in 2017 state regulators and Georgia Power agreed that $7.3 billion would be considered a reasonable cost.
In December, the Public Service Commission approved terms of a financial agreement requiring Georgia Power to cover at least $2.6 billion of the expected $10 billion in construction and capital costs. The terms were outlined in a stipulated agreement reached in August between Georgia Power, PSC advocacy staff, the Georgia Association of Manufacturers and consumer and watchdog advocacy organizations Georgia Watch and the Georgia Interfaith Power & Light and Partnership for Southern Equity.
As part of the settlement, Georgia Power agreed to about a 50% expansion of energy efficiency programs and also offered up to 96,000 additional low-income seniors to participate in a program that would reduce their monthly bills by an average of $33.50.
GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX
Welcome to the Daily Briefing. Here’s what’s breaking this morning:
Nicole Fallert here, wishing I were frolicking in this superbloom. Wednesday’s headlines begin with a Georgia special election and then we’ll talk about that Team USA World Baseball Classic loss.
Who will replace Marjorie Taylor Greene?
Trump-endorsed Republican Clay Fuller, a former prosecutor, came in second among a field of more than a dozen candidates in Georgia’s special election on Tuesday to replace Marjorie Taylor Greene, who resigned from the U.S. House of Representatives in January after months of clashing with the president.
Retired Brigadier General Shawn Harris, one of just three Democrats on the ballot, topped the votes after consolidating most of his party’s support. But neither candidate received the required threshold under Georgia law of more than 50% to win outright. That means the two are headed for an April 7 runoff election.
Mississippi also had a primary election on Tuesday. See the results.
And this all begs the question: Can Trump run both a war and a midterm campaign at the same time?
More news to know now
- Should we worry about Iran sleeper cells? Trump said the administration is “on top of” possible Iranian sleeper cells operating inside the U.S. — offering few details about their existence and level of potential threat.
- Don’t miss your flight! Americans are enduring long wait times as a partial federal government shutdown strains staffing at the Transportation Security Administration. Check these resources before waiting too long to leave for the airport.
- It’s been six years since the COVID-19 pandemic began. On March 11, 2020, the World Health Organization (WHO) declared COVID-19 a global pandemic. Here’s a look back at what happened since.
Dunk!
NBA history made
Miami Heat’s Bam Adebayo scored 83 points on Tuesday against the Washington Wizards. Yes, 83. That’s the second-most points scored in an NBA game, surpassing late Basketball Hall of Famer Kobe Bryant.
Something to talk about
Italy just upset USA baseball
Team USA suffered one of the most embarrassing losses in World Baseball Classic history, 8-6 to Italy in front of a stunned crowd at Daikin Park on Monday. Now, they must rely on Italy to beat Mexico on Wednesday night, or hope a tiebreaker works in their favor.
Before you go
Have feedback on the Daily Briefing? Shoot Nicole an email at NFallert@usatoday.com.
Georgia
With voting over, Georgia’s election to replace Marjorie Taylor Greene could be test of Trump’s influence
Polls have closed in the Georgia 14th Congressional District special election to elect who will replace Marjorie Taylor Greene in Congress.
The seat has been vacant since January, when Greene resigned following a monthslong public fight with President Trump over foreign policy issues and the release of documents involving the Jeffrey Epstein case. A week before she announced her plans to resign, Mr. Trump said he would support a primary challenge against her.
Twenty-two candidates filed to run for the seat, but the number dropped to 17 candidates — 12 Republicans, three Democrats, one Libertarian, and one independent — all of whom appeared on Tuesday’s ballot.
Among the top candidates are former District Attorney Clay Fuller, who was endorsed by Mr. Trump, former Republican state Sen. Colton Moore, and Democrat Shawn Harris, a retired Army brigadier general who lost to Greene in the 2024 race for the seat.
Harris has raised more than $4.3 million for the race, with about $290,000 in the bank.
Greene has declined to endorse anyone in the race.
Georgia voters enthusiastic to choose their representative
Voters in Rome, Georgia, said they expect to return and vote in what is likely to be a runoff election because of the number of candidates.
“Too many people that think they’re politicians — some I know personally that has no experience, that, you know, Washington would just swallow them up like it does most people,” one voter said.
“What I look for in a candidate is tell me your policies. That’s the problem that I have with both sides today,” another voter said. “They attack each other, they hate each other, and they don’t ever get around to telling you what their actual policies are.”
Despite voters saying they planned to return to the ballot box, Floyd County Republican Vice Chair David Guldenschuh said the complicated schedule had party heads worried.
“There’s real fatigue out there, and I sense and feel for them,” he said.
Still, Guldenschuh said he doesn’t feel like the crowded field would hurt the GOP’s chance to hold the seat that Greene once occupied.
“I think that, you know, we have an unusual situation here. We all appreciated and loved Marjorie. And when she and Trump had the falling out, we still supported both here in this district, even though they weren’t getting along very well. And still are, as I understand,” he said. So I do know that this district is very solid conservative, and from Floyd County north, it’s really conservative. So I don’t see a big change going on now.”
Vincent Mendes, the chair of the county’s Democratic Party, expected Harris to get to the runoff, but said it would take effort to flip the seat.
“We will have to work our butts off to make him win if he gets to a runoff, but that’s how we should treat every single election,” Mendes said.
A local race with national implications
CBS News Political Director Fin Gómez said this special election is about more than just one seat in Congress. It’s being watched by politicians across the state and around the nation as an early indicator of where the Republican Party and its voters stand right now.
Gómez said this race could offer one of the first real tests of Mr. Trump’s influence within the party, with the president throwing his support behind Fuller.
The results could show whether the Republican base is still fully aligned with him after his rift with Greene.
The key question, according to Gómez: Does the president still have the influence that he did back in 2024?
“I do think that if Clay Fuller does well, even if he doesn’t clear the threshold that’s needed to avoid a runoff, I think that bodes well for the president, because that means Republican voters are still adhering to what the president says, and it shows the influence that that the president still has on the Republican Party, including in northwest Georgia,” he told CBS News Atlanta.
If another candidate, such as Moore, pulls off a win, it could signal the Republican base isn’t always following the president’s lead.
“If Fuller does not when I think it would surprise a lot of the Trump faithful who really adhere to who he supports in these type of elections, but if, let’s say, if it doesn’t go Fuller’s way and Moore picks off this win, I think what you are seeing is that the base might be a little more unpredictable, similar to what we saw perhaps in 2010.”
Special election marks start of busy campaign stretch
With how crowded the field is, it is very likely that this will be only the first step to choosing Greene’s replacement. Georgia’s special election rules require a candidate to win a majority of votes. If that threshold is not met, the top two candidates will go on to the April 7 runoff.
Whoever eventually wins the seat will serve out the rest of Greene’s term — a relatively short time in office. If they want to remain in the seat, they’ll have to run again in the May 19 party primaries. That race could possibly go to a party runoff, which would take place on June 16. The winners of the primaries will advance to the general election in November.
Last week, 10 Republicans, including Fuller and Moore, qualified to run in November’s election for a full two-year term. Harris also qualified, the sole Democrat who did in what has been rated as the most Republican-leaning district in Georgia by the Cook Political Report.
Mr. Trump carried the 14th Congressional District with 68% of the vote in the 2024 election, with Greene receiving over 64%. Republicans want that rightward trend to continue in the district. Democrats are hoping that the potential GOP infighting and crowded field could help them secure a surprise electoral win, shrinking the already-narrow margins in the U.S. House of Representatives.
Republicans currently control 218 House seats to the Democrats’ 214.
People cheer for President Trump en route to his speaking engagement at the Coosa Steel Corporation on Feb. 19 in Rome, Ga. Trump delivered remarks on the economy and affordability as the state started voting to replace the seat vacated by former Republican Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene.
Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images
hide caption
toggle caption
Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images
Stay up to date with our Politics newsletter, sent weekly.
ATLANTA — Voters in Northwest Georgia are choosing who should replace former Republican Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene. Voting closes in the district’s special election on Tuesday night.
The election will test the weight of President Trump’s endorsement of one of the candidates in a crowded race. Some voters say the president’s choice is not who they think would best support the conservative MAGA movement championed by both Trump and Greene.
Greene resigned at the beginning of this year, leaving Georgia’s 14th Congressional District without representation in Congress — and slimming the GOP’s majority in the House — following a bitter split with Trump.
Greene rose to prominence over five years in office as a strong ally of Trump, bombastically attacking critics and pushing the MAGA movement’s “America First” policy. Yet the two had a very public clash after she pushed for the release of documents related to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. Greene has also been sharply critical of Trump’s actions abroad, saying he has strayed from his promises to focus domestically.
With Trump now in the second year of his second term, other high-profile spats with key parts of his MAGA coalition have erupted over his administration’s handling of other issues, including sweeping tariffs, immigration policy and more. More recently, rifts have emerged over the war with Iran.
Some, like Greene, argue that though Trump helped create the “America First” worldview, he is not the sole arbiter of what it looks like.
Most of the GOP candidates in the special election have said they want to focus on Trump’s priorities and the concerns of their district, rather than become headlines themselves — an approach they say Greene embraced in her public disputes with Democrats and even with members of her own party.
“The difference between Marjorie and I is I will not use the press to become a celebrity,” Republican Star Black said during a candidate forum on Feb. 16. “I will use the press to actually show what I have done — the accomplishments,”
Trump has endorsed Clay Fuller, a district attorney in northwest Georgia for the state’s Lookout Mountain Judicial Circuit. He emphasized his support last month during a visit to Rome, part of the state’s 14th District, where he held a rally to tout his administration’s economic policy.
Fuller called himself a “MAGA warrior” at the event.
Republican congressional candidate Clay Fuller (left) shakes hands with President Trump as he arrives on Air Force One at Russell Regional Airport on Feb. 19 in Rome, Ga.
Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images
hide caption
toggle caption
Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images
“I really like him,” said rally attendee Jill Fisher. “I think he’s a strong candidate, seems like a very nice family man with some great values. And I think he’ll add a lot to Congress.”
Highlighting Fuller’s military service as an Air Force veteran, an ad for his campaign says, ” ‘America First’ is the story of his life.”
Fuller faces several other GOP candidates in the primary, including former state Sen. Colton Moore. Moore won elections for the state Legislature in the district before and is considered one of the most right-leaning lawmakers at the state level.
“I’m 100% pro-Trump,” Moore declared in his campaign announcement video.
He’s made a few headlines of his own. Last year, Moore was arrested for attempting to enter the House chambers in Atlanta to attend the State of the State address by GOP Gov. Brian Kemp. Moore argued he had a constitutional right to enter the chamber. Moore had been banned from entering the chambers by the state’s Republican House Speaker Jon Burns for disparaging comments he made about a late Georgia lawmaker at his portrait unveiling.
Moore’s record matters for some GOP voters even more than Trump’s endorsement. Less Dunaway, 14th district voter, says he’s a strong supporter of Trump, but thinks Moore will do a better job carrying out the president’s agenda than Trump’s own pick.
“He actually knows what he’s doing,” Dunaway said of Moore. “He was a state representative, a state senator. He was the first one to fight the people over the 2020 election in Georgia.”
Moore was one of a group of GOP state lawmakers who called on lawmakers to investigate or impeach Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis after she charged Trump and others with trying to overturn the 2020 election in Georgia, when Trump and his allies pushed baseless claims of widespread election fraud.
Fuller insists Trump made the right choice in supporting his bid.
“I think they’re looking for someone to carry President Trump’s banner, support his agenda, and fight for him on Capitol Hill,” Fuller told Georgia Public Broadcasting last month.
Still some Republicans who attended the February rally left undecided.
“I don’t just blindly follow what [Trump] says,” said Clay Cooper of Rome.
Still, Cooper said that Trump’s endorsement means he will give Fuller more thought. “[Fuller is] someone that [Trump] thinks aligns very much with his messaging, with his actions, so that certainly weighs in,” Cooper said.
Unlike a partisan primary, all the candidates — Republicans, Democrats and third party candidates — will be on the same ballot for voters in the special election. If no one gets over 50% of the vote, the two top vote-getters regardless of party will advance to a runoff on April 7.
Follow the results below as polls close on Tuesday at 7 p.m. ET.
NPR’s Padmananda Rama contributed to this report.
BLM Expedites Massive Logging Expansion in Western Oregon
Pennsylvania Gov Josh Shapiro’s neighbor accuses him of stealing land in ‘outrageous abuse of power’
Wicked Tulips announces move to North Kingstown
Botched South Carolina Drug Case Turns into Federal Lawsuit – FITSNews
South Dakota Governor signs trucker English proficiency and CDL bills to ‘deliver Dalilah’s Law’
Florida High School Football Rankings: Top 25 teams – Oct. 21
Cleary's 21 help Le Moyne down Central Connecticut State 69-64 in OT
How old is Bo Nix? What to know about Oregon quarterback ahead of 2024 NFL Draft
99th annual Pony Swim held in Virginia
Indiana Members Credit Union announced as new anchor tenant at Bottleworks District
Reporter’s Notebook: Trump’s SAVE Act ultimatum runs into Senate reality
Not ‘a litre of oil’ to pass Strait of Hormuz, expect $200 price tag: Iran
Tornadoes hit Illinois, Indiana and Texas as severe storms sweep US
EXCLUSIVE: ICE says El Paso detention facility will stay open under new contractor after $1.2B deal scrapped
Von der Leyen ‘acting outside of competence,’ Araud tells Euronews
-
Wisconsin1 week agoSetting sail on iceboats across a frozen lake in Wisconsin
-
Massachusetts1 week agoMassachusetts man awaits word from family in Iran after attacks
-
Detroit, MI5 days agoU.S. Postal Service could run out of money within a year
-
Pennsylvania6 days agoPa. man found guilty of raping teen girl who he took to Mexico
-
Miami, FL7 days agoCity of Miami celebrates reopening of Flagler Street as part of beautification project
-
Sports7 days agoKeith Olbermann under fire for calling Lou Holtz a ‘scumbag’ after legendary coach’s death
-
Michigan2 days agoOperation BBQ Relief helping with Southwest Michigan tornado recovery
-
Virginia1 week agoGiants will hold 2026 training camp in West Virginia