‘You Don’t Feed a Dog That Bites Your Hand’: Georgia Legislators Vote to Revoke Delta’s Tax Break After CEO Criticized Election Law
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Georgia’s new legislation on voting has sparked backlash from corporations based in the state. Now, legislators are exacting revenge against one of the companies which spoke out.
The Georgia House of Representatives, by a narrow margin, voted to revoke a tax break for Delta. The airline has been getting tax relief on jet fuel from the Peach State.
According to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, state House Speaker David Ralston admitted that the reason for the move was because of Delta’s opposition to Georgia’s election legislation.
“They like our public policy when we’re doing things that benefit them,” Ralston said. “You don’t feed a dog that bites your hand. You got to keep that in mind sometimes.”
After initially abstaining from weighing in on the Georgia legislation, Delta CEO Ed Bastian came out strongly against it — in an internal memo obtained by The New York Times.
“After having time to now fully understand all that is in the bill, coupled with discussions with leaders and employees in the Black community, it’s evident that the bill includes provisions that will make it harder for many underrepresented voters, particularly Black voters, to exercise their constitutional right to elect their representatives,” Bastian said. “That is wrong.”
The Delta CEO added, “The entire rationale for this bill was based on a lie: that there was widespread voter fraud in Georgia in the 2020 elections. This is simply not true. Unfortunately, that excuse is being used in states across the nation that are attempting to pass similar legislation to restrict voting rights.”
The new election law, signed into law by Gov. Brian Kemp (R-GA), has come under heavy criticism for restricting voting access by — among other things — reducing the number of drop boxes in areas with a large African American population, tightening the deadlines for absentee ballots, and introducing new registration requirements.
The retribution against Delta may not necessarily hold, as it must also pass the state senate. Despite that chamber being under Republican control, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports that state senate leaders are “more lukewarm” about the measure.
