(Photo : Jessica McGowan/Getty Images)
CUMMING, GA - DECEMBER 20: Georgia Republican Senate candidate David Perdue (R-GA) speaks to the crowd during a campaign rally with former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley on December 20, 2020 in Cumming, Georgia. The Senate Firewall campaign event comes ahead of a crucial runoff election for Perdue and Sen. Kelly Loeffler (R-GA) on January 5th that will determine what party controls the United States Senate.
Former Georgia Sen. David Perdue is criticizing a bill that supports Gov. Brian Kemp's campaign efforts and accusing the latter of silencing those that want to challenge him.
According to reports, Perdue filed a lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of Senate Bill 221 that paves the way for Kemp and other state legislative leaders to set up leadership funds or committees that are allowed to spend unlimited amounts of cash during the campaign period.
David Perdue wants to overthrow Senate bill 221
Senate Bill 221 was approved two years ago during the state's legislative session. Kemp then signed it into law in May 2021.
The bill also protects Kemp's committee from adhering to the current fundraising caps for statewide candidates in Georgia. The current cap is $14,000 per election cycle from individuals, but more can be raised alongside a primary election.
In his statement, Perdue said that the bill signed by Kemp into law reeks of cronyism and corruption. The former senator also thinks that there's a need for all candidates to abide by the same rules, but Kemp believes otherwise to serve his own interests.
Perdue's suit also shut down the argument that Senate Bill 221 increased Georgia's disclosure reporting requirements by saying that it simply applied the existing disclosure requirements to the new types of committees.
He said that regardless of public disclosure, the bill only benefits Kemp and not Perdue by creating unlimited opportunities for Kemp to use the contributions for the sake of his candidacy and campaign committee.
The bill also allows Kemp's camp to flood the competitive market of electoral politics with his own message, according to The Hill.
Georgians First Leadership Committee slams David Perdue
Cody Hall, a senior advisor for Georgians First Leadership Committee, fired back at Perdue.
"David Perdue's record of shady stock deals makes clear that he really doesn't like playing by the rules, so this laughable lawsuit shouldn't surprise anyone. The real question is: why did Perdue's Senate campaign pay over $600,000 in legal fees in 2021 to the same law firm representing him in this suit?" Hall said via Fox News.
According to reports, Perdue announced his candidacy last month after saying that he needs to defeat Democratic gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams.
Perdue also has the support of Donald Trump even though the former also faced the latter's wrath after he refused to overturn the result of the 2020 election in Georgia.
David Perdue wants to beat Stacey Abrams
Last month, New York Times said that Perdue wants to make sure that another Democrat won't be elected as governor of Georgia during this year's election.
Abrams has been receiving rave reviews and support from residents of Georgia even though the majority of the population in the state are Republicans.
Earlier this week, Abrams confirmed that she's gearing up to defeat Kemp as the Democratic party's gubernatorial candidate in Georgia. She also said that her entire team is putting together their plans this winter so that they could launch them in the spring, according to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
