The people's voice of reason
The people's voice of reason
Sorted by date Results 76 - 100 of 146
Recently an organization was formed with the name, “Poarch Creek Accountability Now.” This nonprofit group is headed by former 40-year veteran State Senator Gerald Dial, who retired from the Alabama Senate in 2018. The stated goal of this nonprofit group is to spread the true and accurate information about the Poarch Band of Creek Indians and their gaming revenue and expenditures. Dial says it is time to point out the unfairness of their operation. “They make billions upon billions in this...
Even though qualifying does not begin until October 8, 2019, the field is probably set for the GOP Primary in March to unseat the anomaly Democrat, Doug Jones, who is sitting in Alabama’s Republican U.S. Senate Seat. First District Congressman Bradley Bryne and Secretary of State John Merrill may be the favorites to lead the field and square off in a runoff. Either of the two will probably win by a 60-40 margin over Jones in November. The wild card in the race is the iconic character, Roy M...
Governor Kay Ivey has had a very successful first year as governor. One of the coups she pulled off was getting the legislature to pass legislation granting the governor the power to appoint the Board of Pardons and Paroles. The new law will give her all the new appointments to the Parole Board. Previously, the three-member Board picked the director. The new law went into effect on September 1, 2019 and Gov. Ivey wasted no time selecting the new director. She appointed longtime political...
Governor Kay Ivey’s first legislative session of the quadrennium was very successful. Her prowess at getting things accomplished with this Legislature has been remarkable. She knows what she is doing. It should not be surprising given her background and experience. Kay Ivey has been around state government for most of her adult life. She has dealt with the Legislature for over four decades. Her adroitness in the passage of the Infrastructure package was similar to the legislative success e...
The 2019 Legislative Session was one of the most controversial yet productive sessions in memory. Governor Kay Ivey’s first Session of the Quadrennial was a roaring success. It’s hard to remember a governor getting everything they wanted since the George Wallace heydays. Wallace in his prime simply controlled the legislature. It was more like an appendage of the governor’s office. Kay Ivey has apparently taken a page from the old Wallace playbook. By the way, that is probably apropos as Kay c...
Over 20 years ago when I was a legislator the State Trooper assigned to my county asked if he could come visit with me. “Of course,” I said. When he came he had a somber look on his face. I thought maybe he had a serious personal problem or had lost a loved one. He began, “This may not sound like a major highway problem, but one of the things that causes a good many accidents and incidents on our roads is people driving slow in the left lane and not moving over.” I never pursued legisla...
Folks, taking care of prisoners is not a popular political issue. However, every so often Alabama politicians pragmatically have to acquiesce to the mandates of federal judges and grant our transgressing citizens their rights as determined by the courts. Federal Courts have determined that our felons deserve the rights to adequate imprisonment. You just cannot log them in, lock them up, and give them a basic bunk and rations three times a day. Courts want them to have sufficient space and...
State Budgets: Priority Number One After their successful special five-day Special Session, the Legislature has been in their Regular Session for a few weeks now. The Session will end in June so it is about one-fourth over. Almost one-third of the members are new, freshmen if you will. Even though they are, for the most part a bright and talented group, they are still wet behind the ears when it comes to legislative ways. Most are still striving to find their way to the bathrooms. Most major...
State Revenues Up as Legislature Prepares for Session and Crafting of State Budgets March 6, 2019 The Governor has been inaugurated and the Legislature has had its organizational session. The quadrennium has begun. Therefore, it is time for our state officials to get to work. Among the three branches of government, Legislative, Executive and Judicial, our 1901 Alabama Constitution renders our Legislative Branch as the most powerful. Some of you who witnessed the Wallace Era may disagree and...
Infrastructure Program Should Be Priority 1 As the new quadrennium crests in Alabama government, everybody looks toward a new beginning. There is a new fresh four years ahead for the newly elected leaders. They are overwhelmingly Republican. The Governor is Republican and all of the accompanying constitutional officeholders are members of the GOP. More importantly, the State Legislature, both the House and the Senate are Republicans. In fact, over two-thirds of each chamber are Republican. It...
As is my custom at the close of the year, I like to memorialize great Alabamians who have appeared and lived legendary lives upon the stage of political history in the Heart of Dixie. This year we have had some real legends. I have expanded the geographical limits to outside of Alabama to include two of the greatest men in American history. America’s greatest preacher and one of the nation’s great presidents passed away. Most of these fellows lived a long time. One of my favorite men I ever had...
The only sport that Alabamians enjoy more than Alabama politics is college football. We especially love the Alabama vs. Auburn football game. Folks, this is Alabama/Auburn week in Alabama. The Alabama vs. Auburn annual event is one of the fiercest of college football rivalries. It is the game of the year. It is a state civil war that divides friends and even families. It is bragging rights for the entire year. The loser has to live with his boasting next door neighbor for 364 days. It seems...
“General Election Next Week” This time two years ago, I was bubbling over with anticipation with expectations that I would have two years of fun following an exciting governor’s race. Well, Ole Robert Bentley spoiled my parade. Back in the old days, governors could not succeed themselves. They were governor for one four-year term and then you were out. That means we had a governor’s race every four years and man would they be doozies. We would have 10 candidates, about half of them would b...
The State of Alabama’s fiscal year begins next week on October 1. Our state’s finances are not the best in the world. However, they got a boost from the U.S. Supreme Court earlier this year, The high tribunal ruled that states can collect sales tax on internet sales. This was one of the most inequitable scenarios I have ever seen. If you went to the corner hardware store or Lowe’s or Walmart to buy a hammer and paint, you paid sales tax. However, if you bought these same items online you did not...
Alabama Power is and has always been a force in Alabama politics. Some entities may have influence in the Legislature, but the power company has the ear of folks in all three branches of State government: Legislative, Executive and Judicial. If you sat down with all 35 state senators, especially the veterans who know the ropes and the system, and you had an extensive off-the-record private conversation with each of them, and you asked them if you had to have one special interest group in your...
More Analysis of GOP Runoff Currently, congressmen/women win reelection at a 98 percent rate. The communist politburo does not have that high of a reelection percentage. Maybe we have more in common with the Russians than Washington CNN reporters think. It is hard to get beat as an incumbent congressman. Martha Roby tried but even though she was the most vulnerable Republican incumbent congressperson in the country, she shellacked a former Montgomery mayor, one term congressman, and doggone...
Best races of the year have been for Attorney General and Lt. Governor June 27, 2018 The best races of the year have been for Attorney General and Lt. Governor, as well as Agriculture Commissioner and for the 2nd Congressional district. The Attorney General post is considered the best stepping stone to Governor and U.S. Senator. It is very high profile and prosecutes bad guys who go to jail and cannot vote against you, and you look like a good guy to the rest of the law abiding voters in the sta...
Less than Two Weeks to Primary – Governor’s Race As we get down to the lick log in the 2018 June Primary, there are few if any surprises in any of the major state races. Polling indicates that all of the contests are about where they were three or four months ago when the races began. There is a tremendous amount of apathy and indifference as we head into the final days. This lack of enthusiasm has also affected fundraising. Most of the high-profile races have not attracted the amount of dol...
We are less than four weeks away from our June 5th primary. Those of us who follow Alabama politics have pointed to this year as being a very entertaining and interesting gubernatorial year. However, last year’s resignation by former Governor, Robert Bentley and the ascension of Kay Ivey from Lt. Governor to the Governor’s office has put a damper on the excitement we anticipated in the governor’s race. Kay took over the reins of state government and her appearance as a seasoned veteran of state...
Republicans took control of federal offices and presidential races in 1964 in Alabama. It was referred to as the Goldwater Landslide. The Baxley-Graddick fiasco in 1986 was the game changer for governor. In the last 32 years there have been eight governor’s races. Republicans have won all of them, with one exception. Don Siegelman was an interloper in 1998. During that same period, Alabamians have elected all Republicans to every secondary, statewide office. There are six secondary c...
The Alabama Legislature usually gets very little done during an election year session except passage of the budgets. However, the Legislature may have to address issues pertaining to prison health care. A Federal judge has ruled that our prison mental health care is “horrendously inadequate.” This year the solution will probably be to simply add $30 to 50 million to the prison budget and kick the can down the road to the next quadrennium. Our Medicaid agency funding is always a key issue. Med...
A few weeks back my column illuminated the career and influence attained by our senior U.S. Senator Richard Shelby. In the column and in my book, “Six Decades of Alabama Political Stories,” I reference the fact that our current senior senator will be regarded as one of Alabama’s greatest U.S. Senators. I consider Lister Hill, John Sparkman, and Richard Shelby in that triumvirate. However, history more than likely will reveal that Shelby is eclipsing Hill and Sparkman in the annals of senat...
There are two instances in which a President can be removed from power by Congress and/or high ranking Executive branch officials. The first is impeachment which requires a simple majority in the House of Representatives and a 2/3 vote by the Senate. You will recall if you are old enough that President Bill Clinton was impeached by the House of Representatives but not removed because 2/3 of the Senate did not also vote to impeach him. The recent suggestions by Democrats have more to do with remo...
A few months back the Jefferson County Republican Party honored our Senior U.S. Senator, Richard Shelby. It was held at The Club in Birmingham. The view from atop Red Mountain from this elegant club is spectacular, especially at night from the ballroom. The glass enclosure allows you to see the grandeur of the Birmingham skyline. As you glimpse at the scene you can see many of the buildings that are the heart of the University of Alabama/Birmingham. As the tribute to Shelby began, I looked out o...
With all the changes and uncertainty surrounding Alabama government in recent months, including political appointments, high level resignations, special elections, runoff elections and a host of new candidates tossing their names into the 2018 election circus, Alabamians might be relieved to know one thing remains steady and solid and many may never have heard of it – Alabama’s Silver Haired Legislature is one of Alabama’s crown jewels. This illustrious and distinguished array of Alaba...
