Cherokee Democrats

The Huffington Post reports that "In a stunning break with First Amendment policy, House Republicans directed Capitol Hill police to detain a highly regarded documentary crew that was attempting to film a Wednesday hearing on a controversial natural gas procurement practice. Initial reports from sources suggested that an ABC News camera was also prevented from taping the hearing; ABC has since denied that they sent a crew to the hearing."

Read more at the Huffington Post by clicking here.

The AJC reports that "In a dramatic blow to the state's transportation plan for metro Atlanta, the Georgia Department of Transportation on Wednesday pulled the plug on its most significant project, a historic $1 billion effort to add optional toll lanes alongside I-75 and I-575 in Cobb and Cherokee counties with private investment.

Board member Brandon Beach said the department would look at other methods for building the project besides private funding. But a spokesman for Gov. Nathan Deal would not confirm that the project as currently drawn should ever be built, saying only that “congestion in the corridor" remained a top priority.

"We just have to be sure to do it in a way that protects taxpayers," said the spokesman, Brian Robinson. More than 200,000 people a day drive that corridor, which is one of the region's most congested. Even with private funding, a public subsidy of up to $300 million would have been required.

The abrupt decision raised questions about the viability of DOT's program to draw private financing into public toll roads, a key initiative in the state since 2003, and to spread optional toll lanes along every major highway in the metro area."

Read the full article at the AJC:  http://www.ajc.com/news/georgia-politics-elections/dot-pulls-plug-on-1260209.html