About The times. (Gainesville, Ga.) 1972-current | View Entire Issue (Nov. 14, 2018)
LOCA^POLITICS The Times, Gainesville, Georgia | gainesvilletimes.com Wednesday, November 14, 2018 5A Homeland chief may go; more turnover likely CUFF OWEN I Associated Press Secretary of Homeland Security Kirstjen Nielsen speaks Sept. 5 to George Washington University’s Center for Cyber and Homeland Security, in Washington. BY COLLEEN LONG, ZEKE MILLER AND CATHERINE LUCEY Associated Press WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump is weighing an administration-wide shakeup as he looks to prepare his White House for divided government, with Home land Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen expected to be among the next to go, perhaps this week. Trump has soured on Nielsen and White House chief of staff John Kelly, in part over frustra tion that his administration is not doing more to address what he has called a crisis at the U.S.-Mexico border, according to two people with knowledge of the issue. But the scope of the contemplated changes is far broader, as Trump gears up for a wave of Democratic oversight requests and to devote more effort to his own re-election campaign. According to people familiar with the situation, Trump is dis cussing replacing Kelly with Vice President Mike Pence’s chief of staff, Nick Ayers. Kelly, a retired Marine general, has been credited with bringing order and process to a chaotic West Wing, but he has fallen out of favor with the presi dent as well as presidential daugh ter Ivanka Trump and son-in-law Jared Kushner. Ayers, a seasoned campaign operative, would restore a political- mindset to the role, but he faces stiff opposition from some corners of the West Wing, with some aides lobbying Trump against the move. Other changes are afoot, as Com merce Secretary Wilbur Ross and Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke are being discussed for replacement. And in an extraordinary move Tues day, first lady Melania Trump’s office called publicly for the firing of Trump’s deputy national security adviser, Mira Ricardel. For all of the talk of churn, Trump often expresses frustration with aides and then does not take action. Talk of Kelly’s exit has percolated for months and he remains in place. Nielsen had hoped to complete one year in the job and leave in December, but it appeared unlikely she would last that long, said two sources. Both people who had knowledge of the debate spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly. Curbing illegal immigration is Trump’s signature issue — and one he returns to as a way to rally his most loyal supporters. But anyone who takes over at Homeland Security is likely to run up against the same problems that Nielsen faced. The administration has already tried to clamp down at the border but those efforts have been largely thwarted or watered down because of legal challenges. Trump also told allies that he never fully trusted Nielsen, whom he associated with President George W. Bush, a longtime foe. And he told those close to him that he felt, at times, that her loyalty was more toward her longtime mentor — Kelly — than to the president. Zinke, who faces several ethics investigations, said in an interview with The Associated Press on Mon day that he has spoken in recent days with Trump, Pence and Kelly about probes into his leadership and they remain supportive. He denied any wrongdoing. Questions of Nielsen’s job secu rity are not new. Earlier this year, she rebuted a New York Times report that she drafted a resigna tion letter but did not submit it, after Trump scolded her at a meeting. Nielsen has led the sprawling post-9/11 federal agency since December. She had been chief of staff to Kelly when he was Trump’s first Homeland Security secretary. A DHS spokesman would not com ment on whether she was leaving. VOTE ■ Continued from 1A that there simply aren’t enough outstanding ballots to force a runoff. In the Monday ruling, Totenberg ordered the secre tary of state’s office to estab lish and publicize a hotline or website where voters can check whether their provi sional ballots were counted and, if not, the reason why. She also ordered the sec retary of state’s office to review or have county elec tion authorities review the eligibility of voters who had to cast provisional ballots because of registration issues. Hall County certified its election results Monday eve ning, according to Elections Director Lori Wurtz. The county had 124 provisional ballots that were counted, and 104 more provisional ballots were not eligible to be counted, Wurtz said. Following the judge’s order, Hall reviewed its out standing provisional ballots Tuesday, but no changes were warranted, county spokeswoman Katie Crum ley said. Totenberg ruled that Geor gia must not certify election results before Friday at 5 p.m. State law sets a Nov. 20 deadline. State elections direc tor Chris Harvey testified last week that the state had planned to certify the elec tion results today, a day after the deadline for counties to certify their results. He said that would allow prepara tions to begin for any run off contests, including one already projected in the race for secretary of state. Totenberg acted in response to a lawsuit filed Nov. 5 by Common Cause Georgia. The suit accuses Kemp, the state’s top elec tions official until he resigned as secretary of state last week, of acting recklessly after vulnerability in Geor gia’s voter registration data base was exposed shortly before the election. Kemp’s actions increased the risk that eligible voters could be illegally removed from the voter registration database or have registration information illegally altered, the lawsuit says. Sara Henderson, executive director of Common Cause Georgia, said in an emailed statement that the ruling helps increase voter confi dence in elections. Totenberg’s order doesn’t change the Tuesday deadline for counties to certify their results. The Abrams’ cam paign lawsuit filed Sunday asks that the county deadline to be pushed to Wednesday, while also requiring that elec tions authorities count certain provisional and absentee bal lots that have been or would be rejected for “arbitrary reasons.” “I am fighting to make sure our democracy works for and represents everyone who has ever put their faith in it,” Abrams said in a statement. Her campaign has asked for a hearing as soon as possible, given the time sensitivity. Kemp’s campaign retorted that Abrams’ latest effort is “a disgrace to democracy” and ignores mathematical realities. “Clearly, Stacey Abrams isn’t ready for her 15 minutes of fame to end,” said Kemp spokesman Ryan Mahoney. Unofficial returns show Kemp with a lead just shy of 60,000 votes out of more than 3.9 million cast. Abrams would need a net gain of about 21,000 votes to force a runoff. The Associated Press has not called the race. The Georgia race, along with Florida’s gubernatorial and Senate matchups, are among the final unresolved contests in a midterm elec tion cycle in which Demo crats have won the House, flipped seven governor’s seats and reclaimed more than 300 state legislative seats in statehouses around the country. The GOP maintained its Senate majority, and could still expand it. But it’s looking to hold the governor’s man sions in Florida and Georgia 'Wtuvdy T/tcCLm® Auto Insurance Specialist • Easy Payments • Any Driver • Any Age NEW LOCATION! 2415 OLD CORNELIA HWY., GAINESVILLE Next to Rabbittown Cafe 770-450-4500 Call Wolfman Charlie to keep you warm this winter! 835 Oak Street, Gainesville, Georgia http://lanier-hvac.net/ 678-943-1351 o LRNIER HVOC SERVICES WE STRIVE TO SERVE YOU to deny Democrats important gains in presidential battle grounds ahead of the 2020 election. Republicans have held the governor’s office in Georgia since 2003 and in Florida since 1999. President Donald Trump endorsed both Kemp and Florida’s GOP nominee Ron DeSantis in competitive GOP primaries and then cam paigning in person for them ahead of the Nov. 6 election. Georgia’s interim Secre tary of State, Robyn Critten den, directed county officials Monday to count some provi sional ballots that had been rejected because of voters’ failure to give their year of birth, provided the voter’s identity and eligibility was still established. Republican Gov. Nathan Deal appointed Crittenden to replace Kemp, who resigned last week after declaring vic tory in the governor’s race. Kemp called his margin — 50.3 percent of the vote — “clear and convincing,” but said he wanted Georgians to have confidence in the certi fication process. The lawsuit says at least 1,095 qualified voters who cast absentee ballots in Gwinnett County had them “arbitrarily and unlawfully rejected” because of missing or insufficient information. Under Georgia law, any issues causing a voter to cast a provisional ballot must be remedied within three days of the election — Nov. 9 for this election. The lawsuit asks that county election offi cials be required to consider evidence proving eligibility through Wednesday at 5 p.m. Crittenden’s guidance to the counties noted that the Nov. 9 deadline for verifying the eligibility of provisional ballots was set by state law. The lawsuit also asked that provisional ballots cast by a voter registered in another county be counted as if the voter had shown up at the wrong precinct. The lawsuit says that of the 1,556 provi sional ballots Fulton County reported having rejected by Nov. 9, nearly 1,000 were dis qualified because they were cast by voters whose regis tration records showed them registered in another county. Further, the Abrams’ cam paign wants any of the court’s orders in the case to be applied retroactively to coun ties that already have certi fied their returns, meaning those counties would have to reopen their counting process using any new standards and then submit updated returns to the state. Times reporter Megan Reed contributed to this report. Advanced Eye Center We Welcome a New Ophthalmologist William C. Ackerman, Jr., M.D. and Advanced Eye Center are pleased to announce the addition of Centrael "Sonny" Evans, M.D. as a new ophthalmologist with the practice. Dr. Evans completed his undergraduate degree at Brigham Young University, his medical degree from Emory University of Medicine and his ophthalmology degree from the State University of New York- Buff alo, where he served as Chief Resident. Dr Evans was nominated by faculty and peers into the Richard Sarkin/Emeritus Faculty Chapter of the Gold Humanism Honor Society. The review process of the society is by a Selection Committee for qualities of extraordinary compassion, empathy, altruism, and professionalism. He also received the Evan Calkins, MD, Fellowship for Community-Based Research, to support his research into improving outcomes for patients with ophthalmological emergencies. Dr. Evans is a comprehensive ophthalmologist trained in the medical, laser and surgical management of a wide variety of eye diseases such as Cataract, Glaucoma, Diabetic Eye Disease, Macular Degeneration, Traumatic Eye Injuries and more. An Athens native and Jefferson resident, Dr. Evans enjoys spending time with his family, hunting, restoring vintage muscle cars and cheering for the Dawgs. He will be joining the team at Advanced Eye Center on December 10,2018. Dr. Evans is now accepting New Patients Call 770-532-0292 to schedule your appointment Centrael "Sonny" Evans, M.D. A OVA NC ED EyeC EN T E R 625 South Enota Drive • Gainesville, GA 30501 • 770-532-0292 www.aeceyecare.com William C. Ackerman, Jr., M.D. Board Certified Ophthalmologist
