Masked Little Tyrants in Georgia © 2020 Phillip Evans

It almost sounds like a movie title, and probably a comedy at that, but this is no laughing matter.

Mayors of Atlanta, Athens, Augusta, Brookhaven, Doraville, Savannah, and others have had the unmitigated gall to exceed their authority and threaten free Georgia citizens with fines if they don't cover their faces in public places via mandatory mask orders. Almost sounds like Sharia Law, no?

Is it a coincidence that all these Mayors are Democrats? 

Better late than never:

Governor Kemp finally stepped up to the plate and stated that these local ordinances and orders are not worth the paper they are written on. Well, the exact word he used was "unenforceable". 

Sure enough, you can read it on page 39 of his executive order where state preemption in this matter is clearly documented:

https://gov.georgia.gov/document/2020-executive-order/06292002/download

So do these mayors and city commissioners believe that Gov. Kemp's orders are merely suggestions? If so, theirs are too, one could reason. Otherwise local officials are a higher authority than the Governor.

Just look at their raw hubris:

“If Governor Kemp won’t defend his executive orders against local governments enacting stronger pandemic protections,” said Russell Edwards, Athen-Clarke County District 7 Commissioner, “then what purpose do his orders serve?”

If mayors can defy a Governor's lawful orders, then where is the rule of law?

So what else could Kemp do? There are two solutions. One is for the state to file lawsuits against these tyrants, but that would cost the taxpayers money. 

The other is the solution I prefer. Kemp goes on TV and states:

"My fellow Georgia citizens, the Democrat local officials who want to fine you for choosing to not wear a mask in public, and jail you if you refuse to pay, are just blowing hot air. I know I've already stated their orders are unenforceable, but it looks like we need to show them. Just like they've admitted to defying my orders, you defy them. Tear up any ticket you receive and post a picture of it on their city's Facebook page. These little tyrants do not have the authority to penalize your choice as a free citizen to wear or not wear a mask. I'm ordering law enforcement to not enforce any local ordinance that goes further than my executive orders."

Will we see citizens getting into confrontations with police that turn violent? That is a possibility, and all the more reason Gov. Kemp needs to nip this in the bud sooner rather than later.

In Georgia, a citizen has the right to physically resist an unlawful arrest using the least amount of force necessary: 

https://law.justia.com/cases/federal/appellate-courts/ca11/12-12562/12-12562-2013-02-01.html

Blood shed over this, either that of a citizen or police officer, would be a tragic shame. But that is sometimes what happens when those in charge of police use them in an unlawful fashion.

These mayors are using the point of a gun (theirs) in your face if you show your face in public. They dress nice for TV and are all smiles, spouting their feel-good, gobbledygook  rhetoric, but they are more dangerous than they look. 

We need Gov. Kemp to forcefully defend his executive orders and shut this down now. This circus has gone on long enough.

Edit: Just learned (July 15th) that earlier today the Governor issued a new executive order which spells out that local governments cannot mandate face masks. We'll see if this finally shuts the door on the mayors' shenanigans. If you do get a ticket, comment below with the details of your story.