Posted by I think you would be hard pressed to find anyone in the Birmingham area just totally shocked by Larry Langford’s conviction. This case has been grinding its way to a finale for quite some time and the testimony for the prosecution was the nail in the coffin. Now that it is over it will be time to survey the wreckage across the political landscape.
First, the financial crisis that was at the center of this corruption trial is still lingering for Jefferson County. The media spotlight will most certainly shift back to this problem now that this trial is over. There is no quick fix to this mess either and it will unfortunately (or fortunately depending how you look at it) continue to boil over in to the 2010 Jefferson County Commission races. Langford’s conviction put an explanation point on the county sewer debt and showed how bad this whole deal really was.
The second fallout from this conviction is equally as obvious. Public trust in elected officials at all levels of government has been on a steep decline for most of this year in Alabama. This case will only solidify that distrust and in turn could lead to a severe political backlash at all levels of government in 2010 especially in the Jefferson County area.
The conviction also leaves what was left of Birmingham’s economic reputation with another black eye. Although Langford’s conviction was based upon his actions on the Jefferson County Commission, Birmingham as a whole will be the one who suffers in the public eye. This hurts everyone in central Alabama because Birmingham, like it or not, is the economic engine and when it has trouble recruiting new businesses then we all suffer.
A final issue that should be noted in this trial that is not so obvious- another public corruption trial was just completed and it was done by a federal prosecutor instead of a state or local agency. The message is slowly starting to seep in that if there is going to be a cleanup of corruption in state, county or local government it will have to be the feds who do it. This is not an indictment on any one person, agency or local politician but it does make voters wonder why we cannot seem to clean up our own house locally.
Regardless of how you feel about the Langford conviction there is little doubt that his conviction will have a big impact on the political landscape in the Jefferson County area for the near future.
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Great Post Cam!
Cam, I could not agree with you more. I live in the Shoals area which is quite a distance geographically from Birmingham. My fear is not that this is a black eye for Birmingham, but for the entire State of Alabama.
I dare say that there will be a price to be paid for the State as a whole both from a public perception aspect as well as from a fiscal stand point.
If I was a business considering doing business in Birmingham I would consider this issue resolved.
What would keep me from moving here is the impending Jefferson County bankruptcy and the corresponding increase in taxation that will inevitably accompany it.
Some level of public distrust in pubic officials is healthy and keeps politicians honest.
Alabama’s economic engine does not reside in one city. Each city has it’s own strengths and weaknesses.
Jeremy, I agree with you on the business relocation issue and also the fact that there are several economic centers in our state. I just believe this perception of corruption in Jeff Co will greatly harm the greater Bham area.
The Birmingham MSA is larger than Mobile, Huntsville, and Montgomery combined. Birmingham matters.
Legislators should treat the Birmingham MSA as a region and not leave decisions to Birmingham proper.
It’s easy to wash your hands of the problems and then complain about them afterwards.
I agree with you William. I don’t think one part of the Bham MSA can just ignore another part even if we are not in the Jefferson or Birmingham proper boundries.
Dear Scam,
One point you failed to make. Voters will stand in line to re-elect you legislators and other elected officials! Voters hate the body, but love their representative and senator. You know, it’s everybody else door steps that need cleaning out from under. As long as we have this mind set, things will continue to be the same!
Not sure what that has to do with this topic but I do agree with you