Governor Wants Assault Forgotten
Last year one legislator punched another in the head to defend the honor of a woman. The leader of his own party quickly demoted him and took away legislative responsiblities. He was directed to take anger management classes by the head of the executive branch. I’m talking here about Trevor Mallard, the New Zealander who had the misfortune to have party colleagues who believed in accountability and consequence for misdeeds of even their own. (In court, the Parliament member ended up negotiating a guilty plea to a lesser charge to avoid a more serious assault charge.)
Not talking about GOP state Sen. Charles Bishop of course. He punched Democrat Lowell Barron on the floor of the legislature. He says unapologetically he too was defending the honor of a woman. His party has offered no consequence (other than a standing ovation and a trophy). Republican Gov. Bob Riley said Friday the attack should be forgotten.
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The sad part of the whole Bishop-Barron bout was that I was living in LA at the time. It hit MSNBC fairly early Pacific Time and, by that evening, I had a box full of text messages from my Angeleno friends asking, in effect, “What the hell is it you people do down there?”
Defending the Heart of Dixie is hard enough without pugilist lawmakers making headlines.
Comment by Jeff Culler — January 14, 2008 @ 1:30 pm
Does anyone really believe that if Lowell Barron punched Bob Riley in the face that all would be forgiven? Really? I’m sure that Riley would just grab his attacker by the hand and sing Kumbaya. Sure.
If a child in school strikes another child, they can be expelled or, at the very least, suspended. If Bishop had punched Barron ANYWHERE except the floor of the Alabama Senate, it would have been assault.
Since when did assault become a partisan issue?
Comment by QEK — January 14, 2008 @ 2:41 pm
Riley’s right.
Comment by Anonymous — January 14, 2008 @ 2:59 pm
If party affiliations were reversed throughout (a Democratic legislator punching a Republican to widespread party acclaim and no punishment, and a Democratic governor saying everyone should forget about it), the cries of corruption and cover-up would be deafening. But IOKIYAR.
Comment by Kathy — January 14, 2008 @ 3:55 pm
Look at it this way:
Lowell Barron(D) punched Charles Bishop (R) and Governor Siegelman(D) said that all should be forgiven and forgotten.
There should the same zero tolerance for fighting in the Legislature that is enforced every day in Alabama schools.
Only in Alabama is assault a partisian issue.
Comment by bhmhomeboy — January 14, 2008 @ 3:56 pm
If folks, want to see their pet causes enacted by the Legislature, they should remember the saying about law making and sausage making.
A prudent person wanting their bill to pass might find a studied neutrality on the issue best.
Comment by walt moffett — January 15, 2008 @ 7:13 am
Dany - I won’t argue the Bishop thing with you but do you actually believe that the Alabama Democratic Party “believe(s) in accountability and consequence for misdeeds of even their own?”
Three words for you: Roy Johnson’s career.
Comment by Anonymous — January 15, 2008 @ 7:45 am
Oops - sorry for the typo Danny.
Comment by Anonymous — January 15, 2008 @ 7:45 am
This makes us look like a Third World country. I’m a Democrat, but I’ll be the first to admit that there have been plenty of corrupt officeholders from both parties in Alabama but I cannot comprehend how the Republican party could allow this. No one’s asking that Bishop be kicked out of the Senate or sent to jail, which is what would probably happen if this was in the US Senate. I don’t see how Bishop attending a few anger management classes and censuring both Barron and Bishop for their behavior could a bad thing for anyone.
Comment by SamfordDem — January 15, 2008 @ 1:54 pm
Why should Barron be censured, he didn’t punch anyone.
Comment by bhmhomeboy — January 15, 2008 @ 3:49 pm
In some neighborhoods and in the hollers, it is very bad form to insult some one’s mother. There are those who believe in the August Halls of the Legislature, all language and deportment should be at the “Sunday Best” level,too. But this is an age where insults to motherhood are a source of humor to some and manners consist of turning down the stereo to 11 when passing a funeral procession.
Comment by walt moffett — January 15, 2008 @ 4:26 pm
Riley has a clear case of what I call ‘aristocracy syndrome’. He and most members of the governing body live by a different set of rules than those they enforce on us ‘peasants’.
If find it very alarming that Gov. Riley would condone assault and ask that everyone else condone it, too. In all seriousness….what about the message that sends to children?
Comment by Loretta Nall — January 16, 2008 @ 7:57 am
Anonymous in 7, I understand your point, but at least when misdeeds are revealed in the 2 year college system, I don’t hear anyone (including Dems) defending them or saying that they should be forgotten.
Comment by Danny — January 16, 2008 @ 9:51 am
I’d like to remind anon 7 that the Republican Attorney General Troy King was involved in the Roy Johnson/2 year college scandal. I believe King’s comment was that “No good deed goes unpunished” when asked about his decision to ask Johnson to get a job for someone in his camp.
Comment by Loretta Nall — January 16, 2008 @ 10:02 am
Walt Moffet,
No one heard Lowell Barron say anything about Charles Bishops mother, but people all over the world saw Senator Bishop punch Senator Barron.
If Barron and Bishop were Alabama public school students, Bishop’s punching of Barron would fall under the zero tolerance policy.
Comment by bhmhomeboy@aol.com — January 16, 2008 @ 10:31 am
Danny - my point is that the Alabama Democratic Party is no bastion of ethics. The point about Roy is that he has been defended by Democrats (a lot more behind the scenes than publicly) just as Roger Bedford has been defended.
As a point of reference, after Roger Bedford was INDICTED FOR EXTORTION ONE count them ONE senate Democrat thought it might not be a good idea for Roger to write the state budget. The party (the Democrat senate caucus) shot down that notion 16-1 and he wrote our budgets while under indictment.
Comment by Anonymous — January 16, 2008 @ 10:45 am
And Loretta YES you are correct about Troy - I remember that one.
Comment by Anonymous — January 16, 2008 @ 10:46 am
Thank God Alabama has a zero tolerance policy for public school acts of aggression.
It makes me feel better as a resident of the AL-6 Congressional district, America’s second highest Bush-voting district (I’m assuming #1 is in Texas).
Now if Alabama only had even a “mild tolerance” policy regarding 28,870 combat wounded (as of 12JAN) and 3,923 dead.
Jeff Culler
Veteran, 18th Airborne Corps
Comment by Jeff Culler — January 16, 2008 @ 10:53 am
Anonymous in 16, I will not argue against your point that Democrats have had serious lapses. I’d be surprised if either party would be satisfied with a defense no better than, “We may not be good, but we’re better than the other party.”
I’ll add that pointing out the other speeders on the highway never got me out of a ticket.
I’ve wondered if I was largely alone in being bugged about the way this has been handled. I have been surprised since I posted this how many people have communicated to me personally or via email their own frustration and aggravation about this.
In fact, I don’t hear Democratic leaders or party officials trying to make much of this issue either. The people offended by this are, from what I can tell, rank and file Alabamians, and neither party seems to realize the degree to which this is true.
Comment by Danny — January 16, 2008 @ 12:09 pm
Danny - Hey I don’t diagree with you at all about Bishop. My point of disagreement was the use of the phrase in the original post about a “party . . .(that) believed in accountability and consequences for misdeeds even of their own.” I think that there has been a huge tendency in Montgomery for decades to ignore blatant huge misedeeds - and frankly most of the misdeeds have been done by Democrats as they have held the power. And the party has overlooked alot of misdeeds with far more serious consequences than a sucker punch . . .
I don’t condone Bishop - but I do think some balance of actual misdeeds - and the importance of those misdeeds - needs to be struck. Remember, Charles Bishop landed one rather weak punch. Roger Bedford will write a budget using billions of taxpayer dollars.
Comment by Anonymous — January 16, 2008 @ 12:23 pm
When I used the phrase about a party that “believed in accountability,” I was not making any comment pro, con or neutral about Democrats.
The only indictment I know about related to Bedford was dismissed by a judge. Is there something else? Why should he be disqualified from writing a budget?
If I get in trouble, I’m not sure I want a lawyer who defends me by saying, “He’s not as bad as Roger Bedford who will write a budget after he got indicted.”
:)
Comment by Danny — January 16, 2008 @ 12:45 pm
bhmhomeboy, since you speak with such authority, I assume you were an eye witness.
From my perspective, I have two conflicting statements on the issue of provocation, definite evidence of a punch and no ruling from a tribunal to settle the facts. As an aside, now long until we hear from Barron about this? Maybe Friday after the nightly news?
Following a zero tolerance approach as used in the schools here, both would have been immediately suspended, then at the hearing, conclude that puncher will be expelled, and after consideration of the “did too did not” nature of the provocation defense and the frowny faces in the “Plays well with others” for both, readmit the punchee on probation.
How try to resolve this and pass legislation that both sides want at the same time. This will be one of those times, when you really don’t want to know what is your hot dog or how that bill you wanted passed.
Comment by walt moffett — January 16, 2008 @ 7:34 pm
walt moffett,
I was an eye witness to the punch. The whole world was.
Comment by bhmhomeboy — January 17, 2008 @ 11:36 am
But, homey, you couldn’t hear what was said before the punch.
Comment by margaret — January 18, 2008 @ 7:17 pm
Maybe Lowell Barron should hire Spencer Collier as a body guard. I hear he is good in a fight.
Comment by Anna Lee — February 6, 2008 @ 7:11 pm
I find it ironic that the republican party lauds Bishop for “defending a woman’s honor” by such loutish and thuggish behavior. It is really disappointing.
Anyway sucker punch is a cowardly choice to “defend honor” with, it is not like he threw down a gauntlet!
Comment by A. Gadfly — February 7, 2008 @ 11:08 am
Could the average Joe walk up to someone on the floor of the legislature, punch them for ANY reason, and not be arrested? Would the average Joe be able to go on public school property, or a college campus, attack someone and not be arrested? Will anything come of the officer who was ticketed for breaking the law hunting. Its disturbing to see these things in the paper and on the news week after week. Defending a womans honor, or for any other reason, we must hold the average Joe, or a Legisture, or a House Representative, or a Chief of police to the same standard. As a matter of fact they should be held to a higher standard.
Comment by average joe — February 10, 2008 @ 8:51 am