By Mark Woolsey
President Trump’s visit to Georgia next week highlighting an item on his education agenda is drawing strong-and predictable reaction from local political party and community activists.
Trump will pay a visit to Wheeler High School in East Cobb this coming Wednesday, July 22. He’s expected to talk about his plan for ‘Trump Accounts’ – A federal set-aside of $1,000 for children born between Jan 1,2025 and Dec. 31,2028.
Parents can contribute to the accounts as well-up to $2,500 a year. And employers and organizations can kick in contributions, with a $5,000 annual cap. It’s designed to help that “seed money” grow steadily.
The program was scheduled to go live this month. and is designed to help American children with wealth-building and investment knowledge.
Republican party officials were enthused both about the Wednesday July 22 visit and the launching of the savings program.
“The president’s leadership and America first vision continues to deliver real results for hardworking Georgians and all Americans,” said state GOP chair Josh McCoon in a statement released late in the week.
“This is a fantastic opportunity for people in Cobb County and Metro Atlanta to hear directly from the president,” he added.
Cobb County Democratic officials cast the visit in vastly different terms, roundly condemning it. They announced plans for a protest rally on the date of the visit, while not disclosing its location. They say they want to send a message “that the felon-in-chief is not welcome here.”
Local progressive activist group Indivisible Cobb also announced plans to rally somewhere in the neighborhood of the school on Holt Road.
Online, they criticized President Trump’s plans to talk about the savings accounts while war still rages on in Iran and ICE agents “terrorize innocent Americans.”
Indivisible officials also said they wanted to send a message that Trump is not welcome in Cobb County, especially around children.
Cobb County School District officials indicated that they couldn’t wait for the president to deliver his remarks at 2 p. m. next Wednesday, saying they were honored that Trump evidently decided that Wheeler was a good forum for highlighting discuss the Trump Account plan.
They also painted it as a chance to showcase student excellence what they called the district’s exceptional educators.
Wheeler dates from 1965 and has been repeatedly lauded for its educational excellence. According to district officials, , Wheeler was awarded one of the “Best High Schools Silver Medal” by US News & World Report in 2017 and 2018 and in 2017 was recognized as one of “America’s Most Challenging High Schools” by The Washington Post.