December 13, 2012
Now that the dust has settled from the 2012 presidential contest we in Alabama are ready for the real horse race. Unlike most states where the race for the White House is the marquee event every four years, our focus has always been on the governor’s race and our local races.
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December 06, 2012
The Roy Moore victory continues to reverberate throughout the state. Whenever the subject of politics comes up it is the first subject of conversation.
Undoubtedly it is the political story of the year. Moore’s amazing resurrection triumph was astonishing. He was written off as an “also ran” candidate after dismally losing two races for governor in the past four years. Moore rode his horse to vote in Etowah County in both his primary and general election victories, and then watched the results flow in, especially from North Alabama. On both occasions it was evident that he was riding a wave of fundamentalist evangelical voting that carried him back to his old job as chief justice. He had been written off as dead, then lo and behold, to quote and old Baptist hymn, “Up from the grave He arose with a mighty triumph o’er his foes.”
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November 29, 2012
It would appear that being a state legislator is an exciting and challenging experience. Some of you might think that a legislator’s average day is spent molding pubic policy and debating important measures that could have dramatic effects on the lives of their constituents. However, let me tell you from experience that much of a legislator’s day in Alabama is spent voting on mundane local bills that only apply to our 67 counties.
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November 22, 2012
In surveying the results from the election returns from two weeks ago, you realize that the country is deeply divided. It is as though we live in two Americas.
Voters nationwide are definitely in two different camps, especially on social issues. Democrats are fervently in favor of same-sex marriage, legalized abortion and social welfare programs. The Republicans are totally opposite on these issues just as adamantly, if not more so.
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November 15, 2012
The 2012 Presidential Election year is now history and nothing has changed. There is absolute status quo in Washington. You have the same president, the same Democratic majority in the Senate and the same Republican majority in the U.S. House of Representatives. That, my fellow Alabamians, is a recipe for continued gridlock.
Our federal government has to find a way to get along and end deficit spending. We have to come to grips with our spending more money than we bring in or we will continue to exacerbate our vulnerability and decline as a nation.
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November 08, 2012
Unfortunately, my column had to go to press before the outcome of Tuesday’s election was known. I will discuss the election results next week. In the meantime, I would like to share with you a story about the presidency.
Several weeks ago, I wrote a column many of you enjoyed about the success of small town boys in Alabama politics. It concluded with the fact that since 1946 Alabama has had 14 small town governors and only two city governors. Well, I can do better than that for presidents.
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November 01, 2012
The nation will elect our 45th president this Tuesday. The word elect is a misnomer. We do not
elect our president. They are selected by the Electoral College. This is a travesty. It is amazing
and appalling that in a country that espouses being the greatest democracy in the world that we
do not have a direct election of the president where the candidate who receives the most votes
from all of the voters throughout the entire nation wins.
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October 25, 2012
Our congressional delegation will more than likely return intact in two weeks. All seven of our congresspeople must run every two years. However, very few are ever sent home. Members of Congress have the highest retention rate of any political group in the world, with the exception of the Soviet Communist Politburo.
Once a person is elected to Congress they have a 90% chance of reelection. The percentage increases after they have been in office for several terms. Most people in the private sector wish they had that kind of job security.
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October 18, 2012
One of the most far reaching and significant accomplishments enacted by the legislature earlier this year is the revamping of the state’s retirement benefit system for state workers. The legislature’s changes to pension benefits for future teachers and public employees should save taxpayers billions and ensure the viability of the state retirement system for decades.
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October 11, 2012
The November 6th Presidential Election is less then four weeks away. It will not be very close or interesting here in the Heart of Dixie. The only question to be decided is the margin by which Mitt Romney will slaughter Barack Obama in the state.
It was ugly four years ago. McCain beat Obama 64 to 36 in 2008. My guess is that it will be by about the same numbers this year. That, my friends, is what you call a landslide. In some corners it can be referred to as a shellacking.
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