Steve Flowers

Steve Flowers served 16 years in the state legislature. His weekly column appears in over 60 Alabama newspapers. Steve may be reached at [email protected].

2016 Regular Session Gets B-

INSIDE THE STATEHOUSE by Steve Flowers Sometimes the best thing that the legislature can do in a session is to pass very little legislation. That can be said of this year’s regular legislative session, which ended several weeks ago. Not many bills made it through the legislative labyrinth. Gov. Robert Bentley made a proposed $800 … Continued

June 1, 2016

Remembering Chief Justice Perry O. Hooper Sr.

INSIDE THE STATEHOUSE By Steve Flowers A few weeks ago former Alabama Chief Justice Perry O. Hooper Sr. died at his home in Montgomery at age 91. He was the epitome of the southern gentleman. He was also one of the founding fathers of the modern Republican Party in Alabama. Hooper Sr. was a GOP … Continued

May 25, 2016

One Vote Can Make a Difference

INSIDE THE STATEHOUSE by Steve Flowers Last week we talked about how difficult it is to win passage of a legislative act. It does not matter if the proposed legislation is for apple pie and motherhood. If for nothing else, the bill has to go before both House and Senate committees, win approval, and not … Continued

May 18, 2016

Lawmakers Take Ax to Cultural Heritage Agencies

INSIDE THE STATEHOUSE by Steve Flowers For the past five or six years the legislature has pretty much cut state government to the bone. One of the areas that legislators have taken an ax to are Alabama’s cultural heritage agencies. These organizations throughout the state have taken it on the chin. There is an informal … Continued

May 11, 2016

Strolling Along the Potomac

INSIDE THE STATEHOUSE by Steve Flowers At this time of year Washington, D.C. is a beautiful place to visit. The city is aglow with the blooming of the cherry blossom trees. The cherry blossoms offer a glorious scene as you stroll down the mall and look toward our nation’s capital. This scene has been glimpsed … Continued

May 4, 2016

Let the People Vote

INSIDE THE STATEHOUSE by Steve Flowers As the budget hearings began for the 2016 Legislative Session in January the largest Powerball lottery sweepstakes in American history was playing out. It was one of the biggest news stories of the year, thus far. Legislators were hearing the same song second verse that they heard last year. … Continued

April 27, 2016

Budget: Groundhog Day

INSIDE THE STATEHOUSE by Steve Flowers Some of you may have seen and remember the movie, Groundhog Day, starring Bill Murray. In the comedy, Murray awakens on Groundhog Day and has the identical day that he had the previous year, similar to Yogi Berra’s colloquial saying of “déjà vu all over again.” Well folks, this … Continued

April 20, 2016

Gov. Bentley Now a Benign Punchline

INSIDE THE STATEHOUSE by Steve Flowers There appears to be very little interest in promoting an effort to impeach Governor Robert Bentley. With very few legislative days left in the session, legislators have a myriad of problems to deal with, not the least of which are the budgets, especially the General Fund. The financial woes … Continued

April 13, 2016

She Read My Column to Him

INSIDE THE STATEHOUSE by Steve Flowers In early 2009, Dr. Robert Bentley came to see me about his race for Governor of Alabama. Bentley was finishing his second term in the Alabama House of Representatives and closing down his very successful dermatology practice in Tuscaloosa. I liked Bentley immediately and thought it was magnanimous … Continued

April 6, 2016

A Colorful Duel Headed into The Fall Campaign

INSIDE THE STATEHOUSE by Steve Flowers This has been an exciting election year when it comes to presidential politics. It has been an extraordinarily unusual and unpredictable presidential contest to say the least, especially on the Republican side. The GOP race began with an extraordinarily large field. There were 17 candidates as the race began, … Continued

March 30, 2016