Friday Notebook

Cleaning out the notebook…

• Former Siegelman aide Nick Bailey was sentenced to 18 months in prison this week. Prosecutors had asked that he receive only 12 months of home confinement since he had helped convict former governor Don Siegelman. On the other hand, unlike Siegelman and Scrushy, he did get to home before beginning his sentence.
• This ADEM plane story had more lift in its wings than we would have first thought. Their reluctance to release flight logs raised many questions… and eyebrows. ADEM bought itself a little time with its promise to post flight information on the web starting next month; critics have backed off a little waiting to see the info. Many are interested to learn more about the flight to the “meeting-conference” in Tunica, MS, the small town (pop. 1175) that is the self-proclaimed Casino Capital of the South. ADEM says that their 36 surveillance flights spotted over 800 environmental problems from the air, an impressive average of over 22 problems spotted per flight. We will enjoy hearing the results of those investigations.
• Of the thirteen state legislators listed as also working in the two year college system, two are off the list. Rep. Neal Morrison (D – Cullman) left the legislature, and Rep. Ken Guin (D – Carbon Hill) left the two year college system. Rep. Randy Hinshaw (D – Madison, and a contributor to our Posts from the Legislature during the session) is one of four legislators who had their two year college jobs before being elected to the legislature, says that he does both jobs, and adds, “I’m not going to choose between the two.”
• Even supporters of Rep. Laura Hall (D – Huntsville) think her political career is in jeopardy after discrepancies are found in her time sheets for her work at Calhoun Community College. One suggested to the Parlor that it looked bad enough that no matter what else happens, the voters may turn her out. In 2010. Which is a long way away.
• Mitt Romney swung through Huntsville long enough to pocket around $90,000 for his campaign. I didn’t see word on whether any of his supporters among Alabama’s elected officials were present.
• Democratic Illinois Rep. Rahm Emanuel on our outgoing U.S. Attorney General: “Alberto Gonzales is the first attorney general who thought the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth were three different things.”