Trouble in God's Country

A blog documenting the costs and consequences of the staggering decline of rural Georgia.

By Charlie Hayslett

· Launched 2 years ago

Georgia’s Job Tax Credit program: a metamorphosis from rural lifeline to bureaucratic black box — and maybe worse

This is the story of a 35-year-old program that was built to help Georgia’s poorest rural counties but has now morphed into a nearly impenetrable…

Jun 15•Charlie Hayslett

How Rural Georgia Lost HOPE

For the first sixteen years of its existence, Georgia’s HOPE scholarship program did something unusual for a state entitlement: it tilted toward the…

May 18•Charlie Hayslett

A quiet rebuke of Trump's Easter tirades from a South Georgia Republican

A South Georgia congressman who represents the heart of both God’s Country and Trump Country spoke up in a House committee hearing Tuesday and publicly…

Apr 15•Charlie Hayslett

Chris Carr’s affordability crusade ignores Georgia's biggest problems

Well, well, well.

Apr 13•Charlie Hayslett

Georgia Democrats Keep Winning Voters. They Just Can't Get Them to the Polls.

Democrats may finally have the wind at their backs in Georgia’s 2026 governor’s race.

Mar 17•Charlie Hayslett

The High Cost of Being the Top State for Business

Last September, Area Development, a trade publication serving the economic development community, crowned Georgia as the nation’s “Top State for…

Feb 17•Charlie Hayslett

Helene depressed Georgia’s early vote by about 100,000 votes; impacted both parties but probably hit GOP hardest

When Hurricane Helene rolled through southeast Georgia less than three weeks before the start of early voting in this year’s presidential race, your…

Nov 4, 2024•Charlie Hayslett