Today, Aug. 21, Vice President J.D. Vance will visit Peachtree City. Between Aug. 19 and Aug. 21, multiple news outlets such as FOX 5 Atlanta and the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported that Vance was expected to visit the metro Atlanta area to promote President Donald Trump’s “One Big Beautiful Bill,” which was signed into law on July 4.
Sophomore Xavier Jones thinks the visit to Peachtree City is “random.” Hearing a sitting vice-president speak “would probably be a once in a lifetime opportunity,” Jones said.
According to the Atlanta-Journal Constitution (AJC), Vance will arrive today to “address Republican National Committee members in Atlanta earlier in the day before headlining a midday event at an industrial refrigeration manufacturer in Peachtree City. Exact times for those appearances have not been announced.”
The AJC has also mentioned that traffic in the metro Atlanta area could see some potential “slowdowns” as a result of Vance’s arrival. Vance’s arrival is also projected to potentially impact McIntosh as Fayette county schools notified the community yesterday on Aug. 19 that, according to the Sheriff’s Department, “Highway 74 north will be closed from Kelly Drive to I-85 tomorrow between about 2:15–2:35 p.m. Traffic will not be allowed to cross Highway 74 during this time.” The statement also notes that this may cause afternoon release and bus delays for:
- Elementary Schools: Huddleston, Peachtree City, Kedron, Crabapple, Burch
- Middle Schools: Flat Rock, JC Booth
- High Schools: McIntosh, Sandy Creek
According to the Sheriff’s Department, “The highway will reopen in sections, starting from the south,” but the “exact timing” of when this will happen is unknown. “Delays could be just a few minutes or longer.”
According to local news outlet The Citizen, Vance’s visit “will be the first time a sitting Vice President has come to Fayette County in more than three decades.”
Not all McIntosh Students are interested in Vance’s visit.
“My family doesn’t like the ‘Big Beautiful Bill,” junior Layla Spinney said.
“It’s raising a lot of prices and causing a lot of problems with inflation and stuff. It’s causing us to have issues buying food, like prices in the grocery stores. We have to pay, like, $200 for just some snacks. So we won’t like that.”
The Trail made every attempt to cover and report on the event, but all messages to District 3 Representative Brian Jack and the Honorable David Scott went unreturned as of press time.
