It was the best of times...it was the worst of times. Thursday evening, August 24th, in downtown Atlanta, Georgia. The Atlanta Braves are leading their MLB division, and on 8/23, pitched a no-hitter against the New York Mets, then on 8/24 the Atlanta Falcons were thrashed by the visiting Pittsburgh Steelers.
The Beloved Event at the Georgia World Congress Center (GWCC) brings together a diverse crowd of more than 2000, all there to do good for others and raising a record-breaking $8.8 million in one night, from Atlanta corporate and philanthropic leaders as well as scores of individual donors. Meanwhile, just a few miles away, a circus carnival atmosphere surrounds the 'turn-ins' of 19 co-defendants, each part of a Fulton County RICO felony conspiracy case occurring in the aftermath of the 2020 Presidential election.
Back at the Beloved event, comedian and actor Chris Tucker (born in Decatur, GA) has sides-splitting with the joyous strains of laughter and John Legend has the audience spellbound with his performance and musical stylings...while just miles away, a former President faces a camera with a historic scowl that will be within moments and for days be a jail mug shot fired around the world. And no, I am not drawing a distinction between Georgia the Red State, and Georgia the Blue State.
Each of these events took place in the sphere of conservatism and what still passes for the Georgia Republican Party. I am exempting Georgia Governor Brian Kemp, Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger, Attorney General Chris Carr, Insurance Commissioner John King, and many others, elected and appointed, who boldly stand above and apart from this fray...
Compassionate conservatives founded the Beloved Event, which since 2019 has raised and donated more than $ 20.8 million in support of a wide array of charities and civic organizations focused on addressing community needs and priorities, thus far impacting the lives of more than 80,000 Atlantans.
Founded by Dan Cathy, the retired CEO of Chick-fil-A, along with Rodney Bullard, the then CFA Foundation Executive Director and Director of Corporate and Social Responsibility (CSR). This year Bullard founded The Same House, a community-benefit organization to make major grants to a wide range of organizations including the United Negro College Fund (UNCF), the John Lewis Legacy Institute, Morris Brown College, and through a personal gift from Bullard, UGA's J.W. Fanning Institute for Leadership Development.
Cathy and Bullard were joined by Arthur Blank and the Arthur Blank Foundation, Georgia Power, the Home Depot, the Peach Bowl Foundation, and others in supporting The Beloved Event this year, and yet this gala was different than many I've attended.
The evening's attire was 'come as you are' versus black tie, and donors mixed, mingled, and dined along with cause beneficiaries at a series looooong tables in one BIG Same House dining room. This event demonstrated the best of what many folks here know as the Atlanta way, intended to build bridges, and relationships and work towards a path where all boats may rise in a rising tide.
Meanwhile, back at the Fulton County Detention Center, the other face of Georgia conservatism, hailed epithets at those there to witness the booking and proof that no one is above the law. And just like the former President himself, hundreds of followers onsite along Rice and Jefferson Streets continued to protest and proselytize on the stolen election of 2020, The Deep State, and occasionally even Hillary's emails.
Which of these models of conservatism would you like to see more of? Which posits an example of a better world for our children? Which is remotely likely to attract independent, Libertarian, and non-aligned voters in a General Election?
At least for me, the answer is a no-brainer. The Trump path had some policy wins, and certainly a few positions that I supported. But their path forward remains stuck in reverse. Driving the nation via the rear-view mirror is a choice I do not believe even that a majority of voters in GOP caucuses and primaries will make, certainly once those 91 felony indictments begin moving to trial and potential convictions. The private sector and a smaller government remain part of the big picture and solutions for our nation, but if the GOP and conservative movement want to be a part of that dialogue, it is time to start focusing on healing this great divide on the Team Red side, before focusing on the opposition party and its many weaknesses. A word to the wise. A house divided against itself will not stand. With another tip of the hat on that to President Abraham Lincoln
