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Alabama Legislature

Snakes, canaries and the party of corruption

There’s all this talk about a “Blue Wave” this November in the midterm elections. Those “midterms” are also the major elections for Alabama. What kind of Blue Wave we might have in Alabama is anybody’s guess. If one or two Democrats won their legislative or statewide races, that’d be a Blue Wave in Alabama these … Continued
August 23, 2018

Inside the Statehouse: Primary political potpourri

Now that the dust has settled on the primaries, allow me to share with you some thoughts on the Alabama political stage. There is an old saying that says the more things change, the more they stay the same. This old adage is true in Alabama politics. First of all, “All politics is local.” In the … Continued
August 9, 2018

Ethics Commission finds an exception for speaker’s chief of staff

Retiring Republican Rep. Mark Tuggle of District 81 is in line for the position of Chief of Staff to Speaker of the House Mac McCutcheon. An opinion from the Ethics Commission issued last week concluded that Tuggle’s duties as Chief of Staff would not violate the state’s revolving door provision which prohibits elected officials from … Continued
August 6, 2018

Refuse to be ignored

Watching the way Republicans in Alabama are campaigning for their offices – statewide, congressional seats, Legislature – is discouraging to people who care. They are running invisible campaigns against their Democratic opponents. Their strategy appears to be out-of-sight, out-of-trouble-with-their-views. They don’t want to stick their heads up too far and end up the victim of … Continued
August 2, 2018

Court allows Birmingham minimum wage lawsuit to move forward

The Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals made a decision yesterday to allow plaintiffs to proceed in their endeavor to bring a lawsuit that challenges Alabama’s actions to nullify a City of Birmingham minimum wage ordinance that claims intentional racial discrimination. The Southern Poverty Law Center and the Partnership for Working Families weighed in on the … Continued
July 26, 2018

Knight, Holmes are defeated in Montgomery

Two Montgomery powerhouses — and two of the most prominent Democrats in the state — fell Tuesday night. Rep. Alvin Holmes, the longest-serving member of the Legislature having served 45 years, and Rep. John Knight, a powerful lawmaker who has himself served for 26 years, were defeated in primary runoff races by relatively unknown opponents. Kirk … Continued
July 18, 2018