In 1999, then-Governor Don Siegelman, lobbied Alabamians as hard as he could to approve a so called “education lottery” for the state of Alabama. The Alabama Democratic Party pushed so hard for it that they were still a half million dollars in debt from their lottery campaign almost 15 years later. In spite of their […]

Yellowhammer has already written several times about how powerful and influential Alabama’s U.S. Senate delegation will be if Republicans re-take the Senate in November, but that doesn’t mean they’re not already moving the needle on issues now. Sen. Richard Shelby has long been considered a power player in the U.S. Senate, no matter which party […]

This week, AJ and the Alabama Eats crew are at John’s City Diner, a restaurant that has been a staple in downtown Birmingham for more than seven decades. “A 70-year-old institution — John’s Diner — 10 years ago was kind of transformed by us into a more modern take on some Southern favorites,” said John’s […]

MONTGOMERY, Ala. – Rep. Martha Roby (R-AL2) on Wednesday had some strong words for the Obama administration, whose foreign policy failures she believes have left the United States looking weak on the international stage. “Every American should be concerned about our international standing and our diminished ability to shape world events rather than be shaped […]

Behind-the-scenes battles between budget hawks and defense advocates inside the Republican majority in Congress have spilled into the public several times in recent years, with tea party-aligned budget hawks coming away victorious more often than not. The two Republican factions have, in this instance, been split between members who have continually pushed hard for across-the-board […]

(Above: PHOTOX’s YouTube ad) Filters for online photographs have become all the rage since Instagram burst onto the scene. Want your picture to look like it was taken on an old — excuse me — vintage camera? No problem. Need to lighten or darken it up? That’s easy. Those changes are made with a single […]

Jesse T. Smith, the Democratic Party’s candidate in Alabama’s 3rd Congressional District, has had trouble gaining much traction in the heavily Republican area. The 3rd District is rated R+16 on the Cook Partisan Voting Index, meaning that a generic Republican on the ballot starts with a 16-point advantage over a generic Democrat. On top of […]

Is having a Republican governor better for a state’s economy? According to a report by financial analysis website Market Watch, the answer appears to be “yes.” “Nine of the 10 fastest growing U.S. states in the fourth quarter of 2013 were controlled by Republicans governors, according to the most recently available data from the Bureau […]

Every Alabama taxpayer’s financial burden for the state’s debt is $14,000, according to a new analysis by Truth in Accounting, a non-profit government watchdog group. That’s the 17th highest financial burden per state taxpayer in the nation. According to The Daily Signal, a conservative blog backed by The Heritage Foundation, “Taxpayer burden is calculated by determining each taxpayer’s […]

AUBURN, Ala. — In an op-ed published by the Auburn-Opelika News on Sunday, Alabama House Speaker Mike Hubbard made the explosive claim that he believes President Obama is “targeting Alabama’s economy for political reasons.” Hubbard began by touting Alabama’s highly rated business climate, which he said has resulted in companies flocking to the state, most […]

When Inc. Magazine released its annual list of the fastest growing private companies in America last week, it was chock-full of firms operating in the high growth, high margin sectors of the economy that you would expect — investments, technology, financial services and pharmaceuticals, to name a few. But of the 57 Alabama companies that […]

The Daily Beast just released its latest list of the best high schools in the South, and two of Alabama’s premier secondary schools made the cut. Jefferson County International Baccalaureate School (JCIB) in Irondale came in at number 8, followed by the Alabama School of Mathematics and Science (ASMS) in Mobile at number 20. “We […]

30 local school superintendents from around Alabama have joined a lawsuit claiming the Alabama Accountability Act (AAA), a school choice bill passed by the Alabama Legislature in 2013, is unconstitutional, according to a report by al.com. The group of superintendents, who represent about 22 percent of Alabama’s 136 school districts, filed a brief asking the […]

Wisconsin congressman and former Republican vice presidential nominee Paul Ryan just released his latest book, “The Way Forward: Renewing the American Idea,” and made an appearance on the Alabama-based, nationally syndicated Rick & Bubba show Wednesday morning to promote it. “We’re fired up about this book,” said co-host Rick Burgess. “I’ve heard your passion, I’ve […]

Carly Chandler has had a significant impact on the State of Alabama in her short, 3-plus years on Earth. Carly’s Law, a bill legalizing a new treatment method for children with serious neurological and epileptic disorders, unanimously passed the Alabama Legislature earlier this year in a rare moment of bipartisan unity. RELATED: This 3-year-old is […]

The Alabama Tourism department decided in July to trade in the “Alabama the Beautiful” signs that have welcomed travelers to the state since 2003, and replace them with signs that say “Welcome to Sweet Home Alabama,” the state’s official marketing slogan. However, that doesn’t mean that Alabamians and out-of-staters alike aren’t still enjoying the incredible […]

Burger King, which has over 120 Alabama locations, is getting grilled this week by critics who say the company should not have made the decision to move its corporate headquarters out of the country after buying Canadian coffee and doughnut chain Tim Hortons in a deal worth over $11 billion. The combined company’s move to […]

Dr. David Platt, the 35-year old pastor of Birmingham’s Church at Brook Hills and New York Times bestselling author, has been tapped to serve as the next president of the International Mission Board (IMB). The IMB is the missionary-sending organization affiliated with the Southern Baptist Convention. It was initially established in 1845 as the Board […]

Big time college football programs like those at Alabama and Auburn have a nationwide — even worldwide — reach when it comes to recruiting the top talent. From private jets to helicopters, no expense is spared as coaches from the Tide and Tigers fan out across the U.S. delivering their pitches. As a result, both […]

Safe Choice Security News, a home security blog, recently ranked Alabama’s safest and most dangerous cities based on data gleaned from the 2012 FBI Crime Statistics report. “After comparing FBI statistics on violent crime rates in cities around Alabama,” Safe Choice calculated each city’s “crime index.” The higher the score, the safer a city is. […]

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You don’t have to be in Tuscaloosa, the state of Alabama, or even America, for that matter, to be among fans of the Alabama Crimson Tide. As a matter of fact, if you find yourself in Afghanistan — you know, for a weekend getaway, or something — just look up into the skies and there’s […]

In addition to being disastrous for American workers, Sen. Jeff Sessions (R-Ala.) believes President Obama’s reported plan to grant amnesty to 5 million illegal immigrants could prove to be “a security nightmare,” and make it more likely that terrorists successfully carry out an attack on the U.S. homeland. “Immigration agents already tell us that the […]

The Alabama Education Association (AEA) appears to be doubling down on its efforts to unseat as many Republican incumbents as possible during the 2014 election cycle. According to campaign finance disclosures first reported on by the Montgomery Advertiser, the AEA has taken out a $1.2 million loan from Regions bank, adding to a $500,000 loan […]