Georgia
Fani Willis refuses to testify in Georgia Senate probe on taxpayer money: ‘I will not appear to anything that is unlawful’
Embattled Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis indicated Monday that she will refuse to testify before the Georgia state Senate Special Committee investigating whether she misused taxpayer money during her relationship with former special prosecutor Nathan Wade.
“First of all, I don’t think they even have the authority to subpoena me, but they need to learn the law,” Willis said of the Republican-led probe during a press conference.
“I will not appear to anything that is unlawful, and I have not broken the law in any way,” the district attorney continued.
“I’m sorry folks get pissed off that everybody gets treated evenly,” she added.
The special investigation panel held its third public hearing last week, which delved into the amount of money Willis’ office has spent prosecuting the historic racketeering case against former President Donald Trump and his co-defendants and the lack of oversight other government entities have over the district attorney’s office.
The committee has already issued a subpoena for the testimony of Trump co-defendant Michael Roman’s defense attorney, Ashleigh Merchant, who first brought the allegations of an “improper” and “clandestine” relationship between Willis and Wade to light in January.
Republican state Sen. Bill Cowsert, the chairman of the special committee, has said that he will compel Willis to provide testimony if she doesn’t come in voluntarily.
“I sure hope it doesn’t get to that,” Cowsert told FOX 5, threatening to hold Willis in contempt if she flouts a future subpoena.
“If subpoenaed by the Committee, she will be required to appear, or she will be in violation of Georgia law,” Republican Lt. Gov. Burt Jones told the outlet.
“This is what treating everybody evenly looks like, even if DA Willis doesn’t like being held accountable,” he added.
Wade resigned from the Trump case in March after Fulton County Judge Scott McAfee issued an ultimatum, forcing either him or Willis to step aside in order for the case to move forward.
Both Willis and Wade have admitted to a love affair but both insisted under oath the relationship only became official in 2022 after they had already brought the case against the former president and his co-defendants.
Willis’ office reportedly paid Wade $654,000 in 2022 as part of his work on the election interference case.
The findings of the state Senate investigation will inform legislative actions, including possibly enacting laws to ensure more accountability and oversight of the DA’s office, according to the Georgia Senate.
The SEC has announced the future Georgia football conference opponents for the 2026 through 2029 seasons.
Georgia will face Florida, South Carolina and Auburn every season. The SEC announced on Friday that the annual opponents will be revisited every four seasons.
Georgia football future SEC opponents, schedule
- 2026: Florida (Atlanta), at South Carolina, Auburn, at Alabama, at Ole Miss, at Arkansas, Oklahoma, Missouri, Vanderbilt
- 2027: Florida (Tampa), South Carolina, at Auburn, at Kentucky, at Texas, at Texas A&M, LSU, Mississippi State, Tennessee
- 2028: Florida (Jacksonville), at South Carolina, Auburn, Alabama, Ole Miss, Arkansas, at Oklahoma, at Missouri, at Vanderbilt
- 2029: Florida (Jacksonville), South Carolina, at Auburn, Kentucky, Texas, Texas A&M, at LSU, at Mississippi State, at Tennessee
“it’s hard. I mean, it’s brutal. And everybody’s the same,” Georgia coach Kirby Smart said on Tuesday night. “I mean, we all gotta play each other. It’s really tough, highly ranked teams, physical teams. It’s just going to continue to be a grind. I mean, looking forward with the nines coming, it’s going to be scary because you just don’t have enough. Nobody has enough depth.”
Dates for the 2026 schedule will be announced in December, according to the conference. The schedules will be flipped in 2028 and 2029 from the home-road splits in 2026 and 2027.
In its scheduling outline, the SEC made it clear it wants competitively balanced schedules, which will be determined using the entire schedule and not just the annual opponents. Tennessee reportedly will face Alabama, Vanderbilt and Kentucky in each of the next four years. The latter two are not exactly football powerhouses.
According to the SEC, the highest opponent average winning percentage for any school in the 2026-29 schedules is 55.67% while the lowest is 46.65%, a difference of only 9.02%. From 2020 through 2023 — when the league still used the divisional format — the highest winning percentage was 61.32% and the lowest was 39.76%.
In addition to nine conference games, the SEC stipulates that schools face one Power Four in its nonconference scheduling.
Georgia’s game against Georgia Tech satisfies that requirement. Georgia has future nonconference games against Louisville, Florida State, Clemson and Ohio State on its schedule for the time being.
As it stands, Georgia has 13 games scheduled for the 2025 season. The Bulldogs have nonconfernce games against Tennessee State, Western Kentucky, Louisville and Georgia Tech.
“We’re working through that right now, and a lot of that’s going to be determined as we learn when and where our schedule is going to be in the next few weeks,” Georgia athletic director Josh Brooks said. “But that’s something we’re attacking right now to see what our options are going to be in 2026. So we’re going to take it one year at a time right now. The first focus is going to be on 2026 and then 2027 and moving on. So still a lot of work to be done, and I work closely with Coach Smart and Mark Robinson and the league to kind of figure out what is that going to mean for our schedule moving forward.”
Georgia takes on Alabama this week, with the game scheduled for 7:30 p.m. ET on ABC.
We’re back for another week of college football action and the slate is loaded, including three games between ranked opponents.
Here’s how to watch in Week 3. Scroll down for live scores, highlights and more.
Advertisement
Here are the best games this Saturday:
Clemson at Georgia Tech (+3), Noon ET, ESPN: The Tigers are just 3-point favorites ahead of their first road game. It’s a sign that expectations for Clemson have been way off. With Haynes King back, the Yellow Jackets will want to keep it on the ground.
Georgia at Tennessee (+4), 3:30 p.m., ABC: Has Georgia’s offense been good enough ahead of this pivotal SEC game? Saturday is the day to air it out as Tennessee will be without its top two corners again.
South Florida at Miami (-17.5), 4:30 p.m., The CW: The Bulls are the surprise team so far this season. Can they pull off a third straight upset, or will the ‘Canes handle business?
Advertisement
Florida at LSU (-7), 7:30 p.m., ABC: This game was going to be the day’s marquee matchup before Florida’s loss to USF. A Florida victory would certainly quiet the idea that Billy Napier is on the hot seat.
Texas A&M at Notre Dame (-6.5), 7:30 p.m., NBC: Aggies QB Marcel Reed has thrown for seven TDs so far and A&M’s offense has racked up 953 total yards. The Irish will surely try to get the ball to their star running backs after a subpar opener.
West Virginia1 minute ago
West Virginia eatery among Yelp’s “outrageous outdoor dining spots”
Wyoming1 week ago
Special Olympics Wyoming seeking volunteers for state fall tournament
Crypto1 week ago
Ripple Highlights Transatlantic Initiative as Blueprint for Global Crypto Regulation
Finance2 weeks ago
Dividend Stability and Regional Strength: The Case for Truist Financial (TFC)
Fitness2 weeks ago
