government

Elections / News / State

BCA, ALFA and PCI support candidates with a history of misogyny

In the era of the #MeToo movement, it should be shocking that the Business Council of Alabama, the Alabama Farmers Federation and the Poarch Band of Creek Indians are supporting men for statewide office who have either protected sexual predators or are themselves accused spouse abusers. The popular novel, “The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo,” … Continued

May 14, 2018

A new state superintendent, more controversy

If the State Board of Education is picking a new superintendent, count on controversy. Eric Mackey, the head of the Superintendents of Alabama group, was selected as the state’s newest superintendent on Friday, and almost immediately there was controversy. There are also currently at least two groups considering lawsuits to challenge Friday’s vote. According to … Continued

April 24, 2018

Another abnormal Alabama superintendent search

Why can’t we just do normal stuff? What is it about government in Alabama — from the governor’s office to the state Legislature to probate judges to boards of education — that requires off-the-wall insanity at every turn? I ask these questions as Alabama’s state school board prepares to select a new state superintendent of … Continued

April 20, 2018

Attorney paid by unnamed client to write, negotiate HB317

Is it appropriate for a lawyer working for an unidentified private client to write laws for a department of state government? Doesn’t the public have a right to know if a private individual pays for a bill to be written? How is it ethical for a piece of legislation to be sponsored by a member … Continued

April 17, 2018

The Alabamization of America is complete

It seems as if the Alabamization of our federal government is now complete. The final block fell into place on Monday, when the law office of the president’s personal attorney was raided by FBI agents looking for evidence of, among other things, the lawyer’s payoff of a porn star. That does it. Now America knows … Continued

April 10, 2018

The most important decision our government will make: Who will be our next state superintendent of education

The Legislative Session has come to an end, but legislators won’t be the ones making the most important decision our government will make this year. The State Board of Education will make that decision in April when they choose our next State Superintendent of Education. For all of the high-profile issues that have been raised … Continued

March 30, 2018

Milton McGregor lied to me

One of the first things Milton McGregor ever told me was that he wouldn’t lie to me. That was in March 2014, several months before I wrote an in-depth series on the history of gambling in Alabama and McGregor’s role in it. It was the first of many interviews, and McGregor wanted to set the … Continued

March 26, 2018

HB317: A measure of just how stupid our government is

The most depressing thing about Alabama politics these days is just how stupid our scams are. I think that’s a sign of a good, healthy government: the more well-planned and well-executed your scams, the better overall government you have. Because smart scams require smart people to carry them out. So, if nothing else, at least … Continued

March 22, 2018

Making Congress work again

By U.S. Rep. Bradley Byrne Anyone who has followed Congress over the last twenty years knows that things have been pretty dysfunctional. While I believe our Founding Fathers intended for the Legislative Branch to be deliberative, I think they would be troubled by how broken things have become. One of the top drivers of the … Continued

March 12, 2018

Ainsworth qualifies for lieutenant governor’s race

Chip Brownlee Alabama Political Reporter State Rep. Will Ainsworth, R-Guntersville, announced Wednesday on the Dale Jackson Show in Huntsville that he officially filed qualifying papers to seek the office of lieutenant governor in the 2018 Republican primary election set for June 5. “I want to use the lieutenant governor’s office as a bully pulpit for … Continued

February 8, 2018