Joey Kennedy

Joey Kennedy, a Pulitzer Prize winner, writes a column each week for the Alabama Political Reporter. You can email him at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter.

Thank goodness, I’m an “outside agitator”

I guess I’m an outside agitator. Alabama politicians love to throw that phrase around. Seems like anytime somebody disagrees with one of Alabama’s horrible laws or policies or acts, the politicos throw out that line, or something like it. In defending his law to prohibit removing monuments more than 40 years old, state Sen. Gerald … Continued

April 26, 2018

The Pulitzer Prize: The Good Journalism Seal of Approval

Alabama Media Group columnist John Archibald’s life has changed forever. I know, because I’ve been there. Still am. Archibald won the Pulitzer Prize for Commentary this week, a much-deserved honor and one that underscores the journalism talent that existed at The Birmingham News for decades. Still exists on a few islands. It says much about … Continued

April 19, 2018

Hot buttons worth pressing

They don’t want you to vote. Remember that. And “they” are mostly the Republicans today. Voters scare Republicans just about to death. I stand corrected: “They” don’t want you to vote unless you vote for them. But to be fair, when Democrats controlled all the branches of Alabama government, they weren’t too crazy about you … Continued

April 12, 2018

If they won’t debate, they don’t deserve your vote

If they won’t debate, take your vote elsewhere. This summer’s and fall’s elections are important. We say this all the time, but this time it may be true: Maybe the most important elections in a long time. If your elected officials dodge answering questions and won’t attend debates with their opponents, they clearly have something … Continued

April 5, 2018

Milton McGregor: The maddest I’ve ever been

The angriest I ever was as an editorial writer while at The Birmingham News was because of Milton McGregor. I wrote opinion for The News for 25 years. Lots of anger opportunities. But my most angry happened early in my career as an editorial writer, when McGregor was trying to get the voters of Jefferson … Continued

March 29, 2018

“We call BS!” Young people not playing around with guns

The blustery winds at Birmingham’s Railroad Park Saturday blew down a sign near the voter registration table. Some marchers had a hard time holding their own homemade signs aloft as they participated in the March for Our Lives event in Birmingham. But the winds didn’t dampen spirits. In all, it was a good-weather day in … Continued

March 26, 2018

Let’s march: The #Neveragain reckoning on guns

The second best news for me this week is that the Alabama Legislature isn’t going to do the knee-jerk thing of passing a law that’ll allow teachers to carry guns into the classroom, as a deterrent to some lunatic who might attack a school to massacre students. The protection of our students from a mad … Continued

March 22, 2018

Beware the Ides of March

Beware the Ides of March, warned the seer to Julius Caesar, but Caesar didn’t, and the Roman emperor was reportedly assassinated on March 15, 44 BC. On this Ides of March, there are other warnings going out, not for a literal assassination but, perhaps, massive political consequences. Politicians on all levels – federal, state, and … Continued

March 15, 2018

Active shooter on campus! Wasp spray may save us

By Joey Kennedy Alabama Political Reporter I spent 90 minutes Tuesday afternoon in UAB’s Heritage Hall learning how to respond to an active shooter on campus. You know, some deranged individual out to cause as much mayhem has he can, shooting and killing and shooting. And killing. Yeah, it’s sad. But it’s today’s reality. I … Continued

March 8, 2018

Marching for sensibility: Ashley Causey is on point

By Joey Kennedy Alabama Political Reporter They are idiots. So, on March 24 in Washington, D.C., there is going to be a huge march, the “March for Our Lives” event, where no doubt thousands of young people (and older) will express their will to do something about gun violence in America. But not everybody can … Continued

March 1, 2018