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Georgia lawmaker who claims she was silenced when she switched political parties spotlights social media companies’ censorship

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Georgia lawmaker who claims she was silenced when she switched political parties spotlights social media companies’ censorship


(The Center Square) — A Georgia state lawmaker who says she was silenced when she switched parties last year convened a hearing to showcase how social media companies can de-platform people to manipulate messaging.

Rep. Mesha Mainor, R-Atlanta, said she called the “First Amendment, Free Speech Rally” at the Georgia State Capitol to showcase what she sees as a lack of respect for dissenting opinions.

“One thing that has happened in America is we have lots of different opinions,” Mainor, who left the Democratic Party last year, said at the start of the hearing.

“But just because someone’s opinion is not of your own, does not mean that we should disrespect other people’s opinion. It also doesn’t mean that we shouldn’t be open to listening to other people’s opinion.”

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The parade of witnesses affected by deplatforming highlighted how social media companies’ decisions, often cloaked in secrecy, impact their livelihoods.

Rep. Mesha Mainor, R-Atlanta, said she called the “First Amendment, Free Speech Rally” at the Georgia State Capitol to showcase what she sees as a lack of respect for dissenting opinions. AP

“It sets a dangerous precedent to where tech companies have the power to silence dissenting voices, reshaping the narrative to fit their agendas,” Nick Miles, a business owner and the former director of events for the WalkAway Campaign, said.

“This control over public discourse is a direct assault on the principles of free speech and open debate.”

“We must ask ourselves, ‘Who gets to decide which voices are heard and which are silenced?’” Miles added.

“When social media platforms, designed to be spaces of free expression and exchange of ideas, become the arbiters of truth, we tread a dangerous path. The ability to question, challenge, and dissent is not just the right; it is the lifeblood of our democracy.”

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X / Brandon Straka
“One thing that has happened in America is we have lots of different opinions,” Mainor, who left the Democratic Party last year, said at the start of the hearing. X / Brandon Straka

The group said its Facebook page was removed after the Jan. 6, 2021 attack at the U.S. Capitol.

Matt Taibbi, an investigative journalist who published the “Twitter Files,” said government or congressional agencies might take an interest in a site and send a letter to a social media platform saying they want the company to review content and, at its discretion, determine whether it violates the terms of service.

“So, the platforms communicate with each other; they communicate with the government, as well,” Taibbi said during the hearing.

“This is the sort of unseen process that leads to … a lot of these accounts being taken down.

“I think it violates the First Amendment,” Taibbi added.

“Is this kind of communication legal? Is it constitutional? I think it isn’t. But WalkAway, I think, is one of the primary examples of the government seeing something that isn’t there or inventing something that isn’t there and suppressing speech of legitimate citizens as a result.”

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2026 NFL Draft Scouting Report — Christen Miller, DT, Georgia

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2026 NFL Draft Scouting Report — Christen Miller, DT, Georgia


If you want proof that context matters in NFL Draft evaluation, look no further than Christen Miller’s career arc at Georgia. He arrived in Athens as a four-star recruit and spent his first two years buried behind first-round picks Jordan Davis, Devonte Wyatt, and Jalen Carter — three players who all heard their names called on Day 1.

The defensive tackle assembly line at Georgia is nothing short of extraordinary, and Miller patiently waited his turn. By 2024, his turn had arrived, and what NFL scouts saw was a prototypically built interior defender who carries his 321-pound frame with impressive athleticism and natural leverage.

Miller’s greatest asset is his run defense. He is a solid anchor — quick to press his hands into blockers, disciplined about maintaining gap integrity, and stout enough to hold the point of attack against double teams that would cave lesser prospects — but he’s not dominant.

His lateral mobility is a genuine differentiator for a man his size; he can scrape down the line to close on outside runs or loop inside on stunts without losing his footing or pad level.

That combination of power and movement is why Georgia trusted him on the field for passing downs, and it’s why scouts project him as an immediate contributor against the run at the NFL level.

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The legitimate questions surrounding Miller center on his pass-rush production and his still-developing anticipation skills. Over his entire collegiate career, he accumulated only four sacks — never cracking two in a single season.

Still, Miller’s athleticism stands out immediately — he carries his size well and shows the lateral quickness you don’t always find at his frame. His hands have some pop, and he’s flashed the ability to jolt interior linemen off their spot. But he’s a prospect defined more by his floor than his ceiling.

Source: Mockdraftable

No single trait rises above average, which means his pass-rush production will hinge on technique and motor rather than any physical advantage. He also needs to improve as a finisher — getting close isn’t enough at the next level.

The traits for pass-rush development are present: he has good first-step quickness, flashes as a one-gap penetrator, and showed enough in stunt packages to keep offensive linemen honest. But he has yet to build a consistent, go-to counter move when his initial rush is neutralized. Against better competition, his reaction time to the snap can be late, and he can drift out of his gap assignment when he tries to freelance for a big play.

What Miller offers any franchise is a high floor with a realistic upside trajectory. He comes from one of college football’s most technically demanding defensive line programs, coached by coaches who regularly develop NFL talent.

He plays with a motor that never stops. He competed in SEC trenches for two-plus seasons and was named to the All-SEC First Team as a senior. The experience and winning culture he brings — two state championships in high school, a national championship at Georgia — will matter to coaches who value locker-room character.

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The ceiling here isn’t flashy, but it’s tangible: a reliable, two-down starting defensive tackle who keeps blocks clean and lets linebackers run free. In a league that increasingly prizes versatile, multi-technique interior linemen, Miller’s ability to play the nose or the B-gap makes him a schematic asset for even-front and two-gap systems. Don’t sleep on him because his sack totals are modest — evaluating him solely by that metric would miss the forest for the trees.

Miller’s fit in Green Bay is an interesting one. The Packers are switching to a 3-4 base defense under new defensive coordinator Jonathan Gannon, and they lack a proven run-stuffing nose tackle while being long overdue for a meaningful investment on the defensive interior — which is exactly the profile Miller fits.

The team brought him in for a pre-draft visit, signaling genuine interest, and his skill set maps cleanly onto what Green Bay needs. His calling card — an elite run defense grade that ranked second among all FBS defensive tackles — translates directly to what Gannon will ask of his interior linemen, and his versatility to play nose in an odd front or kick out to three-technique in sub packages only adds to the appeal.



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Democrats Are Ready to Reclaim Georgia. Is a Former Republican the Man for the Job?

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Democrats Are Ready to Reclaim Georgia. Is a Former Republican the Man for the Job?


NORCROSS, GEORGIA — Geoff Duncan, former Republican lieutenant governor of Georgia, won’t stop apologizing.

He’s sorry for supporting the state’s 2019 “heartbeat bill,” which bans abortion at around six weeks, after a fetal heartbeat is detected. He’s sorry for facilitating the passage of a “constitutional carry” bill in 2022, which allows most people to carry a concealed handgun with no license or background check. He’s also sorry for opposing Medicaid expansion, arguing at the time that it was not fiscally responsible.

“I’m sorry for those positions and any harm that they may have done,” Duncan told me.

Duncan first rose to prominence as one of the Republicans who resisted President Donald Trump’s attempt to overturn Joe Biden’s narrow 2020 win in Georgia. Duncan has been speaking out against what he calls Trump’s “toxic” and “dangerous” Republican Party since leaving office in 2023, and even endorsed Kamala Harris and spoke at the Democratic National Convention in 2024. After being excommunicated from the Georgia Republican Party in January 2025, Duncan switched parties in August. He is now running for governor as a Democrat in what will be one of the most closely watched races in the midterms.

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Georgia Tech salvages finale vs. North Carolina ahead of UGA matchup

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Georgia Tech salvages finale vs. North Carolina ahead of UGA matchup


Georgia Tech didn’t let the weekend get away.

The No. 2 Yellow Jackets were flying high with a 13-game win streak heading into the weekend showdown against No. 3 North Carolina. The Tar Heels took the first two games, but Tech salvaged the finale 5-2 on Sunday.

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