Dear Editor: We are of the opinion that Representative Trey Rhodes’ op-ed in your Oct. 7 paper is just a cloaked political appeal, patting Republicans on the back while backhanding Georgia Senator Raphael Warnock, in particular.
Rhodes touted Georgia’s ranking as the Top State to do Business. Yes, good for GA businesses. He conveniently ignored how Georgia ranks at the bottom in maternal health care and education.
He moved on to disparage the U.S. House Protecting the Right to Organize bill (HR 842) and blamed Senator Warnock for caring about employees. Why would any state representative not support better working conditions for its citizens? While the PRO bill passed the House (with several Republican representatives voting for it), it has died in the Senate. So in reality, the whining about this bill appears to be a red herring.
In any event, The PRO Act would prevent employers from holding coerced, mandatory meetings for the purpose of counteracting labor organizations and would stop employers from misclassifying employees as independent contractors in order to prevent workers from forming unions to negotiate. The bill would prohibit punishment for workers who refuse to participate in an activity the employee reasonably believes is a violation of labor laws (i.e., whistleblower protections).
Rhodes claims that Warnock doesn’t side with Georgians. We emphatically disagree. Senator Warnock does care for Georgians, and his votes prove it. He successfully worked to give Medicare recipients a $35/ month cap on insulin payments.
After a year-long push led by Senator Warnock, the jobs and competition bill was signed into law. This bipartisan legislation will boost Georgia manufacturing jobs, spur scientific innovation, and reduce reliance on foreign nations. He works across the aisle in a bipartisan approach to do right by Georgia’s citizens, both rural and urban including veterans and farmers.
While Warnock has secured contributions from union concerns, he also has support from companies, academic institutions and just ordinary folks. He has never taken corporate PAC money. We sincerely doubt that his opponent, Herschel Walker, has even heard of the PRO Act, let alone able to articulate an argument for or against, or even serve up any meaningful policy positions that would help the workers of the state of Georgia. Have you been witnessing updated “news” surrounding the actions and words of Mr. Walker?
We generally don’t hear much from Representative Rhodes, but sadly, his opinion piece clearly indicates that he is one of the many Republicans who are willing to put political parties before the citizens of our state if he is endorsing the likes of Mr. Walker. This is disappointing, but not altogether surprising. PLEASE. Vote for competence and character.
V. Johnson, Lake Country Democrats