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Georgia Today
3 people arrested at MTG town hall; Fort Benning has name restored; Flouride in water
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- [00:00]
Peter Biello
DBHDD is urging Georgians to store and lock away all medications to prevent theft and keep them away from children and pets. Old medications can be disposed of at Dropbox locations. Dropbox locations can be found@opioidresponse.info welcome to the Georgia Today Podcast. Here we feature the latest reports from the GPB newsroom. On today's episode three people are arrested at a chaotic town hall meeting for Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene. The army restores the name of Fort Benning and we speak with the Georgia doctor who says removing fluoride from drinking water, as some conservatives want, would be bad for children.
- [00:44]
Dr. Cecil Bennett
We have to look at what the studies have told us and there's no doubt that having fluoride in water decreases the risk of tooth decay in children by as much as 25%.
- [00:54]
Peter Biello
Today is Wednesday, April 16th. I'm Peter Biello and this is Georgia Today. Georgia Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene defended President Trump in a chaotic town hall meeting last night. GPB Sara Kalis reports. The Rome Republican met with constituents, some of them angry at the new administration.
- [01:15]
Sara Kalis
In Acworth, Congresswoman Green answered questions submitted ahead of time in her hour long town hall touting President Donald Trump's agenda and her work as chief chair of the House Department of Government Efficiency Subcommittee. Will President Trump be dismantling the irs? I certainly hope so, Lee. Many people in the crowd cheered for Green while others, like Democrat Mike Binn.
- [01:39]
Chris Clark
Said these were her supporters and this was a political rally and we were outsiders even though we were all constituents.
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Sara Kalis
Ben's was removed from the town hall after shouting. Acworth police said six people were removed from the town hall and three others were arrested. Officers used a Taser on two of them. For GPB News, I'm Sarah Kallas in Acworth.
- [02:04]
Peter Biello
The army has restored the name Fort Benning to its storied training post near Columbus, only this time the name honors an 18 year old sergeant who fought in World War I rather than a Confederate general. Fort Benning commander Major General Colin Tooley spoke at the renaming ceremony this morning, detailing the heroism of Fred Benning.
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Dr. Cecil Bennett
It is about that unwavering courage, that.
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Peter Biello
Selfless service and an enduring commitment to something greater than ourselves.
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Chris Clark
His legacy will forever inspire us.
- [02:35]
Peter Biello
The post was originally named for Confederate Brigadier General Henry Benning in 1918. Congress prohibited naming military bases for Confederates in 2021 and Fort Benning was renamed Fort Moore in 2023. The Trump administration last month maneuvered around the law by ordering the base to be renamed for FredBenning. Almost 2/3 of Americans have access to drinking water that contains a small amount of fluoride. Local governments add fluoride to water to help prevent cavities. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. Has advocated for the removal of fluoride from drinking water, citing the potential harm of drinking too much. Recently, the state of Utah passed a law banning its addition to public water supplies, and other states may follow suit. For more on this, we turn to Dr. Cecil Bennett. He's medical director for Noonan family medicine associates. Dr. Cecil Bennett, welcome to the program.
- [03:30]
Dr. Cecil Bennett
Great to be with you.
- [03:31]
Peter Biello
The CDC has said that fluoride strengthens teeth and reduces cavities by replacing minerals lost during normal wear and tear. As a physician, do you have any concerns about the amount of fluoride in Georgian's drinking water?
- [03:42]
Dr. Cecil Bennett
I think the fact that fluoride is readily available to all Georgians through regular drinking water tremendously decreases the risk of tooth decay and promotes good oral health.
- [03:56]
Peter Biello
The argument that critics make is that fluoride is not meant to be ingested. It's great to use in toothpaste or at the dentist's office, but adding it to water is simply a way for the government to make a health decision for you without your consent. What do you make of that argument?
- [04:09]
Dr. Cecil Bennett
You know, we have to look at what the studies have told us, and there's no doubt that having fluoride in water decreases the risk of tooth decay in children by as much as 25%. Those are just proven points based on multiple studies that have been done.
- [04:25]
Peter Biello
Are you concerned about the possible health effects?
- [04:28]
Dr. Cecil Bennett
Well, you know, here again, we have policies that may not affect individuals in the middle or upper class, but would definitely affect individuals who. Who are poorer. And why do I say that? Well, if you don't use toothpaste with fluoride because you're buying cheaper toothpaste, that's an issue for the poorer folks in our state. If you're looking at natural ways to get fluoride, you can get fluoride from eating seafood such as shrimp or crab, et cetera. Again, those who are poorer in the state are not going to be able to afford to eat that type of diet on a regular basis. There are certain teas that you can drink. Again, not part of the usual diet of individuals who are poorer in the state. So having fluoride in water was the most efficient way of leveling the playing field to make sure we decrease risk of tooth decay and cavities, especially in our children. Why is it also important in adults? There's no Doubt that studies have showed that poor oral hygiene increased the risk of cardiovascular disease. So this is not just an issue that will affect our children. It will also affect our adults, increasing the risk of cardiovascular disease, which will increase to increase healthcare costs and increase morbidity and mortality.
- [05:45]
Peter Biello
In the course of your practice as a physician, have you ever seen anybody who suffered ill health effects because of too much fluoride?
- [05:53]
Dr. Cecil Bennett
Never in 22 years of practicing, never through residency, never through medical school. It is a non issue. What we don't see are excessive number of children with decaying teeth because fluoride is in drinking water and protects enamel.
- [06:09]
Peter Biello
What about well water? What can people expect from their well water with respect to fluoride?
- [06:14]
Dr. Cecil Bennett
Well, their minerals, of course. Well water is rich in many minerals, which may include fluoride. But again, it's not a consistent source of getting fluoride as drinking water would be.
- [06:24]
Peter Biello
There are filters that people can buy that would remove fluoride from the drinking water if, if they wanted. Do you think this is an appropriate way to say to those who are concerned, like, look, if you're concerned, get one of these filters and then you will be able to choose when you want fluoride in your teeth.
- [06:41]
Dr. Cecil Bennett
Those again, who can afford to do that, that's perfectly fine for them to do it, but it's absolutely no need for general population in the state of Georgia to worry about getting too much fluoride from drinking water. This is my concern overall is that we're going backwards. We're not going forward. As I said earlier, fluoride has been proven to decrease the risk of cavities in our children by as much as 25%. We're attacking measles vaccine and we're seeing outbreaks of measles. There's so many areas that we're attacking our children, and that's the part that's concerning to me is that a lot of these changes in policies affect our children and the next generation. So my word to everybody, every single Georgian, is to protect the teeth of your children and insist that fluoride remain in drinking water in the state.
- [07:31]
Peter Biello
Well, Dr. Cecil Bennett, thank you very much for speaking with me.
- [07:34]
Dr. Cecil Bennett
Thank you very much.
- [07:38]
Peter Biello
The Georgia Chamber said today it's issuing a third report on how Georgia businesses could be affected by the Trump administration's new tariffs. The group's president, Chris Clark, says the chamber is taking an aggressive approach to advise business leaders on tariffs because he expects impacts in every sector of the state's economy, but especially small businesses. He says large corporations have been stockpiling goods for months, a tariff fighting strategy that small businesses can't afford.
- [08:03]
Chris Clark
I think when you've got a small mom and pop organization on Main street in downtown rural Georgia and 100% of their product is an import product that they're repackaging or selling, this is going to hurt them first. This is where the pain is going to be. So, so I haven't heard anyone tell me that they're going out of business. I have heard from manufacturers that say if certain tariffs go into effect at a certain point, they'll look at insolvency in a short period of time. These are American jobs, but if they are dependent on one supplier, they don't have a lot of options out there.
- [08:37]
Peter Biello
The report focuses on how Georgia businesses, large and small, can maneuver through the rapidly changing tariff structures. The chamber is working on a fourth report due out next week, focusing on Georgia's large service sector. The Georgia Supreme Court heard arguments today in a case over property rights in a historic community of Gullah Geechee people, descendants of enslaved West Africans who worked island plantations along Georgia's coast. GPB's Benjamin Payne reports.
- [09:04]
Benjamin Payne
The case centers around a voter referendum that was halted last year by a judge in coastal Georgia's McIntosh County. That ballot measure sought to undo a county zoning ordinance which allowed larger homes to be built on Sapelo Island Gollah Geechee residents there worried the ordinance would raise property taxes and drive them out of their ancestral land. During oral argument, several justices took issue with the county over an apparent procedural mistake, the fact that the county's attorneys failed to put the actual zoning ordinance into the court's official record. Here's Georgia Supreme Court justice verda Colvin questioning McIntosh County Attorney Ken Girard.
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Chris Clark
The bottom line is about the ordinance, correct? I mean, that's the ballot question is about the ordinance, of course. So if we don't have that in the record, what is the court to do?
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Benjamin Payne
A decision in the case is expected as early as next month. For GPB News, I'm Benjamin Payne.
- [09:55]
Peter Biello
The University System of Georgia is holding the line on tuition. The system's Board of Regents voted yesterday to keep tuition unchanged for most in state undergraduates in the next academic year. Out of state and international students will see modest tuition increases of 2 and 3%, respectively. USG's chief financial officer told regents meeting at Georgia Southern University in Statesboro that tuition at the state's 26 public colleges and universities has increased by less than 1% per year since 2016. Hyundai Motor Group has hired former Georgia congressman Drew Ferguson to represent the company in Washington. Hyundai said today the West Georgia Republican will serve as its senior vice president of governmental affairs. Ferguson represented Georgia's 3rd congressional district from 2017 to 2024 before he was mayor of West Point, where Hyundai owns the Kia assembly plant.
- [10:55]
Sara Kalis
This is Tonya Moseley, co host of Fresh air. You'll see your favorite actors, directors and comedians on late night TV shows or YouTube, but what you get with Fresh AIR is a deep dive. Spend some quality time with people like Billie Eilish, Questlove, Ariana Grande, Stephen Colbert and so many more. We ask questions you won't hear asked anywhere else. Listen to the Fresh Air podcast from NPR and whyy.
- [11:26]
Peter Biello
The road from immigrant to US Citizen can be long and arduous. It ends with raising your right hand and taking the oath of allegiance to the United States. Recently, 22 people from 15 different countries stepped off the road and into the full rights of US Citizenship in a ceremony in the Bootle Federal courthouse in Macon. GPB's Grant Blankenship was there.
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Grant Blankenship
They were college students, engineers, mothers, fathers and even one entomologist. Some drove from hours away and arrived hours early for this capstone. Among them was Elizabeth Mendoza.
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Elizabeth Mendoza
I got to the states back in 2011, so it's been 20 years.
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Grant Blankenship
When she came here from El Salvador, she was only 17. Her parents had packed her and her younger brother off together to escape gang violence.
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Elizabeth Mendoza
A lot of young boys were getting killed everywhere. It was like an everyday thing. So it was a sacrifice in order for us to have a better future.
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Grant Blankenship
They arrived, children alone, knowing no English and nothing of American culture. But a decade later, Mendoza says she got a break, permission to work.
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Elizabeth Mendoza
Back in 2015, I got my first work permit, and since then I've been doing everything in order to get to this point.
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Grant Blankenship
But does she think the journey she undertook 20 years ago is even possible now?
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Elizabeth Mendoza
It is possible. A little bit more difficult, I would say, but I believe that everybody will get the chance that they deserve.
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Grant Blankenship
Like Mendoza, Z came to the US As a child. He only gave one name. And despite being in the US a fraction of the time Mendoza has, he says this is home.
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Chris Clark
Frankly. Like I've told a lot of my friends this, I'm like more American than I expect to be. For someone to be here for only like seven years, eighth now, actually.
- [13:24]
Grant Blankenship
Z arrived in the US in time for the ninth grade freshman year with little to no English skills and a school he says was not interested in teaching the language was tough. Z's options were sink or swim. He swam in waters he says were unavailable in China.
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Chris Clark
When I was in China, the pressure's quite high academically and just general living was quite, quite hard because it's very.
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Grant Blankenship
Competitive in the U.S. z has been free to explore.
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Chris Clark
I transfer, like, three schools just because I feel like I want to try different things to figure out what I can do.
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Grant Blankenship
Now they're studying at the University of Georgia. So is Cindy. No.
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Noah
Well, as my parents say, they gave up their whole, like, career, family, and friends to get into Harris, to get us, like the children, a better future.
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Grant Blankenship
Noah is, in fact, the last in her nuclear family to become naturalized. And this was supposed to happen last year before the election.
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Noah
So I was like, every single one of my friends, like, got voting, and they all shared their political standpoint. I was like, damn, I can't do anything at all.
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Grant Blankenship
But now that no and the others have sworn their oath.
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Chris Clark
The constitutional laws.
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Grant Blankenship
That'S changed. No's looking forward to voting in the.
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Noah
2026 midterms because I care about, like, how the government, like, going to contribute to us and maybe, like, in the future, too, because there's a lot of news that's going crazy, right?
- [15:07]
Grant Blankenship
And it was only days after Cindy, Noe, and Zee became US Citizen that news came that several of their UGA classmates had had their student visas revoked. For GPB News, I'm Grant Blankenship in Macon.
- [15:23]
Peter Biello
That is a wrap on Georgia Today. Thanks so much for tuning in. Check gpb.org news for updates. And don't forget to subscribe to this podcast. We will be back in your feed tomorrow afternoon. Your feedback makes this podcast better. Send it our way by email. The address is Georgia todaypb.org I'm Peter Biello. Thanks for listening. We'll see you tomorrow.