Posted by The LA Times blog L.A. Now (via George Talbot at the Press-Register) reports that a plane will tow an anti-Riley banner over tailgating fans at the Rose Bowl.
Arnold Aerial Advertising will fly a 30-by-100-foot banner reading “Impeach Corrupt Alabama Gov. Bob Riley” from noon to 4 p.m. above tailgating fans at the Rose Bowl, said spokesman Zim Barstein. The New York City-based company was hired Wednesday for about $3,000 for the job, but is prohibited from disclosing who hired them.
This appears to be part of the ongoing saga over the electronic bingo issue in Alabama and a follow-up to the rather remarkable story this week of Circuit Judge P.B. McLauchlin signing a restraining order at 1:30 in the morning to prevent the Governor’s Task Force on Illegal Gambling from raiding the electronic bingo pavilion at Country Crossing. According to the Dothan Eagle, “McLaughlin said any seizure of bingo machines at Country Crossing ‘would do irreparable harm’ to the ability to pay the bond indebtedness” from the bond issue for the Country Crossing development.
The Riley administration today has asked the Supreme Court to overturn the restraining order.
Clearly there are some legal issues yet to be sorted out. And someone appears to be taking it personally.
Update: Tuscaloosa businessman Stan Pate, a long-time thorn to Riley, takes the credit for the banner.
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Drunk folks don’t generally look up and when they do they cannot focus very well.
What a grand waste of $3,000. Everybody is going to be focused on the field when Bama stomps Texas.
its nowhere near the waste of taxpayers money bob has spent on his personal crusade against electronic bingo….
This by far is the dumbest stunt I have ever seen. It definitely shows you though how desperate the gambling lobbyist are becoming.
Gilley had nothing to do with this…just got off the phone with him….of course he’ll be blamed anyway and he is aware of that…
My first thoughts were Johnson… guess I was wrong
This is classless. And I say that as someone who is neither a Republican nor a University of Alabama fan.
This would’ve never happened back in the Bear’s days.
I think it might be Mark (Buddy Sharpless wannabe) Culver, who paid for it!
How stupid. Also, CC, tell your boy Gilley to stop talking to reporters. He’s awful. You’d think he could afford to get some PR people down there who know what they’re doing.
lets see…we have the houston county judge (steensland) that signed the search warrant for country crossing, bob riley and his crew and milton mcgregor all out in california for the ballgame…wonder if they are all sitting together..
Yep…RG’s PR director is a buffoon for allowing him to speak in front of a camera. RG sounds pretty dumb when he speaks and may be just the sort of classless coward to go and pay for something like this.
It’s classless like sleeping with another man’s wife and then having the snot beat out of you for it while a shotgun is focused on your bodyguard.
speaking of buffoons…did todd go with em to the game??
Milton’s in California for the game? He’s an Auburn & Troy fan!
maybe he’s pulling for texas…..but he’s there…
I would think that Stan Pate might be among the usual suspects.
Could be the Guvanator of Cali…might be an effective tool for the CA businessmen Riley is courting at the game to moving to AL to look up and have second thoughts about moving their factories to a state with a “corrupt” governor…
Who ever servers as Ronnie Gilley’s political adviser is dim-witted. The message should be about the 2,000 jobs on the line.
I think everyone knows who did this classless act. Remember the George Jones ads against Jay Love? This comes from some redneck, NO COLLEGE EDUCATION, embarrassment to Houston County and the state of AL. How low can one go ? Harianne, what a money pot you’ve got!! Loved your picture at CC New Year’s Eve. Posted on Ricky Stokes.
Wsfa is reporting that Stan Pate is admitting to it.
Gov Riley crossed him a few years back
Before that Mr. Pate was a Riley supporter…
That’s got to be pretty embarrassing while you are over there trying to market yourself and your state.
I think I should win a prize.
Susan – you should get the prize for sure. You were not the first to think it though, you were just the first to post it. God forbid the Tide gets beat tonight. Todd Stacy will say the gambling bosses rigged the game. Roll Tide!
Danny, can you pull the ip addresses of these pro-riley posters? I really object to Riley staffers posting on state time.
Ironic that a guy posting as “anon” wants others’ IP addresses.
And you’re right, a guy who won the last election 60/40 can only count on his own staff to support him.
JD, you’re right, I’m just being cynical. Watch how the pro-riley posts drop dramatically after 5pm, though.
Ahh, Stan Pate. And here we thought when Shorty Price passed away the clowns of Alabama politics would fade away. Bless his heart — Stan only makes the news when he’s financing Riley smear campaigns, getting into redneck brawls, or brandishing weapons in business disputes. It’s official: Stan is a sad joke.
will there be an apology issued by the governors press secretary to the gaming intrests?? he was dead wrong and very unprofessional by relesing that reckless statemant in regards to who hired that banner plane and should apologise now.
I would like to say that I admire Stan Pate to stand up and spend the money he did. I’m not a supporter of Riley nor did I vote for him. It’s time the people of Alabama wake up and see Riley for what he really is. I’ll compare him to Hitler due to his forced ideals. He already has his SS task force doing his bidding at the taxpayers expense. Destroying people’s lives by taking there jobs from them and taking money out of each families pocket is WRONG! He does this on his beliefs. Hmmmm.. Hitler persecuted the Jews because of his beliefs. Writing is on the Wall people…It’s time for Riley to shut up and quit messing with the lower class and the middle class voters. He doesn’t mess with the High Class folks cause he’s got them in his pocket.
Hitler? Really? Sorry Mike but you don’t have a lick of sense.
You stay Classy Mike
It’s time for some true investigative journalism to take place. Anyone out there interested in getting into Victoryland or CC’s books? I am. Where does the money go? How much is being spent on “overhead”? What are the relationships to the HEDA director and RGP, what are the relationships between RGPs director of PR and the Enterprise School system? How much money is actually going to charity? Why are so many other RGP endevours just sitting or possibly in finiacial trouble?
Someone do some digging and they may have a great story. Either way Rilley or Gilley may be trouble.
Susan Fillippeli
January 7th, 2010 at 6:24 pm
I think I should win a prize.
you get a big thunbs up from me for the fact you did not jump to the conclusion it was the “gamblers” who did this…the governors office should take a lesson from you….
I’m invoking Godwin’s Law. Mike, you lose. I stopped reading as soon as I saw “Hitler”.
seems then you should have the same problem with this..
“Gambling thugs assassinated Albert Patterson in Phenix City 50 years ago, so we should not really be surprised by character assassination from this generation of casino bosses,” todd stacey
If you’re talking to me, CC, I thought that was a ridiculously over-the-top reaction. It does not, however, mention Nazis or Hitler, so Godwin’s Law doesn’t apply.
Neither Godwin’s Law or State Laws are followed in Dothan, if they interfear with making money.
CC – John Patterson agrees with Todd.
how can two casinos stay open in alabama and they close victoryland indian reservations my rear.i went to the one down the road and i seen no indians there .it should be a fire law for that many people to be in that small of a place and it is also a dump.compared to victoryland thanks i would not advise any one to check out any other one in alabama .open victoryland back up dawn forsyth from georgia