Gov. Sonny Perdue Tuesday announced that he appointed a special attorney general, who will work for free, to direct Georgia’s participation in challenging the federal health care legislation recently passed by Congress.
Georgia will join the lawsuit filed by 18 other states in federal court in Florida.
Perdue, a Republican, appointed special counsel after Attorney General Thurbert Baker, a Democrat, refused to participate in the Florida-led multi-state lawsuit.
Perdue was the second Southeast governor to split ranks with his attorney general this week.
Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour, another Republican, also announced Tuesday that he found an attorney to represent the state for free so that it could join the lawsuit, which challenges the constitutionality of federal health care reform.
Barbour said he took the action after state Attorney General Jim Hood, a Democrat, refused.
