From the HERE City State Desk
Democrat Keisha Lance Bottoms and Republican Rick Jackson clashed over health care, crime, data centers and election security Tuesday night in what is likely to be the only time Georgia voters see the two candidates for governor side by side.
The hourlong town hall-style forum let undecided voters ask the questions, and the candidates were not allowed to address each other directly. Bottoms had challenged Jackson to more debates, but he agreed to only one.
Bottoms, a former Atlanta mayor, renewed her push to expand Medicaid and accused Jackson of profiting from the current system through his health care staffing business. Jackson, the CEO of Alpharetta-based Jackson Healthcare, said last month he would pursue what he calls intelligent Medicaid expansion, and said Tuesday the focus should be on lowering the cost of care.
On data centers, Bottoms called for a statewide pause on new construction and pointed to Jackson’s investment in a data center in Texas. Jackson said Bottoms approved data centers with tax breaks while mayor, which she disputed.
Bottoms also accused Jackson of suggesting the Georgia National Guard would be deployed to monitor the midterm election. Jackson denied it, calling the claim a complete falsehood. On affordability, Jackson pledged job creation and technical training, while Bottoms pointed to raising the minimum wage for Atlanta city employees to $15 an hour.
Jackson pointed to growing up in public housing and foster care before building his business. He said he would expand Medicaid without losing $4.5 billion dollars that the state currently receives. Bottoms introduced herself as an advocate for Georgians and said she wants to be Georgia’s governor, not Trump’s favorite governor.
