March 08, 2012
We are less than one week away from the primary. That is singular for one primary. We are now a one party state when it comes to statewide politics. The only reason that anyone will ask for a Democratic ballot Tuesday is if they want to vote for a local candidate for judge or county commissioner.
Only one Democrat qualified to run for any of the statewide judicial races this year. Harry Lyon is a perennial joke candidate who simply puts his name on the ballot every year. The last time he was on the ballot he received half a percentage point of the vote.
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March 01, 2012
As the 2012 Legislative Session evolves, I am reminded of my days as a legislative page during the early 1960’s. George Wallace was governor and the Capitol Press Corps was remarkable. Television had not yet become the premier medium. Newspapers were still King of the Hill.
The capitol reporters who covered Goat Hill were legends. The most legendary was Bob Ingram of the Montgomery Advertiser. Others included the likes of Al Fox of the Birmingham News, Hugh Sparrow of the Birmingham News, Rex Thomas of the Associated Press, Don Martin of UPI and Clarke Stallworth of the Birmingham Post Herald. A young cub reporter named Jim Bennett joined Stallworth in 1961. With the passing of the Mobile Press Register’s Bill Sellers in February 2011, Jim Bennett may be the last surviving member of the famous 1964 Capitol Press Corps.
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February 22, 2012
Our legislative branch of government is the recipient of many slings and arrows. They, along with members of Congress, are generally at the bottom of public opinion polls. They are the object of ridicule and are generally castigated as crooks. It is a shame because most of these men and women are outstanding people who are striving to serve their state. Many are stellar business people and professionals who are giving their retirement years to public service. However, as soon as they put their names on the ballot and are elected they are then relegated to the term politician, which has a dubious perception.
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February 16, 2012
Most political observers were shocked and somewhat in awe when State Senator Scott Beason chose to challenge veteran congressman Spencer Bachus in a Republican primary. Beason’s Don Quixote mission is a pragmatic approach to move up the political ladder in a normal setting. Beason is in the middle of a four-year term and has a free shot at the 20 year veteran congressman.
However, this scenario is so surprising because Beason has written the book on how to get bad publicity, especially in that particular Jefferson/Shelby County suburban district. It is almost comical that someone would seek higher office after being stripped of a powerful senate committee by his fellow Republicans because of embarrassing escapades. Then he was castigated as a racist and opportunist by a federal judge. He single handedly and arrogantly refused to allow Jefferson County to avoid bankruptcy. He also sponsored the immigration bill that made the state look racist and intolerant. I guess Beason’s theory in his quest is that any publicity is good publicity.
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February 09, 2012
The 2012 Regular Session of the Legislature begins this week. The Republican majority House and Senate produced a prolific amount of conservative legislation in their inaugural session of the quadrennium last year. Included in their initial year was a controversial immigration law, a voter identification law, anti abortion legislation and tort reform legislation just to name a few. They also dealt with congressional reapportionment. It was an extremely productive session. It will be interesting to see what they do for an encore.
One of the foremost issues will be to deal with their own legislative district lines. They will have to redraw all 105 House districts and 35 State Senate districts to correspond with population changes occurring from the 2010 census. This project could be controversial. However, they may be able to handle it as easily as they did congressional redistricting.
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February 02, 2012
Believe it or not the 2012 election season is upon us. The legislature, in a cost savings measure last year, moved our primaries up to March 13. Our presidential preference primary and our regular primary will be on the same day, which is less than six weeks away.
Most of the contests this year will be for judicial posts. Five of our nine Supreme Court seats are up for election, along with several appellate court positions. One of the three public service commission offices, the presidency, is also on the ballot.
All seven members of our congressional delegation have to run every two years. Therefore, they are always running. Our delegation to Washington is made up of six Republicans and one Democrat. We have two females and five males. All seven are seeking reelection to Congress.
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January 26, 2012
The second round of the gambling corruption trial begins this Monday in Federal Court in Montgomery. Last year’s first trial ended in a victory for all defendants. A jury of 11 women and one man quickly returned not guilty verdicts on 91 charges and could not reach a unanimous decision on 33 charges. Two defendants, Montgomery State Senator Quinton Ross and lobbyist Bob Geddie, were cleared of all charges. The remaining seven defendants go on trial Monday. The odds favor their acquittal.
In the first trial the defendants’ lawyers were so confident that the prosecution had failed to make a case that they never even offered any rebuttal testimony. The 91 to 0 score proves that they were correct in their course of action. The federal government spent millions of taxpayer dollars, used every trick in the book, and spent weeks offering testimony and witnesses and still got embarrassed by the decision.
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January 19, 2012
Last week I discussed the inordinate power that Black Belt senators wielded in the legislature during most of the past century. This power was garnered through the practice of Black Belt counties’ wisdom in keeping their legislative delegation in place for a long time. They seldom would be opposed and would usually die in office. This created a wealth of knowledge, experience and seniority for the region. However, the primary reason was that the state legislature was egregiously malapportioned.
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January 12, 2012
Ever since Alabama’s creation as a state in 1819 there has existed a political rivalry between North and South Alabama. This tug of war has mostly been played out in the legislative arena. The North Alabamians have perceived, and rightfully so, that they have generally gotten the short end of the stick.
Historically, this advantage has gone to the area of the state known as the Black Belt. This area runs across the southern and middle portion of the state and has rich black soil. This fertile soil was conducive to growing cotton, which was the South’s staple cash crop for over 100 years. Therefore, the planters who owned this rich soil became rich from the cash it produced. They also owned all of the slaves in the state.
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January 05, 2012
The older you get you realize that old adages you heard as a child are actually accurate such as sayings like “if you have your health you have everything.” Golfers will attest that the sporting phrase, “you drive for show and putt for dough” or “it ain’t how you drive, it’s how you arrive” are par for the course.
The most on point political analogy is that “money is the mother’s milk of politics.” It is generally the truest test of the viability of a campaign. Generally speaking, the best political candidates are the best fundraisers. Many times an incumbent candidate’s large political war chest wards off opposition. A good example would be our senior U.S. Senator Richard Shelby. It would be ludicrous for a challenger to take on Shelby, who has a campaign account bulging with $18 million. Shelby should start a fundraising school for aspiring politicians.
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