August 24, 2022 - Special Alabamians
Under the title “Alabama is a Big Front Porch,” made famous by the legendary Alabama storyteller, Kathryn Tucker Wyndham, I will continue to share some personal political stories with you this week.
As many of you know, I have been friends with our iconic, senior U.S. Senator, Richard Shelby, for close to four decades. History will reveal Senator Shelby as Alabama’s greatest U.S. Senator and folks, that is saying a mouth full because we have had some great ones. We have had a cadre of great Senators including Lister Hill, John Sparkman, John Bankhead, and Howell Heflin along with Shelby. As Chairman of the U.S. Senate Appropriations Committee, Senator Shelby has brought untold hundreds of millions of dollars home to Alabama. It would take a book or volumes of books to tell the story of Shelby’s prowess at bringing home the bacon to his beloved state. He is completing 36 years in the Senate this year.
Two of my favorite Alabamians and loyal friends are former Congressman and now University of South Alabama President, Jo Bonner and one of the finest ladies in the state, Dora James of Opelika. I visit with each of these two friends almost weekly. They graciously read the column and give me feedback.
Jo Bonner epitomizes the adage of being a true southern gentleman. He is admired and beloved all over the state, more than he can imagine.
Dora James epitomizes a true southern lady. She is admired and revered in Lee County. She is a true philanthropist and modest, kind and genuinely sweet person. About seven years ago, she hosted book signings for me at Auburn University and in Opelika that attracted several hundred folks at each, not because of me but because of her.
Speaking of memorable book signing events, the people of Jasper and Walker County hosted a large event at which Congressman Robert Aderholt was gracious enough to travel down from Washington to introduce me. Over the years, I have enjoyed a special closeness and connection to the folks in Jasper/Walker County, who read my column in The Daily Mountain Eagle. They have a rich political heritage with the Bankheads, Carl Elliott, Tom Bevill, and others.
To show how old I am getting and how long I have been writing this column, it seems that every state senator I know says, “Please do not write something bad about me because my mama reads your column religiously every week and has for decades.”
Speaking of books, I had the opportunity to meet and visit with the legendary author of To Kill A Mockingbird, Nelle Harper Lee. Folks in Monroeville, who knew her well from their generation, called her “Nelle.” Even though she had an apartment in New York that she purchased when her book came out in the 1960’s, Nelle Harper Lee lived her entire life in Monroeville. She lived with her sister, Alice, who was a good bit older than Nelle. I am told that Alice was the first female lawyer in Alabama. She was one of the most prominent lawyers in Monroeville and lived to be over 100. Alice and Nelle were neither married.
Nelle Harper Lee’s novel, To Kill A Mockingbird, is one of the five most read and purchased books in history. I am told by Monroeville old timers that it is a total allegory. It is simply a story of Harper Lee growing up in Monroeville. All the characters are real, even Boo Radley.
One day a few years ago, Harper Lee sent word to me that she enjoyed and read my column, weekly, in the Monroe Journal and would like to meet me. I journeyed to Monroeville, and we exchanged greetings and she gave me a signed copy of her book. I thanked her and told her that it was bought and read by quite a few more people than mine. She was a person of very few words and renowned for her privacy and reclusiveness. The only thing she said to me, substantively, was, “You are taller than you look like in your picture.”
I thanked her for her time and the visit and book. When I got back into my car, I called my older daughter, who is a lawyer in Birmingham, and said, “I know when I die you are going to just pile up my books and throw them away, but there is one you might want to save.”
We will continue with more stories next week.
August 17, 2022 - Legendary Alabamians
The longer I continue to write about Alabama politics, the more I realize that Alabama really is a “Big Front Porch” – a saying made famous by our legendary Alabama storyteller, Kathryn Tucker Wyndham.
I have been involved in the world of Alabama politics for 60 years. I have been writing this column for over 18 years and that is longer than I served in the legislature. I am sometimes asked whether I liked being in the Alabama political arena or writing about it better. The answer is easy. Writing is better. It is more fun to be able to throw stones than to have stones thrown at you.
I am also asked at social or political events around the state what are some of your favorite political memories. Indeed, I have been blessed to have met and known some of Alabama’s best known political and literary figures and some of them well.
I began paging in the Alabama Legislature at age 12, and met Governor George Wallace when he was in his first term as governor. Ironically, 20 years later I was elected to the legislature and Wallace was again governor for his fourth and final term. My legislative district included Pike, Barbour and Dale Counties so I represented Wallace in his home county of Barbour. Wallace loved the fact that I was now his representative. He would have me visit with him often in the governor’s office and he would tell me political stories and maxims. He told me a lot of inside stories about the Civil Rights era, as well as pre-Civil Rights, some of which I have shared with you and some I will share later.
One of my favorite friends in Alabama politics was the late Senator Howell Heflin. Heflin was a very straightlaced gentleman. His daddy was a Methodist minister. He was truly a great man and one of the wittiest and best storytellers I ever knew. He was a real Alabama hero and legend. He was a decorated World War II veteran, one of Alabama’s best lawyers, Chief Justice of the Alabama Supreme Court and our U.S. Senator for 18 years. Most people who knew him well in Alabama and Washington simply referred to him as “Judge.”
I wrote a glowing column about “Judge”. He appreciated the column. It really was like a eulogy. He liked to call me “Tree,” a nickname I acquired in college. After the column came out, he started getting calls from all over the state. He called to thank me. I told him, “Judge I’m in about 60 papers and about 30-40 of the papers send me copies of the paper and why don’t I gather those up and bring them to you and read what title they gave to your column.” He said, “Would you do that, Tree?” I said, “Yes, I would enjoy a visit.”
He had retired from the Senate and was back home in Tuscumbia. I drove to Tuscumbia for the day. Got there for breakfast and stayed all day. We perused the papers I had brought him, and I headed home. Ole Judge died a few weeks later and I traveled back up to the Shoals for his funeral. I was proud when the preacher used some excerpts from my column for Judge’s eulogy.
There was a throng of people at Judge’s funeral, including quite a few famous and powerful members of the U.S. Senate. I do not think that the Florence airport had ever seen that many private jets. I had already had my goodbye with Judge and the line was very long to greet “Mrs. Mikie,” Judge’s wife and Tom his son. Judge’s wife was from a prominent North Alabama family, the Carmichaels, thus he had coined her nickname “Mikie.” As I was leaving, I heard someone shout my name, “Tree, wait.” It was Tom Heflin, the only child of Judge and Mikie. Tom is a lawyer and a fraternity brother of mine from the University of Alabama. He said, “I want to tell you something. When we went into daddy’s bedroom the other morning and found him passed away, beside his bed was a large desk, and on the desk were all the papers you brought him the other day. He had read them just before he went to bed.” It made me feel very good. It is one of the most rewarding memories of my column writing days.
I will continue with more stories next week.
August 10, 2022 - Jim Oakley
A legend in Alabama newspaper, educational, and political lore, Jim Oakley of Centreville, turned 87 last month.
Jim is known statewide as the legendary owner, publisher, and editor of the Centreville Press newspaper. However, he has also been intertwined with Alabama politics for over six decades. If you only counted Jim Oakley, Jr.’s service to his city, Centreville, and his county, Bibb, he would be an icon. In addition, when you add his 33 years as an assistant dean and head of placement services at the University of Alabama, it qualifies him in my book and a good many Alabamians minds, as one of our state’s institutional legends.
Jim Oakley grew up in the newspaper business. Around 1915, his grandfather bought two local papers and combined them into the Centreville Press. His father, Jim Oakley, Sr., eventually took over the paper having been groomed for the job. Jim, Jr. always planned to follow his father. He went to the University of Alabama and of course majored in journalism. He met and married his wife, Shirley Ann Naramore of Prattville, at the University and after graduation he came back home to Centreville to run the family newspaper.
Governor Wallace appointed Oakley to the Alabama Commission of Higher Education (ACHE) where he served as chairman for 14 years. It was in this role when Kay Ivey was hired as executive director of ACHE. The person Kay Ivey looked to for help in her first campaign for state Treasurer was Jim Oakley. He has been her go to person for Bibb County for all her campaigns for Treasurer, Lieutenant Governor and Governor, including this last race this year.
Jim sold the Centreville Press in 1985, but continued to write his marvelous column. Less than two months later Joab Thomas, President of the University of Alabama and a longtime friend, called to ask Jim what he was planning on doing. Oakley replied, “I thought I would take up fishing.” Thomas told him he had been thinking that if he could find someone who had worked in the real world and really knew the newspaper business to come and teach students, it would be an asset to the journalism department.
That began a career at the University of Alabama that would last 33 years. He started off teaching journalism, then became the Director of Freshman Orientation of all University of Alabama students and culminated with being Head of Placement Services for the College of Communications. He helped hundreds of Alabama graduates find their first jobs in communications, TV, radio, digital and print media. Many are famous and most point to Jim Oakley as their mentor.
The post where he had the most impact was as Director of Freshman Orientation. He greeted and made to feel at home thousands of freshman students. He welcomed each and every one of them as though he was their grandfather. He amazingly remembered them all by name and where they were from and their parents’ names.
I will never forget the day I first met Jim. I knew who he was. He was legendary. He knew me from the legislature. I was taking my younger daughter to register and move into the famous Tutwiler dormitory. There was Jim waiting in the parking lot greeting every student. He gave me a warm handshake and hugged Allyson and made her feel at home. He looked after her like a grandfather for the next four years. Another young lady from Enterprise named Katie Boyd arrived that same day to move into Tutwiler. Jim took her under his wing the same way; she has just been elected as our next U.S. Senator. The first person she sought in Bibb County, when she began her race, was Jim Oakley. There are a thousand more stories like those of Katie and Allyson. Jim loved and cared for each of them like they were his own.
He has three children of his own, Mike, Bill and Melanie Kay. His oldest son, Mike Oakley, is the Mayor of Centreville as was his grandfather Jim Oakley, Sr.
For over 60 years now, all candidates for major statewide offices have come to Bibb County to kiss the ring of Jim Oakley and cultivate his friendship and support. Oakley has been friends and confidantes to every governor, including George Wallace and Kay Ivey. He has been close friends with many of our U.S. Senators, especially Jim Allen and Richard Shelby. He has mentored and helped almost every state representative and state senator, who have represented Bibb County over the years. His current Bibb County Senator, April Weaver, is one of his favorites.
Jim Oakley has a lot of friends in Alabama.
See you next week.
August 3, 2022 - Big Jim’s Show in 1962 Governor’s Race
The 1962 Governor’s Race was between George Wallace, James “Big Jim” Folsom, and newcomer Ryan DeGraffenreid, a state senator from Tuscaloosa. Television had become the new medium. Therefore, Wallace, Folsom, and DeGraffenreid had all bought 30-minute, live television shows the night before the election.
George Wallace came on first at 7:00 p.m. He did pretty well, not great, but he did not hurt himself.
Ryan DeGraffenreid came on at 7:30 p.m. He was magnificent. He helped himself immensely. He was telegenic and took to television like a duck to water. He was a hit and picked up some votes.
Big Jim came on last at 8:00 p.m. That was probably too late for Big Jim. They had him sitting on a sofa that was too small for him. His knees jutted up almost to his chest. Television advisors will tell you to look squarely into the camera. Obviously, the last thing Big Jim had been told before he went on the air was to look right into the camera. He hunkered down like he was staring a hole in the viewer the way he stared at the camera. Unfortunately, the advisor had forgotten to tell Big Jim to comb his hair. He had a wayward strand of hair hanging right down in his face.
His first words portended what was to come. His speech was slurred, and he was clearly drunk. After his opening statement of about four minutes, even though I was only 11, I could tell Big Jim seemed impaired. I walked back to my mama’s bedroom door where she was reading and I said, “Mama, you need to come in the living room and see Big Jim on TV. I believe he is drunk.” She walked in, glanced at him and assured me that was just Big Jim’s personality. She said he was putting on a show for the television audience. I think she was taking up for him because she was for him. So, I settled back in for the remainder of the show.
Big Jim had several children, so they were going to have him introduce his children one-by-one. Little Jim came out first and he did pretty well with him, “This is my little boy, Jim.” Although he did tousle his hair pretty badly. The second son, Jack, came out and Big Jim said, “This is my boy...” He stammered around trying to think of his name. Finally, he blurted out, “Boy what is your name?” The television folks dropped the idea of trying to introduce the rest of Big Jim’s family after that.
They let him start talking again. He was weaving back and forth. The long strand of hair was hanging right over his nose. He was now pontificating on the virtues of progressivism, free textbooks and Farm-to-Market roads. I called mama in again to view the spectacle. She stood there for a full two minutes with her mouth open and finally said, “Son, I believe you’re right. Big Jim is drunk.”
He finished by getting mad at George Wallace and calling him a cuckoo bird for trying to steal his platform. He waved his arms wildly for three solid minutes on statewide television mimicking a cuckoo bird.
Folks around the state had heard tales and rumors about Big Jim’s drinking for years. They had dismissed it as political talk. However, seeing Big Jim live and drunk on statewide television was an eyeopener. He never recovered. He failed to make the runoff the next day. Wallace led the ticket and DeGraffenreid edged Big Jim out of the runoff. Wallace beat DeGraffenreid in the runoff.
Later, Big Jim said Wallace’s people drugged him. This story is not likely. Big Jim had pretty much succumbed to alcohol by this time in his life. The night Big Jim came on television drunk was the end of his political career but it was a heck of a show.
Some old time political observers contend Big Jim would have won that 1962 race had he not come on television drunk the night before the election. I disagree. George Wallace was going to win that year because he had captured the race issue and exploited and demagogued it to get to the governor’s office, which he aspired to more than life itself. Big Jim would have finished second but Wallace would have pounded Big Jim in the runoff. Big Jim was soft on the race issue. He was a true progressive.
See you next week.
July 27, 2022 - 1962 Governor’s Race
It is hard to believe it has been 60 years since George Wallace’s first victorious race for governor. Let’s go down memory lane and reminisce about the 1962 Governor’s race and Wallace’s classic inaugural victory.
The 1962 Governor’s Race really began in 1958. The Governor’s chair and the race for it was the big show in Alabama politics in that era. Being a U.S. Senator was secondary in Alabama politics.
Governor is still probably the most important and glamorous political position, but it certainly was at that time. Television had not come into its own. Most Alabamians did not own a TV. There were no southern major league baseball teams to follow, such as the Atlanta Braves, who were still in Milwaukee at that time. The closest team was the St. Louis Cardinals, and they were miles away and not really in the south. The Grand Ole Opry was only on the radio on Saturday night. So, southerners had to include politics as a prime source of entertainment. That is why we had such colorful political characters. They were really our entertainers and, in some cases, real clowns. Thus, we had more entertaining politicians than the rest of the country. We had a legacy of Jimmy Davis and Huey Long in Louisiana, Bilbo in Mississippi, the Talmadges in Georgia, and the most colorful of all time was our very own 6’9” Big Jim Folsom.
Big Jim was the most uninhibited, gregarious, fun loving of them all. He traveled the state with his country band the “Strawberry Pickers.” Alabamians thought Big Jim’s barefoot musical antics and down home soaking the rich speeches spiced with country humor were better than the circus coming to town. Big Jim was first elected Governor in 1946. He upset the Big Mules of Birmingham and the Big Planters of the Black Belt to become the first people’s Governor in 50 years.
All twelve Governors before him had been picked in the closed door board rooms of Birmingham and had been well heeled Big Mules or Big Planters and had gone out and given dull speeches and simply bought the election with corporate and large agricultural money. Big Jim went directly to the country people all over the state and most people in Alabama at that time were rural or lived in small towns. He convinced them that he was their friend. He won their hearts. He became the youngest and most progressive Alabama Governor in history. He was the little man’s big friend. However, the Governor could not succeed himself. It was one four year-term, and you were out. So Big Jim left after four years, 1946-1950.
A quaint aristocrat named Gordon Persons became Governor from 1950-1954, but Big Jim came storming back to win a landslide victory in 1954. He won without a runoff, despite the fact that most of the State’s big daily newspapers endorsed other people and predicted he would lose. He became only the second person to be elected to two terms. Bibb Graves had done it earlier in the century. Big Jim served his second term from 1954-1958, then waited out another four years and was running for his third term in 1962. He was legendary by this time and had almost unanimous name identification as simply “Big Jim,” but he was up against another populist and maybe even better politician, George Wallace.
George Wallace had run his first race for Governor in 1958 and lost to John Patterson. Patterson had beaten Wallace for two reasons. First was sympathy for Patterson resulting from his daddy’s assassination at the hands of the Phenix City mafia, but primarily because Patterson was the most ardent racist and segregationist. Patterson was the candidate of the Klan and race was the issue in 1958. Wallace was considered the moderate, but Wallace woke up the day after the defeat and swore he would never be out-segged again.
After George Wallace’s loss to John Patterson in 1958, Wallace worked tirelessly for the next four years, 1958-1962, while Patterson served his only term as Governor. Wallace made sure he was the racist segregationist candidate in 1962.
Race was the only issue in the 1962 Governor’s race. Wallace rode the race issue to his first victory as governor, defeating Big Jim Folsom and State Senator Ryan DeGraffenreid of Tuscaloosa. That 1962 race had an interesting, entertaining, and historical twist to it that I will share with you next week.
July 20, 2022 - State Legislature will Remain Super Majority Republican
The Alabama Legislature will remain super majority Republican for the next quadrennium. As the dust settles from the May/June party primaries, there have been negligible if any party changes. There has been some shuffling on the deck of the GOP boat, but it has all been intraparty struggles.
By and large, both the House of Representatives and the Alabama Senate have remained safe havens for incumbents.
The Senate especially returns essentially intact. The entire leadership of the Republican led Senate will stay the same. The leaders of the State Senate, including Greg Reed, Jabo Waggoner, Clay Scofield, Arthur Orr, Greg Albritton, Clyde Chambliss and Steve Livingston, will all be back in their same leadership posts. The sterling freshman class of Senators will be Sophomores. This class of leaders includes Dan Roberts, Tom Butler, Sam Givhan, Will Barfoot, Garlan Gudger, April Weaver, Donnie Chesteen, Andrew Jones, Chris Elliott, Jack Williams and David Sessions. The Democratic leaders also return in entirety, including powers Bobby Singleton, Rodger Smitherman, Vivian Figures and Billy Beasley.
There seems to be a more harmonious working relationship among the Republicans and Democrats in the Senate that has not existed in past years. This body is poised to provide leadership for the state for the next four years.
The State House of Representatives will remain essentially the same, also. However, there has been more reshuffling in this Chamber, especially in the GOP ranks. The super majority Republican control will definitely continue to exist with at least 78 of the 105 seats remaining in the grasp of the Republicans. The House is probably more conservative than the Senate, although they are both pretty right wing.
The leadership of the House of Representatives will change. House Speaker Mac McCutcheon (R-Madison) and Speaker Pro Tem Victor Gaston (R-Mobile) are not seeking reelection. There has been an internal jockeying for Speaker between Steve Clouse (R-Ozark) and Nathaniel Ledbetter (R-Dekalb) going on for almost a year. It will continue until November when the Republican caucus makes their choice. The contest between Ledbetter and Clouse has been gentlemanly without discord or acrimony. Most House members hate to make a choice because both men are so well liked and respected. There will be harmony when it is decided, they will work together, and both will remain in a leadership position.
There is a cadre of Republican leadership returning to the House, including Clouse and Ledbetter. Republican leaders returning are Danny Garrett, Terri Collins, Ginny Shaver, Jim Hill, Paul Lee, Randall Shedd, Kyle South, Tracey Estes, David Standridge, Steve Hurst, Randy Wood, Jim Carns, David Faulkner, Reed Ingram, Rhett Marquis, Jeff Sorrells, Chris Sells, Chris Blackshear, Joe Lovvorn, Chip Brown and Chris Pringle.
House Democratic leaders returning are Chris England, Anthony Daniels, Peb Warren, Laura Hill, John Rogers, Mary Moore, Thomas Jackson, Sam Jones, Berry Forte, Dexter Grimsley and Barbara Boyd.
Incumbency is a potent, powerful, inherent advantage, especially in legislative races. There were a couple of incumbents taken out in the House within the Republican ranks. They were beaten by female future superstars. Indeed, this was a very good year for female Republican legislative candidates all over the state.
There are several new female legislators that are superstars and worth watching as leaders. Cynthia Almond of Tuscaloosa leads the list although she actually has a session under her belt. She won her seat without opposition last year. Almost every list includes Susan Dubose of Shelby County. She beat an incumbent even though her district was distorted to help him win. She won the old fashioned way. She worked hard. She started early and stayed late.
Ultra-Republican Baldwin County elected all females to represent them in the House of Representatives. Jennifer Fidler, Frances Holk-Jones and Carla Knight Maddox will make up the Baldwin delegation.
Lee Hulsey of Helena from District 15 in Jefferson/Shelby will be a quick study in the House.
It was not just the year of the woman in statewide races, the ladies have made a significant move in the Alabama House of Representatives.
See you next week.
July 13, 2022 - Women and Young Folks Prevail in 2022
In my observations of Alabama politics, every election year brings an underlying election year surprise or two. The underlying prevailing theme emerging from the Alabama political arena this year is that women have arrived politically in the Heart of Dixie.
Governor Kay Ivey is only the second female elected Governor of Alabama, Lurleen Wallace being the first in 1966. Governor Ivey won a decisive second-term nomination as the Republican nominee in May. She will face another female Democratic nominee, Yolanda Flowers, in the November General Election. This is the first time two women will face each other for governor.
In fact, the first and second place finishers in both the Republican and Democratic primaries were women. Governor Ivey was followed by Lindy Blanchard, who finished second in the GOP primary. Dr. Yolanda Flowers, a retired Birmingham educator, was in a runoff with second place Democratic female State Senator Malika Sanders Fortier in the Democratic primary.
Katie Britt emerged victoriously from the Republican U.S. Senate contest and if elected in November, as is expected, she will be the first female elected to the U.S. Senate from Alabama. Katie Britt is the brightest young star in Alabama politics. She is the new rock star of the state. Not only will she be the first female senator, but she is also the headliner for the second theme of 2022. That is, we have a pair of new youthful stars arriving on the scene as the dust settles from the June 21 runoffs. Wes Allen and Andrew Sorrell have become the new stars on the scene.
Wes Allen defeated veteran politico, Jim Ziegler, in the Secretary of State race. Andrew Sorrell bested Stan Cooke and Rusty Glover to become State Auditor. Both Sorrell and Allen were about to become freshmen members of the Alabama House this time four years ago. Now, they are the new stars on the statewide political block. They will be joining Lieutenant Governor Will Ainsworth as young constitutional officeholders with a future.
You have four young stars on the horizon in the state. Rockstar Katie Britt is 40, superstar Will Ainsworth is 41, star Wes Allen is 46 and star Andrew Sorrell is 36.
Another young superstar has arrived on the behind the scenes political consulting arena in Alabama politics. Twenty-seven year old Sean Ross ran the Katie Britt campaign masterfully. He is absolutely brilliant. He ran one of Twinkle Cavanaugh’s campaigns four years ago, when he was just graduating from the University of Alabama. Katie did a goods day’s work when she acquired his services with a recommendation from Twinkle. He is the hottest item in Alabama political consulting.
There were four vacancies in the Alabama State Senate. State Representative Merika Coleman, a Bessemer attorney, won a very impressive victory for the seat of retiring Priscilla Dunn. She is young and brilliant and is going to be a star in the Alabama State Senate.
Lance Bell won the seat of retiring state Senator Jim McClendon. Bell beat his opponent 73% to 27% in this Republican seat.
Keith Kelley emerged victorious over Wendy Ghee Draper in the Anniston based Republican seat of retiring veteran state Senator Del Marsh.
In probably the biggest upset surprise of the 2022 primary season was the victory of Josh Carnley to fill the Republican Southeast Alabama Senate Seat held for decades by the powerful and popular Jimmy Holley. This district is comprised of Coffee, Covington, Pike and part of Dale counties. Twelve-year veteran, State House member, Mike Jones of Andalusia was expected to waltz to victory having every business groups endorsement. Carnley carried his home county of Coffee, overwhelmingly, and veteran political consultant David Mowery did a masterful job with Carnley’s ads.
Popular first term state senator, Dan Roberts, was challenged by a self-financed urologist in Roberts’ silk stocking Jefferson/Shelby district but Roberts won handily.
For the first time in 40 years, there will not be a Sanders representing the Black Belt in the Alabama Senate. Veteran Senator Hank Sanders failed in his bid to take back his seat he loaned to his daughter, the aforementioned Malika Sanders Fortier. Hank Sanders had served nine terms as the Black Belt’s senator. He was defeated by Robert Stewart of Selma.
Jay Hovey won the coveted Lee/Tallapoosa/Russell County State Senate seat, prevailing over incumbent Tom Whatley by one vote.
For the most part, the powerful 35-member State Senate will return intact with only few new faces.
See you next week.
July 6, 2022 - Katie Britt won the Senate Race the Old Fashioned Way
Katie Britt won the Republican Senate Primary the old fashioned way. She got out and worked for it and earned it and, folks, she won big. She beat Mo Brooks 63% to 37% in the GOP runoff. Katie carried an amazing 66 out of 67 counties.
Katie Boyd Britt was born to win this Senate Seat at the youthful age of 40. Those of us around Alabama politics recognized early on that she had unique, God given leadership abilities and integrity. We watched her grow up in Enterprise. She won everything in the Wiregrass from Debate to Dance. When I saw her become Governor of Girls’ State as a junior in high school, I looked at Jack Hawkins, the Chancellor of Troy University, and said that young lady has governor or senator written all over her.
Katie went on to the University of Alabama and was elected Student Government President, then she graduated from Law School at Alabama. She practiced law briefly then became Senator Richard Shelby’s Chief of Staff for five years. She then headed the Business Council of Alabama for three years before beginning her journey to follow her mentor, Richard Shelby, in the U.S. Senate seat he has held for 36 years.
Some of us who have known Shelby and been his friends and confidantes for over three decades were told soon after his sixth reelection victory in 2016 that these last six years would be his last hurrah. He told us he was going to encourage and support Katie Boyd Britt to succeed him. He wisely knew because of her age and acumen she has the potential to be one of Alabama’s greatest senators.
The seniority system in the United States Senate is so enshrined and entrenched that in order to be great you have to serve awhile. In fact, in order to reach pinnacles of power in the senate you have to be there at least 20 to 25 years. We have had three great senators in Alabama history. Senator Shelby is the most powerful and accomplished. The other two are Lister Hill and John Sparkman, who served Alabama in the U.S. Senate for 30 and 32 years, respectively. They were both powers. By the way, both Hill and Sparkman were SGA Presidents at the University of Alabama like Katie Boyd Britt.
Katie is younger than Shelby, Hill and Sparkman were when they arrived in the U.S. Senate. She will have the distinction of being the first female elected to the Senate from Alabama as well as the first female Republican Senator from the Heart of Dixie.
There are several adages in politics that definitely apply to Katie’s overwhelming landslide victory. First of all, you do not ever want to get into a race where you are going to be outworked and outspent. She checked both boxes. She outspent her opponents significantly. Shelby made sure of that. Money is the mother’s milk of politics. More importantly, she worked this state like nobody’s business. She campaigned thoroughly in all 67 counties several times. It would be safe to say she outworked Mo Brooks and Mike Durant combined three to one. Katie built a statewide grassroots organization and it paid off with her carrying 66 of our 67 counties. She started early and stayed late.
Winning the GOP Primary for a U.S. Senate seat in Alabama is tantamount to election. However, Katie Boyd Britt will take nothing for granted. She will run hard and outwork her Democratic opponent, Will Boyd, and will prevail as expected in November.
The last minute Trump endorsement had no effect on behalf of Katie Boyd Britt. She was leading in all polls by 20 points with momentum and money on her side. She was going to win, overwhelmingly, on her own. It helped Trump a lot more than it did Katie. All he did was see a candidate who was going to win and jumped on the train. Thus, Trump used the old sayings, “I bet on a sure thing,” and “find a parade and act like you are leading it.” Katie knew Trump’s endorsement was not necessary. However, she graciously and quietly accepted and continued unabated to an impressive victory, which she earned on her own merits.
Katie Boyd Britt will hit the ground running when she takes office as our first female elected Senator in January. She could be in the Senate for 40 to 50 years and will become one of Alabama’s greatest U.S. Senators.
See you next week.
June 29, 2022 - Bill Baxley
The 1970 Governor’s Race between George Wallace and Albert Brewer overshadowed every other political race in the state that year. However, one of Alabama’s legendary political figures burst on the scene in 1970, when Bill Baxley was elected Attorney General of Alabama. The Attorney General’s race was below the radar screen of the titanic war waged by Brewer and Wallace.
Bill Baxley’s victory was a major upset. Baxley was a 28-year-old district attorney from the Wiregrass. He beat a veteran Attorney General MacDonald Gallion in a close race. Baxley became the youngest Attorney General in the nation when he was sworn in at the January Inauguration. He had just turned 29. His historic rise at such a young age made him fodder for national publications like Time Magazine, who featured him as one of the brightest rising stars in the nation. His brilliance gave new meaning to the word prodigy.
It was not immediately apparent to the voters of Alabama that they had elected a true progressive liberal as their Attorney General. They soon did when Baxley began aggressively attacking the Big Mules in Birmingham and throughout the state and consistently fought for the downtrodden in the state. He sued every Big Mule in sight, including U.S. Steel, for pollution and other environmental concerns during his 20-year career in state politics. Baxley never deviated or backed down from his progressive Democratic ideology, even when it might have been politically expedient to do so. He could not be bought. He was his own man and a true Alabama political statesman.
When Baxley won the 1970 Attorney General’s race over MacDonald Gallion, he openly and unashamedly courted liberals, labor and blacks to win the race. He did not do it for expediency, but because his heart was in it. Baxley was a true progressive Southern Democrat. He openly courted, embraced and built an overt friendship with labor leaders and black leaders such as Joe Reed.
Baxley was certainly a contrast to our race-baiting Governor George Wallace. Ironically, Wallace loved Baxley. Deep down Wallace was a hardcore, progressive who had lived through the Depression. He cut his teeth as a New Deal Democrat. Baxley forged a political career with epic historical milestones in Alabama politics. He was elected Attorney General in 1970 and again in 1974. He ran second for Governor in 1978 when Fob James came out of the blue to upset the “Three B’s” – Bill Baxley, Albert Brewer, and Jere Beasley in the governor’s race.
Bill Baxley came back in 1982 and was elected Lt. Governor. He served closely with George Wallace, who was serving his fourth and final term as Governor. They had a special friendship and spoke on the phone constantly. I think Wallace admired Baxley for being true to his principles. He also respected Baxley’s understanding of some of the golden rules of politics and that is “your word is your bond” and also “you dance with the ones who brung you.”
Bill Baxley was the Democratic nominee for governor in 1986. He was upset by Guy Hunt, who became the first Republican governor since Reconstruction that year. Bill Baxley left politics after that race and did what he really loved. He became one of the most prominent trial lawyers in Alabama. He loves the practice of law. He was born for it. For the last 36 years, he has been one of Alabama’s top lawyers and probably one of the most expensive. Baxley now resides in Birmingham and takes prominent cases all over the state.
Baxley was born and raised in Dothan. His daddy, Keener Baxley, was a well-respected Circuit Judge in Dothan. The Baxley’s were a prominent family and among the earliest settlers of Houston County. Young Bill Baxley grew up loving the law, politics and baseball. He grew up in his Daddy’s courtroom in Dothan and learned to love the law. There was never any doubt in his mind that he would be a lawyer by profession because he probably was not going to be a major league baseball player, which was every young boy’s dream at that time.
He was always brilliant, academically, and was gifted with a photographic memory. He skipped a grade in school and finished high school at age 15. He entered the University of Alabama at age 16. He graduated from college at age 19 and the University of Alabama Law School at age 22. After law school, he returned to Dothan to practice law. He was elected District Attorney for Houston and Henry Counties at the ripe old age of 25. Three years later he was elected Attorney General of Alabama. The rest is history.
Bill Baxley has a place in Alabama history. It is hard to believe that young Bill Baxley turns 81 this month.
See you next week.
June 22, 2022 - Do Campaign Ads Pander?
During the waning days of the campaigns for Governor and U.S. Senator, I received an inordinate amount of correspondence lamenting the outrageous, demagogic, disingenuous, negative ads, especially on television. The frustration can best be summed up by a thoughtful writer’s comments, “Steve, it is sad with all the issues we need to face in Alabama (health, education, infrastructure) we continue to dumb down our elections. I found the Kay Ivey ads revolting and racist.”
The writer went on to say that he was a Democrat, and he knew a Democrat could not win in Alabama and the best they could get is 40%. My response was, “Negative and dumbed down, overt racist ads work. If they didn’t, then these media gurus would not use them.” Over 65% of the ads used were negative, over the top ads that only had a scintilla of truth. Why, again? Because they work. I also told this reader that this vicious, atrocious simpleton advertising is not limited to just Alabama.
We are a right wing conservative Republican state and only conservative Republicans vote in a Republican Primary. This reader stated he is a Democrat. He probably did not plan to vote in the Republican Primary. Therefore, the ads were not designed to appease or attract him or his vote.
Ads are designed to pander to right wing, conservative Alabamians. Therefore, it is pretty clear that ads are going to depict their candidate as being against abortion, illegal immigrants and for having, owning, and shooting guns. The media gurus are obviously going to say that someone’s Republican opponent is for killing babies, letting Mexicans cross the border illegally and being against the Second Amendment.
Furthermore, allow me to take up for the Republican electorate of Alabama, who have consumed these ads. We are a red right wing Republican state. If you think these media gurus or hired guns, as I like to call them, are not moving to a left wing liberal state and doing the same thing to the left wing voters of California and New York, you are mistaken.
If you were to see the television ads in a California Democratic Primary, these hired guns would be revealing to the left wing, liberal base ads that show their candidates advocating that the governor should perform free abortions on demand during the third trimester on the Capitol steps, and every county in California should be made to open and fund transgender schools. The hired guns would further have a picture of their gubernatorial candidate holding a welcome sign and personally embracing all illegal immigrants crossing the border and gifting them a social security card, welfare check and voucher to any school in the Golden State, and of course giving them a democratic voting application regardless of whether they could read, write or speak English. Their gubernatorial candidate would follow up with a statement saying, “We as democrats do not care what this costs us because we do not believe in a balanced budget.” Then they would have their gubernatorial candidate erecting signs all over the state instructing all gun owners to turn over their guns, immediately, because the Second Amendment does not apply in California.
In short, we are a very diverse and very partisan nation. There is a lot of difference in political and social philosophy between California and Alabama. California is definitely a liberal Democratic state and Alabama is definitely a conservative Republican state.
The same hired gun political ad gurus travel from Alabama to California. They do not dwell on philosophy. They are hired to win elections. They design their ads to appeal to the base of the conservative Republican Party in Alabama and they design ads to pander to the left wing, liberal Democratic base in California.
As far as our Alabama GOP Primary, in defense of Kay Ivey, she was going to win reelection regardless of what her eight opponents did or how much they spent. She would have gotten 60% if there had not been $16 million of mostly untruthful negative ads thrown at her. She did not go negative against the eight novices that attacked her. Folks, Kay Ivey, ain’t anymore for abortions on demand than Mother Teresa.
In closing, negative ads work. It they didn’t work they would not use them. You always have and probably always will see negative ads. It doesn’t take a rocket scientist in Huntsville to understand that if you are trying to win a Republican Primary in Alabama, you pander to the conservative base voter. So, you ask, “Do campaign ads pander?” The answer is “Duh, yes.”
See you next week.