Posted by Just a little more from the Business Council of Alabama’s Governmental Affairs Conference in Point Clear on Mobile Bay last weekend…
An attendee told me that “the usual ‘bash Paul Hubbert’ talk was in full swing.” Bradley Byrne drew a line in the sand on the two year scandal which was a hit with the BCA crowd. However, I understand that Byrne never mentioned Hubbert by name and was calm and restrained, avoiding “the fiery rhetoric that you heard out of [state GOP chair] Mike Hubbard or some of the Governor’s proxies. They pretty much laid this as a battle between Hubbert and the Republican Party.”
While others tossed the red meat on that particular issue, the Governor’s address did not touch on it and dealt with economic development.
Rumors of a possible special session continued to float around during the BCA Conference. Most of the business community would prefer the Governor not call one. Those folks sleep better when the legislature is not in session.
I hear also that most of the legislators would prefer not to have one also, but that there are three schools of thought among them.
- A small group believes that a special session is the only way to ensure that proposed ethics legislation gets a vote without getting buried in a Senate Committee.
- Another group is opposed to a special session, believing that hostilities in the Senate are so bad that nothing could get accomplished there.
- And another group believes that the issues proposed do not involve emergencies; they could be addressed in the regular session next year without the expense of a special session.
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This legislature has proven it is unwilling to address ethics reforms in regular sessions. They never have. maybe the bright light of a special session will at least make them take a stand one way or another. That’s what the people deserve.
It looks to me like the battle is Hubbert vs. Riley, the School Board,
and every Editorial Board in the state that has bothered to opine on
this issue.
Anon 2 – I think you’re talking about a different subject.
No, I’m talking about paragraph 2 of Danny’s commentary under
“BCA Chatter”. I believe the battle to not be between Hubbert
and the GOP, but Hubbert and the Governor, the Ed Bds and the School
Board.
for some reason, as a citizen I sleep better too when the Legislature is not in session.