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Message: [QUOTE="Bombastus, post: 93807, member: 2178"] Rick Jackson won Georgia's Republican nomination for governor after entering a crowded race with $50 million set aside. The billionaire, 72, had little political experience or public fame. Eric Tanenblatt, a friend and adviser for almost two decades, first laughed at the plan. Then he realized Jackson was serious. Burt Jones, Georgia's lieutenant governor, had President Trump's backing. Jackson pushed him into a costly runoff and won the nomination. Pretty unusual for a first-time candidate. Recent polls put him level with Keisha Lance Bottoms, a Democrat who used to be Atlanta's mayor. During the GOP race, Jackson sought Trump's favor. His general election pitch has a different focus. Ads lean on his hard childhood, with an absent father, a mother who had problems with alcohol, and moves between foster homes and schools. He says money kept him out of college. Jackson Healthcare is the core of his fortune. The private group has around 20 medical staffing and consulting firms, revenue near $3 billion, and some 2,500 staff. He remains its chairman and CEO, while his son Shane manages daily operations as president. His first big business, Jackson and Coker, helped rural clinics find doctors. Investors later ousted him from the company he had built. After it failed, he bought back its assets and started again. He also spotted demand for anesthesiologists in smaller hospitals. A professor at Georgia State University helped fill gaps in his business education. His interests grew far past health care. Real estate, a Texas data center, and religious film projects all became part of the mix. Not every bet paid off. The IRS has challenged major tax losses tied to his film ventures, while his representatives accuse the agency of unfair treatment. That fight is unresolved. Worker complaints have followed him as well. One nurse said a company threatened to contact immigration officials if she left before her contract ended. The case settled without any admission of fault. Other nurses hired from abroad claimed they faced steep fees for leaving early. A Jackson firm agreed to pay $3 million to settle their case. Then there is a $700,000 settlement involving a company in his group and a doctor it placed elsewhere. Federal officials alleged improper payments linked to needless medical equipment and lab tests billed to Medicare. Prosecutors said the company helped with their investigation. A Georgia hospital staffing deal paid one Jackson business more than $40 million during the pandemic, with no competitive bid. Rivals raised questions about his political donations. Both Jackson and state leaders deny any link. His campaign says the firm sent workers in before the contract was signed. Another award carries a far higher ceiling. Federal records list a contract worth up to $2.6 billion for staffing immigration detention sites. But that amount is not confirmed revenue. The campaign says the group has done no work and received no payment under it. Bottoms has called attention to Jackson's 47,000-square-foot house near Atlanta, complete with 20 bathrooms. She argues that his wealth and public business ties deserve close review. Quite a contrast with the hardship story he tells on the campaign trail. Jackson promises to end existing Georgia government contracts if elected and to avoid fresh ones while in office. He also wants stricter rules on conflicts of interest, outside earnings, and self-dealing. His team has not said if he would move his assets into a blind trust. A failed banking venture has left Jackson involved in more court disputes with creditors. Those cases might still be active if he takes office. Friends say his run is tied to his Christian faith, work with foster children, and growing interest in charity. Tanenblatt says Jackson has been thinking hard about what he can achieve beyond wealth. [/QUOTE]

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