WASHINGTON – In a 5-4 decision on Tuesday, the Supreme Court ruled Section 4 of the 1965 Voting Rights Act unconstitutional in much-anticipated decision on the Shelby County v. Holder case. Chief Justice John Roberts wrote that the formula in Section 4 “is unconstitutional in light of current conditions” and called on Congress to revise […]

WASHINGTON – Rep. Mike Rogers, R-Saks, fired another salvo at the Obama administration on Monday by publicly releasing a letter he sent to President Barack Obama regarding the need for tougher enforcement of U.S. immigration laws. The letter was sent on the heels of the announcement that Immigration, Customs and Enforcement (ICE) director John Morton […]

Above: Rep. Mo Brooks appears on Fox News to discuss his new bill On the Fox News Channel on Monday, Rep. Mo Brooks, R-Huntsville, argued the merits of a bill he is sponsoring that would terminate any federal employee who refuses to testify before Congress when asked. Lois Lerner, the head of the Internal Revenue […]

Above: U.S. Senator Jeff Sessions discusses the Gang of Eight’s immigration proposal on CBS’s “Face the Nation” As the U.S. Senate prepares to vote Monday on a 1,200-page border security amendment to the “Gang of Eight’s” immigration bill, Senator Jeff Sessions continues leading the charge against the bill’s passage. During an appearance Sunday on CBS’s […]

WASHINGTON – The House of Representatives defeated the Federal Agriculture Reform and Risk Management Act, better known as the Farm Bill, by a 195-234 margin on Thursday despite the Alabama delegation voting for it 6-1, with the lone dissenter being Rep. Terri Sewell, D-Birmingham. The bill had been expected to pass, with some Democratic help […]

WASHINGTON – On Wednesday, South Dakota Republican Sen. John Thune, chairman of the Senate Republican Conference and member of the Senate Finance Committee, and Republican Texas Rep. Kevin Brady, chairman of the Joint Economic Committee and a senior member of the House Ways and Means Committee, re-introduced legislation to permanently repeal the federal estate tax, […]

On Wednesday, former Mobile County Commissioner Stephen Nodine expressed his interest in the congressional seat soon to be vacated by Rep. Jo Bonner, R-Mobile, even though he is still serving time in jail for a conviction on perjury and harassment charges. Nodine, serving as a Republican, resigned his county commission seat in 2010 after being […]

WASHINGTON – In a 7-2 decision announced on Monday, the Supreme Court ruled that states cannot require proof of citizenship for an individual to be added to voter rolls. “We conclude that the fairest reading of the statute is that a state-imposed requirement of evidence of citizenship not required by the Federal Form is ‘inconsistent […]

Above: Congressman Robert Aderholt discusses Syria on the Matt Murphy Show On Matt Murphy’s radio show on 100 WAPI in Birmingham on Tuesday, Rep. Robert Aderholt (R-Haleyville) explained why he is reluctant to support any U.S. actions in Syria, most notably citing concerns about who the United States would be arming against current Syrian President Bashar […]

Sen. Jeff Sessions on Friday announced the Senate Armed Services Committee had completed its mark-up of the annual defense bill. Sessions, a senior Republican member of that committee, noted the bill discounts some of the spending cuts from being targeted by sequestration. “I am happy to report that Alabama’s contribution to our nation’s security was […]

Above: Rep. Mike Rogers calls on the Obama Administration to “come clean.” WASHINGTON – Earlier this week Alabama Rep. Mike Rogers used his time in a one-minute speech on the House floor to call for more accountability from the White House in the wake of the rash of controversies that has hit the Obama administration […]

WASHINGTON — During a much-publicized Senate hearing on Wednesday involving cyber security and government surveillance, Sen. Richard Shelby took a lead role in questioning witnesses, including Gen. Keith Alexander, the head of the National Security Agency (NSA) and U.S. Cyber Command. Alexander’s testimony was particularly noteworthy coming on the heels of revelations that the NSA […]

Above: Highlights of Sen. Jeff Sessions’ immigration remarks on the Senate floor In a speech on the Senate floor on Wednesday, Sen. Jeff Sessions gave an impassioned plea to his colleagues supporting the “Gang of Eight” immigration reform bill to tell him how it would help Americans who are struggling in this economy. Here are […]

Above: Congressman Mo Brooks speaks on the floor of the U.S. House of Representatives WASHINGTON — On Wednesday morning, Congressman Mo Brooks took to the floor of the U.S. House of Representatives to attack the Obama administrations for abusing the trust of the American people, which he said makes the country more vulnerable to terrorism. […]

Above: Senator Shelby questions Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs Gen. Martin Dempsey WASHINGTON – On Tuesday before the U.S. Senate Defense Appropriations Committee, Sen. Richard Shelby quizzed Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Martin Dempsey over President Obama’s 2014 defense budget proposal. […]

Above: Attorney General Luther Strange discusses the ‘volunteer’ saliva and blood traffic stops on the Matt Murphy Show On Matt Murphy’s radio show on Tuesday on FM 100 WAPI in Birmingham, Alabama Attorney General Luther Strange reiterated what he had told Yellowhammer on Monday night, which was he had no prior knowledge of a federal […]

Above: WHNT report on NSA surveillance revelations, including comments from Alabama Congressman Mo Brooks In an interview that aired Sunday evening with Huntsville CBS affiliate WHNT’s Daniela Perallon, Rep. Mo Brooks spoke on recent revelations reported by the Guardian’s Glenn Greenwald last week that the federal government was engaged in surveillance of the so-called metadata […]

Above: Highlights from Sen. Jeff Sessions speaking on the floor of the Senate during debate on “Gang of Eight” immigration reform bill. WASHINGTON – On Friday morning, Sen. Jeff Sessions took the immigration debate to floor of the U.S. Senate to explain all the flaws with the recent immigration bill proposal that made its way […]

WASHINGTON – On Tuesday, Rep. Martha Roby of Alabama’s second congressional district took to the House floor to urge her colleagues to vote for an amendment to an appropriations bill that would forbid bonuses for Department of Veterans Affairs executives while more than 800,000 veterans await the bureaucracy to resolve disability claims. Roby sponsored the […]

WASHINGTON – In what was at times dramatic testimony before the House Ways and Means Committee on Tuesday, Becky Gerritson, president of the Wetumpka Tea Party, revealed the ordeal her organization went through while trying to obtain non-profit status with the Internal Revenue Service. Gerritson told the committee that IRS cashed check for her groups’ […]

WASHINGTON — Although it has been suggested that some portion of the U.S. Navy’s Littoral Combat Ship program, part of which is set to be built in Mobile, could be in danger with Rep. Jo Bonner’s sudden retirement announcement last week, Republican Sen. Richard Shelby’s office seemed to indicate there is little to be concerned […]

At a stop during his Alabama economic development tour at the Energex Tube facility in Thomasville on Thursday, Sen. Jeff Sessions had some strong words about the current immigration battle being waged on Capitol Hill for Ashley Knight of Mobile-CBS affiliate WKRG 5. (video above) “I’m telling you — I’ve looked at it, I’ve studied […]

WASHINGTON — Conservatives have frequently railed against Obamacare’s individual health insurance mandate, but in an unexpected twist, a group of Republicans in the U.S. House of Representatives is now floating the idea of imposing that same mandate on illegal immigrants. Whether or not the government should subsidize health insurance for immigrants seeking citizenship has been […]

WASHINGTON – While much of the fallout from Rep. Jo Bonner’s decision to leave Congress has been focused on who might be is successor, the impact his resignation could have on the region has been missed, particularly with regard to the Mobile-built Littoral Combat Ship (LCS). Bonner has been one of the fiercest defenders of the […]