Insider Advantage Georgia

March 14, 2016

Reconsideration Vote Needed on English bill

by Dahlys Hamilton | Mar 13, 2016

SR 675, the official English-In-Government constitutional amendment, passed the full state Senate in February with all Republicans voting “yes.” However, pro-English Georgians have been cheated out of the choice to vote on this constitutional amendment on the November ballot. We have been betrayed by state House Judiciary Subcommittee Chairman Rep. Johnnie Caldwell and his boss, House Judiciary Chairman Rep. Wendell Willard– both Republicans.
Last week, Sen. Josh McKoon presented SR 675 to the Republican-controlled Judiciary subcommittee–and they killed it. The House Judiciary subcommittee meeting that day was comprised of four anti-English Democrats and only two Republicans, one of whom was the chairman — Caldwell. Four Republican committee members failed to show up. The legislation was quietly defeated by a 4-2 vote. (Editor’s note: GOP Rep. Barry Fleming voted yes and tells InsiderAdvantage he wants a new vote to reconsider.)

GOP Rep Johnnie Caldwell, from Thomaston

A recent poll that shows 76% of Georgians are in favor of English as the official language of government in our state. If we cannot turn this around, we will be denied the right to vote on amending the state constitution to make English Georgia’s official language of government when we vote in the general election. The Republican-controlled House Judiciary subcommittee let the anti-English Democrats do the Chamber of Commerce-directed dirty work and intentionally stopped SR 675.

GOP Rep. Wendell Willard of Sandy Springs

Anyone familiar with the basic workings of the Gold Dome committee process can see that Republican Chairman Caldwell would only call a vote with that ratio of Democrats to Republicans if the intention was to kill the bill.
If enough pro-English Georgians call and write the members of the subcommittee, asking for a reconsideration vote, we may be able to save it; otherwise, it will remain dead.

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