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DECEMBER 2019 ■ www.ReporterNewspapers.net
Commentary | 7
tyorfk, /Cnowuta
Carol Niemi is a marketing consultant who lives on the Dunwoody-Sandy Springs line and
writes about people whose lives inspire others. Contact her at worthknowingnow@gmail.com.
Sandy Springs resident joins the ‘Georgia Gang’
The table on the set of the state’s lon
gest-running TV issues show, “The Georgia
Gang,” now has a new occu
pant of the middle seat Sandy
Springs resident Janelle King.
As anyone who has watched
the 37-year-old Sunday morn
ing talk show on FOX 5 knows,
the panel consists of two com
mentators from the political
left, two from the right and a
moderator.
King, 35, joined the show
in August and, as the show’s
youngest panelist, offers a
youthful perspective. An
avowed Republican political
activist and President Trump
supporter, she seems reason
able and thoughtful, perhaps
because of how she became a Republican.
It began at North Carolina A&T State
University, the top-ranked historically black
college in the state.
“When I was a junior,” she said, “I saw a
voter registration drive happening in 2006
and 2007.1 was told it was nonpartisan, but
I saw a lot of President Obama’s stuff being
circulated. I didn’t understand.
That didn’t really seem non
partisan.”
Nevertheless, she was im
pressed by Obama and his
ground game.
“I looked up to him and vot
ed for him the first time, even
though I didn’t agree with ev
erything he stood for,” she said.
“It was historical.”
But having been bom in
Connecticut and raised in
North Carolina in “a totally
non-political family,” she real
ized she didn’t know what ei
ther party stood for and decid
ed to find out.
“I researched both parties based on the
values I was raised with - school choice, per
sonal responsibility, small government, pro
life. That’s when I said, ‘I’m a Republican.’”
She voted for Mitt Romney the next time.
So new was she to politics that she didn’t re
alize how few minority voters nationwide
agreed with her. “I didn’t think it was that
big of a deal. I thought everyone had a right
to decide,” she said.
She moved to Atlanta jobless in 2007 to
pursue her interest in politics and had a job
within a month. A friend warned that her
political views could make life difficult.
Her response was to be more “vocal,” not
less. If she as a young black woman identi
fied with conservative values, might other
minority voters feel the same way when ex
posed to Republican policies?
“I went on a mission working with the
state party as a volunteer educating our
community,” she said.
Thus began her career as a volunteer
event organizer bringing Republican lead
ers into minority communities in Geor
gia’s smaller towns. The event she’s proud
est of was in 2015 at a community center in
East Point for minority small-business own
ers, where she brought in then-Secretary
of State Brian Kemp. “He was my first big-
name person,” she said, “and I got a lot of
pushback for inviting him.”
She is now a paid staffer of the Georgia
Republican Party. She was in the capaci
ty-filled room at the World Congress Cen
ter when Trump launched “Black Voices
for Trump” on Nov. 8. Trump invited her
husband, Kelvin King, to the dais to talk
about growing a successful general con
tracting firm from his bedroom to its own
12,000-square-foot office building in just
seven years.
On the dais with him, King said she
was proud of her husband and grateful to
Trump for helping to make it all possible.
She told me her only regret was that “the
room wasn’t big enough.”
With such conservative credentials, how
does she get along with the other two Afri
can American commentators on “The Geor
gia Gang,” Alexis Scott and Tharon Johnson,
who are both staunch liberals?
“It’s a respect factor,” she said. “I may dis
agree with Alexis and Tharon’s opinions,
but I respect them.”
She has particular respect for Scott, a
longtime respected journalist who for 17
years served as editor-in-chief and publish
er of the Atlanta Daily World, the nation’s
first successful black-owned daily newspa
per, founded in 1928 by her grandfather, W
A. Scott II.
“Alexis endured a lot so that I don’t have
to,” she said. “I appreciate that because of
what she’s done, I can go my own way.”
King has no desire to run for office. In
stead, her goal is to recruit and help minor
ity candidates who want to run as Republi
cans.
“Demographics are shifting,” she said.
“The Republican Party has to grow in diver
sity.”
“You may not agree with who represents
the party at this time, but it doesn’t change
the foundational values the party stands
on,” she said. “It’s a value system no matter
who’s in office.”
SPECIAL
Janelle King, the
newest member of
“The Georgia Gang.”
WORTHWHILE CONVERSATIONS
RE-THINKING ROTH IRAS...
ROTH IRAS ARE NOT EXACTLY NEW. WHAT IS THERE TO “RE-THINK?”
More to the point: Some people should re-think the use of Roth IRAs. Start by
remembering two key differences between Roth IRAs and traditional IRAs. First,
money contributed to a Roth has already been taxed. BUT, if you conform to
the rules, everything you ever withdraw, including earnings that might be many
times what was contributed, is completely tax-free. Second, unlike traditional
IRAs, there is NO requirement to withdraw minimum distributions from a Roth
IRA after reaching age 70-1/2.
YOU SAID “SOME PEOPLE” MIGHT NEED A RE-THINK. WHO SPECIFICALLY?
After 48 years of working with clients, we've now advised through the full cycle
of IRA drawdowns for some of our longer-tenured families. Oftentimes, we
encounter meaningful balances left in these IRA accounts when the estate
passes to the next generation. Those clients were well enough positioned
for retirement that they did not “need" all the funds in their IRA. That is the
opportunity.
SO, HOW DOES THAT CONNECT TO THE ROTH IRA?
Phillip Hamman, CFP®, CFA, chairs our Wealth Planning Committee, a group of
our professionals with multiple professional backgrounds, including attorneys
and CPAs. He summarized the connection in this way: "Clients approaching
or just starting retirement may forecast that IRA accounts will not be fully
withdrawn during their lifetime, leaving a balance for heirs. Until seeing the
numbers, it is difficult for them to imagine the potential wealth enhancement
from a Roth conversion. The strategy of converting all or a portion of a
[Left to Right: Bill Kring, CFP®; Michelle O'Leary; Tamara Wagner;
Mary Jane LeCroy, CFP®I
traditional IRA and paying some tax now is counter-intuitive, but the savings
accumulated over many years can be substantial." Each person's situation is
unique, and running the numbers is critical.
WHAT ARE THE PITFALLS?
Make sure you have experienced and well-trained eyes preparing the analysis.
This is an area where it is essential to rely upon an advisor who is 100%
committed to the fiduciary business model, which puts the client's interest first.
Do not rely on “analysis" from anyone with a product selling motivation. Our
experienced team of financial professionals are ready to sit down at our Atlanta
office to visit about the potential.
- CADENCE
BANK
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LINSCOMB
WILLIAMS
WEALTH MANAGEMENT SINCE 1971
Atlanta Wealth dr Pension Team
2727 Paces Ferry Road SE
Building TWO, Suite 1475
Atlanta, Georgia 30339
770 333 0113
www.linscomb-williams.com