Tea with your fireworks
4th of July… family time, cookouts, fireworks, and this year… tea parties!
If that is your cup of tea then check out this list of ten tea parties around the state to find the one nearest you.
Related Articles:
July 3, 2009
June 13, 2009
Ron Sparks on Glenn Beck
If you missed State Agricultural Commissioner Ron Sparks with Glenn Beck on Fox News Friday afternoon, here he is. The Democratic gubernatorial candidate handled himself about as well as you could hope in a conversation that included, among other things, brief discussion of a “cow fart czar.”
Segment 1:
Segment 2:
April 17, 2009
Tea Post-Party Post
If you are still looking for reading on the Alabama Tea Parties…
Stephen Gordon at the Liberty Papers has a report here.
Toxic Culture offers further reflection on the day here.
Update: Pictures and video from the Trussville event are here.
Related Articles:
April 16, 2009
Scenes from Montgomery’s Tea Party Yesterday
More than 1000 showed up at the Montgomery Tea Party yesterday. Pictures (courtesy of Derek Trotter and the blog ToxicCulture) show a mixture of mainstream Republicans, political theater, and the just plain jarring at the Montgomery event.
 |
| Courtesy of Derek Trotter |
Related Articles:
April 15, 2009
Alabama Steeped in Tea Parties Today
Alabama is hosting 16 tea parties (named in homage to the Boston Tea Party) today to “protest against out of control government spending,” according to the Tax Day Tea Party website. (Better late than never. For example, the Cato Institute noted even back in 2003 the Bush administration’s “exploding deficit” and said the Bush administration “has consistently sacrificed sound policy to the god of political expediency.”)
In attendance in Montgomery at the noon event today will be GOP gubernatorial candidate Tim James, state Sen. Harri Anne Smith, state Rep. Greg Canfield, state Rep. Barry Mask, state Sen. Scott Beason, state Rep. Robert Bentley, and state Rep. Cam Ward, among others. State Sen. Hank Erwin and others will be in Trussville this morning.
The Flashpointblog gang will be at the one in Huntsville this afternoon; Brian notes (ahem…) special accommodations for those who come bearing other agenda items.
Find here the times and places for the nearest one to you.
If you have pictures or reports from any of the events, I’d be glad to hear from you.
April 13, 2009
Can Sen. Richard Shelby Sell Cars?
Les Stanford Chevrolet Cadillac in Dearborn, Michigan seems to think Shelby-as-bogeyman might move some cars off the lot.
More here in the The Hill’s Briefing Room.
Thanks to reader E.
April 1, 2009
Shelby Draws Ire, Alabama Boycott Urged
A retired GM engineer has launched boycottalabamanow.com urging a boycott of Alabama because our Republican Sen. Richard Shelby is not helping the domestic auto industry.
From the front page of the web site (at this writing):
We are starting a nationwide boycott of Alabama that will include any travel into the state well as boycotting the purchase of anything produced in any way within the state.
[…]
To those hard working people in Alabama, we apologize for the boycott and the loss of income and future employment from this boycott but please understand that it is within your power to elect a representative who has America’s best interest in mind. Many people have watched as Mr. Shelby spewed inaccurate statements during the senate hearings. It is clear that Senator Shelby has no idea of the inner workings of the Big Three, yet his title allows him to poison the air with non-truths about the domestic auto industry.
The front page of the Boycott Alabama Now site lists a half-dozen mentions that the site has received in the media, including from three TV stations.
The website urges readers to call the Business Council of Alabama “so that they know we mean business” with the boycott. (Actually, I think that, being a boycott, they mean no business, but you get the idea.)
The woman who answered the phone at BCA this morning told me she knew of no calls about a boycott, and my call was the first she had heard about it.
Related… the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee has an ad that specifically shows Shelby as one of the Senate Republicans who broke the economy but doesn’t want to help fix it. The ad has a tv clip of Shelby saying, “Close’em down. Get’em out of business. If they’re dead, they ought to be buried.”
Hat tip to reader W for the website and Left in Alabama for the DSCC ad.
March 4, 2009
Sen. Shelby 2nd on Earmarkers’ List
Our own Richard Shelby (R) is second on the list of the Senate’s top earmarkers, behind only Robert Byrd (D) of West Virginia. According to a report from Taxpayers at Common Sense (via Politico.com), Shelby brought home over $114 million of federal money to Alabama. Byrd brought almost $123 million to West Virginia.
As points of comparison, #10 on the list, Daniel Inouye (D-Hawaii), was responsible for over $46 million in earmarking. Pete Domenici (R-N.M.) at #20 was responsible for $19.5 million in earmarked funds.
February 23, 2009
Riley May Say ‘No, Thanks’ to Some Federal Stimulus Money
Gov. Bob Riley may reject about $66 million of federal economic stimulus money meant to expand unemployment benefits.
February 22, 2009
Troy King Denied Request to Argue Before U.S. Supreme Court
About AG Troy King’s interest in that West Virginia case before the U.S. Supreme Court … not only did our Attorney General file a friend of the court brief (mentioned here), he also asked to participate in oral arguments before the Supreme Court. Motion denied.
From the story “Ala. AG requested to argue for Massey” in the Charleston (WV) Gazette online this morning:
King’s motion to participate in oral arguments on March 3, which was denied, argues a Supreme Court decision regulating the recusal of judges would impinge “upon the states’ prerogative to craft recusal policies that are based on their own experiences with their various (and varied) judicial selection methods and that respond to the circumstances, needs and expectation of their own constituencies.”
I find this really interesting.
Related Articles:
February 12, 2009
AEA Unhappy with Bright and Griffith
AEA leadership is not happy with Alabama’s Democratic freshmen in Congress, Bobby Bright and Parker Griffith. Below is the article and caricature from the front page of AEA’s latest newsletter. (Click to see it larger.) Something about the poses assigned by the cartoonist is amusing. I guess that is… shame? Maybe defiance on Bright’s part?
Phillip Rawls of the Associated Press has the story.
February 6, 2009
AG Troy King Befriends W. Va. Case Before U.S. Supreme Court
I haven’t seen this story mentioned anywhere in the Alabama press.
Short version (most of this information comes from the Charleston Gazette, January 19):
- Don Blankenship, CEO of Massey Energy, “spent more than $3 million of his own money” to help elect Brent Benjamin to the West Virginia Supreme Court over incumbent Justice Warren McGraw in 2004.
- Justice Benjamin was the deciding vote in two decisions that overturned a $50 million jury verdict against Massey Energy.
- The U.S. Supreme Court on March 3 will consider whether the due process clause required Benjamin to recuse himself.
- Our Attorney General Troy King wanted state Attorneys General around the country to join him in filing an amicus brief. From the January 19 article in the Charleston Gazette:
Alabama Attorney General Troy King wants attorneys general around the country to join him in supporting West Virginia Supreme Court Chief Justice Brent Benjamin and Massey Energy in a case pending before the U.S. Supreme Court.
King believes the U.S. Supreme Court should not create any federal rules about when or why state court justices should remove themselves from hearing cases before them.
- The Charleston Gazette reported on Feb. 5 that King was “joined by attorneys general from Colorado, Delaware, Florida, Louisiana, Michigan and Utah.”
Besides King and the six other AG’s, a few others have filed amicus briefs on behalf of the respondents, including ten current and former chief justices and justices.
There is a longer list of those who have filed amicus briefs for the other side, including 27 former chief justices and justices, the American Bar Association, Common Cause, Intel Corporation, the national League of Women Voters, Lockheed Martin, PepsiCo, and Wal-Mart. (Read about the involvement of some of these companies here.)
January 29, 2009
Lilly Ledbetter Ad Had ‘Stratospheric Effect’
Walt mentioned Alabamian Lilly Ledbetter already today, that she is in Washington where Obama signed the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act… I was interested to hear this morning that her ad during the presidential campaign that criticized John McCain for his opposition to the bill had a “stratopheric effect” on viewers. NPR said this morning [at the 2:58 mark of the audio]:
Political consultant Frank Luntz tested every campaign ad on survey groups for Fox News, and this ad, he said, had a stratospheric effect. [Luntz said,] “It was one of the few effective negative ads in the campaign because it delivered a statement that women looked at and said, ‘You know what? This is right. John McCain, how dare you.’”
Here is the ad.
The ad and the issue did not sway Alabama Democratic Congressmen Bobby Bright and Parker Griffith who voted against it, along with Alabama House Republicans Jo Bonner, Mike Rogers, Robert Aderholt and GOP Senators Jeff Sessions and Richard Shelby. Republican Spencer Bachus did not vote. Democrat Artur Davis was the lone Alabamian in Congress to vote for the bill.
Related Articles:
Lilly Ledbetter’s moment
For those who haven’t been following the news, Lilly Ledbetter, of Jacksonville was present when President Obama signed a bill revamping equal pay for women provisions.
Reaction locally from the Clarion Caller blog (and no doubt others, please don’t hesitate to leave a link in comments) and from Gail Collins of the New York Times.
January 23, 2009
Artur Davis on a Tightrope
I didn’t have opportunity to comment here yesterday on the Birmingham News article about Gwen Ifill’s book, The Breakthrough: Politics and Race in the Age of Obama. From the article:
Ifill writes that [U.S. Rep. Artur] Davis said he “had no choice” but to support a congressional inquiry into the criminal case against former Alabama Gov. Don Siegelman, who claims he was targeted by politically motivated Republican prosecutors.
Davis told Ifill that he worried it would “smell of the old-fashioned partisan politics he claims to eschew,” but he was the only Alabamian on the committee leading the investigation.
“Barely know him, barely know him,” Davis told Ifill. Davis also said he expected most Alabamians to ignore the Siegelman controversy and that he was “counting on it to fade away well before 2010,” Ifill wrote.
Judging from my email box, the article goosed people on both the left and the right. Strong Siegelman supporters on the left take this as evidence that Davis was a reluctant advocate for Siegelman who was dragged unwillingly to the issue. There are those on the right indignant that Davis is, in their opinion, a Siegelman proponent who is counting on the issue to “fade away” before 2010.
This illustrates just what a tightrope of an issue this is for Davis especially given his statewide ambitions. When I had an opportunity to talk to Davis last summer, he said then that, given all the questions surrounding Siegelman’s case, the House Judiciary Committee (on which he then sat) would have been remiss not to look into the matter.
In the summer of 2007, Davis asked the House Judiciary to consider whether Siegelman’s prosecution involved selective prosecution on the part of the Department of Justice. Soon after, the Committee asked then Attorney General Alberto Gonzales for documents and information on Siegelman’s prosecution. Events since have hardly diminished the idea that increased scrutiny should be given to the allegation that Siegelman was selectively prosecuted, for example, Siegelman’s release on an appeal bond, the subsequent investigation into the matter by the DoJ’s Office of Professional Responsibility, and email messages provided last fall by a DoJ whistle-blower that “highlight alleged misconduct by the Bush-appointed U.S. Attorney and other prosecutors in the case.”
However, in the opinion of some on the left, Davis did not do enough, and for some on the right, he did too much. At least judging from my email box.
Either way, will this issue will get a lot of traction in the 2010 election?
Related Articles:
Consultant Captured on Blagojevich Tape
FYI, a consultant with Alabama connections appears to be ensnared in the scandal involving Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich.
A partner [Frederick S. Yang] in a prominent, Washington-based political consulting firm is among those secretly recorded discussing ways Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich can cash in on President Barack Obama’s old Senate seat.
The Garin-Hart-Yang Research group has worked with retired Congressman Bud Cramer (D - Huntsville), former Huntsville Mayor Loretta Spencer, and Cramer’s successor Parker Griffith (D - Huntsville). Griffith is one of 25 House and Senate candidates that the Garin-Hart-Yang Research Group handled during the 2008 election cycle.
November 28, 2008
Big Cost of Bailouts
How much are our Wall Streets bailouts costing us? After we adjust for inflation, the bailouts cost more than the Marshall Plan, the Louisiana Purchase, the race to the moon, the Savings & Loan crisis, the Korean War, the New Deal, the Invasion of Iraq, the Vietnam War, and NASA - combined.
Bloomberg says that American taxpayers are on the hook for $7.76 trillion to rescue our nation’s financial system. That’s $24,000 for every man, woman, and child in the country, or “half the value of everything produced in the nation last year.”
November 17, 2008
Growing Allegations in Siegelman Case
I have my own jury duty this week. Yee-ha. And lots to catch up on here from the weekend/end-of-the-week.
The story of the conviction of former Governor Don Siegelman gets more interesting with the report Friday that a whistle-blower has provided internal prosecution emails to the Department of Congress and to Congress. Time Magazine reports, “Now new documents highlight alleged misconduct by the Bush-appointed U.S. Attorney and other prosecutors in the case, including what appears to be extensive and unusual contact between the prosecution and the jury.”
From the article:
[House Judiciary Committee Chair John] Conyers says the evidence raises “serious questions” about the U.S. Attorney [Leura Canary] in the Siegelman case, who, documents show, continued to involve herself in the politically charged prosecution long after she had publicly withdrawn to avoid an alleged conflict of interest relating to her husband, a top GOP operative and close associate of Bush adviser Karl Rove. Conyers’ letter [to Attorney General Mukasey] also cites evidence of numerous contacts between jurors and members of the Siegelman prosecution team that were never disclosed to the trial judge or defense counsel.
October 28, 2008
New Segall Ad in All AL-03 Markets
In this ad that is running in all AL-03 markets, Democratic nominee Josh Segall hits Republican incumbent Mike Rogers on the Wall Street bailout, voting for CAFTA, and twice voting for a pay raise.
The Wall Street bailout is a tough issue. A lot of Democrats and Republicans held their noses and voted for it. Is Segall saying that he would not have voted for it? Does he believe that Alabama’s Democratic Congressmen (Cramer and Davis) should not have voted for it? Perhaps so… it’s a tough issue.
October 24, 2008
Siegelman Interviewed
GQ Blog posts today an interview with former Governor Don Siegelman. Readers who have followed the story closely will not see a whole lot new but it is a quick summary of the points he has been making since his release along with some details of his incarceration.
An excerpt:
First [Karl Rove] said he would testify. Then he said he would only come if he received the questions in advance and nobody was there to take down what he said. So the committee recommended to the full House that he be held in contempt of Congress. If he’s not held in contempt, it will send a clear signal that there are two systems of justice in this country: one for the rich and powerful, those connected to the White House, and one for the rest of us. When we get subpoenaed, we have to show up.
Whether Karl Rove is as innocent as a newborn babe or crooked as a dog’s hind leg, I do wonder how and why he ignores a Congressional subpoena with no consequence.
October 15, 2008
The Stink of JeffCo Sewage
I have been out of the saddle here for longer than I like, and there is a lot of news to catch up on.
If you have not been keeping with the Jefferson County sewer fiasco with the potential for what would be the largest municipal bankruptcy in the nation’s history, get a good overview with this story today from Fortune magazine at cnnmoney.com.
From the end of the article (should I offer a spoiler alert?): “…here’s the bottom line: $190 million a year in gross sewer revenues chasing $460 million a year in debt service. The numbers don’t add up.”
September 30, 2008
The bail out and thought experiments
As you know by now, the bail out bill has died in the House. Of Alabama’s Congressmen, only Robert Adderholt of the 4th District voted against it.
From the various talking heads in favor of the bail out, the word is that failure will lead to decreased credit for businesses and consumers, which is being seen now. Which can lead to recession, if not depression, which was not kind to Alabama.
So, an exercise, what will the effects of a possible recession be on Alabama?
Off the top of my head, increased interest rates on government bonds, budget tightening as local governments pay higher rates for those lines of credit they use to bridge gaps in revenue, a decline in new construction and business expansion, maybe a decline in the auto industry as folks find financing for cars scarce, with ripple effects from lay offs as sales tax revenue drops, public employees finding pay checks arriving later and later, maybe an increase in church attendance and/or euphoric use to relieve misery and tedium, possibly a “throw the rascals” out voter mood.
Now, what can the state government, which on its own, provides a very minimal safety net, do about it? Will there be a movement to demagoguery and pettifogging or will the elected leadership rise to the occasion?
Special Prosecutor named in US Attorney firings and related events
From the papers, Nora Dannehy was been appointed special prosecutor by US Attorney General Mukasey to investigate:
“Serious allegations involving potential criminal conduct have not been fully investigated or resolved,” the report said, listing lying to investigators, obstruction of justice and wire fraud among the potential felony crimes”
in the US attorney firings.In related news, Richard Scrushy and Don Siegelman have filed new briefs with the Court of Appeals, according to news accounts, that argue, there was no “this for that” so no bribery, the judge should have recused himself, expiry of the statue of limitations and juror misconduct. The big news is that case is set for oral arguments the week of December 8,with a ruling anticipated next year.
Altogether, this will make for a busy winter. Maybe ensuing discussions will keep us warm.
July 1, 2008
Considering Alabama’s Death Penalty
Press statement (pdf) yesterday (Monday) from Professor Philip Alston, United Nations Human Rights Council Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions:
I spent two weeks (June 16-30) visiting the United States at the invitation of the Government and met with federal and state officials, judges, civil society groups, and victims and witnesses in Washington DC, New York City, Montgomery (Alabama), and Austin (Texas).
[…]
In view of the very limited time available to me, I chose to visit Alabama because it has the highest per capita rate of executions in the US, and Texas because it has the largest number of executions and prisoners on death row.
Interesting reading on the topic. The statement makes reference to the 2006 American Bar Association study that flagged numerous ways Alabama might handle its system better. On the subject, I do find it rather remarkable that “although Alabama has half the population of Georgia, it sentences four times as many people to death,” which is to say that per capita Alabama sentences eight times as many people to death as Georgia does.
If I had more time myself this week, I would like to digest yesterday’s statement better and offer some observations. Instead, I simply point you toward it.
Update: Reuters had a story on this last evening.
Related Articles:
June 26, 2008
DoJ Hiring Broke Laws According to Internal Audit
A “biting report” by the Justice Department inspector general and the DoJ’s Office of Professional Responsibility shows that the Department of Justice violated civil service laws and their own policy by “rejecting scores of young applicants who had links to Democrats or liberal organizations.”
This DoJ misconduct that put political considerations first also puts wind in the sails of those claiming misconduct in alleged political prosecutions in the cases of former Alabama Governor Don Siegelman, Mississippi Supreme Court Justice Oliver Diaz Jr. and Wisconsin state procurement official Georgia Thompson.
The DoJ’s Office of Professional Responsibility is investigating those cases also.
Related Articles:
Supreme Court Strikes Down DC Handgun Ban
In a 5-4 vote, the Supreme Court ruled this morning that the ban on handguns in Washington, DC was unconstitutional. Expect this to reverberate as this is the first time that the Supreme Court has found a gun law to be unconstitutional based on the 2nd Amendment.
June 18, 2008
Air Force Tankers May Not Be Built in Mobile
Northrop Grumman’s plans to assemble tankers for the Air Force in Mobile are on hold as Boeing’s protest to the Government Accountability Office was upheld.
Update: Gov. Bob Riley’s office issued a statement.
“It’s important to note that the GAO did not make a judgment on the aircraft put forward by either company but on the process. We continue to believe Northrop-Grumman’s tanker is the superior product for our warfighters. If the selection process needs to be redone, then I hope it’s done quickly, and, I’m still confident the Northrop-Grumman tanker will win again. What’s most important is that the best aircraft be chosen for those who serve in our military and that political decisions never be allowed in the military’s selection process.”
Thanks to reader B.
Related Articles:
June 13, 2008
OPR Confirms Investigation into Siegelman Selective Prosecution
Peter Carr, the Principal Deputy Director of Public Affairs at the DoJ’s Office of Professional Responsibility, confirmed on the record, “The allegations of selective prosecution concerning Mr. Siegelman involve the prosecutions of Mr. Siegelman in both the Middle and Northern Districts of Alabama.”
I mention this mainly because when this item was passed along here earlier there were some who doubted in the comments the veracity of the original reporting.
Related Articles:
June 10, 2008
Some Alabamians Paying 16% of Income for Gas
Perhaps you saw this article in yesterday’s Daily News Digest… I find it remarkable.
Across “the rural South, little public transit is available and people have no choice but to drive to work. Since jobs are scarce, commutes are frequently 20 miles or more […] The survey [by the Oil Price Information Service] showed that of the 13 counties where people spent 13 percent or more of their family income on gasoline […], 4 were in Alabama.”
Among all Americans, residents of Wilcox County are paying the highest percentage of their income on gasoline, 16%, according to this graphic from the NY Times site.
Though gas prices are not as high there as other places in the country, the area’s median annual income level is among the lowest in the nation.
We are the only state east of Colorado that does not fund public transportation (pdf). Is the state so resistant to the idea of public transportation that even now there is little increased interest?
Bonner Pressed on Earmarks
Gregg Jarrett of Fox News presses U. S. House Appropriations Committee member Jo Bonner (R - Mobile) on the issue of earmarks. Lagniappe has the transcript and video link.
Related Articles:
