George is doing quite well, economically.
In fact, so well that Jeff Amy of the AP reports the state has reached its legal limit on its rainy day budget (15% of state revenue), while sporting $10.7 billion in surplus cash.
Well, Gov. Brian Kemp is ready to use that excess budget money, and he’s spending big in his latest budget proposal, adding $3.6 billion more to this year’s budget.
Here are some of the goodies he’s proposing:
Cash payments for all proposed construction and renovation projects.
$500 million for the state employee pension fund.
$2,500 in extra salary for public school teachers.
A 4% pay increase for state and university employees.
$3,000 more for law enforcement officers.
$3,000 raise for child welfare workers.
A 12% increase in funding for public education.
$205 million more for public school transportation.
$118 million boost in payments to nursing homes
And I could go on. Basically, it’s the state budget proposal of Oprah’s “everyone gets a car.”
2028 relevance: Now, Kemp isn’t running for reelection, so this isn’t a desperate ruse to curry favor with voters who are already pleased with his performance (his latest approval rating among Georgians is 58%).
So putting this in the context of a 2028 run (probable) and 2028 nomination (difficult, considering the way he’s defied Trump), it can only help him with Georgia’s hotly-contested and super important 16 electoral votes.
It’s way early – like almost irresponsibly early to handicap anything 2028 (but that’s kind of the point of this site) – but no matter his popularity in his state, he clearly hasn’t kissed the Trump ring or courted the populist base in the way that seems mandatory to win a presidential nomination.
Nevertheless, for a lot of Republicans who want to return to Reaganite roots, expect Kemp to be near the top of the wish list.
Big question going forward: Does he pivot, at some point, in the next four years, to populism now that he’s in his second term and doesn’t need broad approval in his state?
