Southeast small business owners, homeowners, and renters: hurricane season is in full swing, and will run through the end of November. At the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA), we don’t ask if a storm’s coming; we ask when. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) is predicting a busy Atlantic season — with 19 named storms and up […]

Before the Declaration of Independence, there was the Olive Branch Petition. Written 250 years ago today, the Olive Branch Petition was Thomas Jefferson’s first attempt to explain to King George III why the American Colonies were rebelling and ask for reconciliation. The “Shot heard ‘round the world” had been fired almost three months earlier, and […]

In bygone days in Alabama politics, there were several what I call “go to” events for statewide Alabama politicians and potential candidates. Today, there is one, the Dekalb/Henager Ledbetter/Livingston 4th of July Breakfast. About 10 years ago, two powerful North Alabama legislators – Speaker of the Alabama House of Representatives Nathaniel Ledbetter and State Senator […]

The national debt exceeds $36 trillion with a projected $1.9 trillion to be added in 2025. Critics contend that placing entitlement programs like Social Security and Medicare off limits dooms Uncle Sam to bankruptcy. Can we contain entitlement spending? Let’s first be precise about entitlement programs. Despite the name, the U.S. recognizes no right to […]

The 2025 Legislative Session was my second representing House District 16, which includes all of Fayette, northern Tuscaloosa, and western Jefferson Counties. After winning this seat in a contested special election in 2024, I have worked every day with one goal — to bring more jobs and opportunity and an even higher quality of life […]

A political stalwart in our state, George McMillan, passed away Easter weekend at 81 in Birmingham. George was born for politics in Alabama. He was a born leader. He had an exuberant, vivacious personality that people gravitated to and made it difficult not to like him. It was apropos that his funeral was really like […]

This July, hundreds of newly matched medical residents are expected to begin their postgraduate training in hospitals and clinics across Alabama. It’s a time-honored transition that sustains the future of healthcare in our state—particularly in underserved and rural areas. But this year, a crisis threatens to halt that process entirely, with devastating consequences for communities […]

We’re done with the days of Alabama being overlooked in discussions of national economic vitality. It’s taken decades of regional cooperation, ingenuity and soft diplomacy, but a new era has emerged across the state as more and more industries are planting their flag in Alabama’s rich red soil. We’re all aware of the stereotypes about […]

As a physician and as a legislator, my duty is to safeguard the well-being of the people I serve—both in the exam room and in the statehouse. That is why, in 2021, I proudly sponsored Alabama’s Compassion Act, which legalized medical cannabis for patients with debilitating conditions. As an anesthesiologist, I have seen firsthand how […]

Rioters have rampaged through downtown Los Angeles. They have attacked law enforcement, thrown Molotov cocktails, launched mortars, and driven vehicles into police officers. They have vandalized local businesses and torched buildings. They have waved the Mexican flag while defacing the American flag. And they have terrorized law-abiding citizens, making them scared to leave their homes. […]

We are living longer. A lot longer. And, that longevity is throwing a monkey wrench in the system and creating a generation “sandwiched” between their children and their aging parents For those in the sandwich generation, life can often feel like a never-ending game of Whack-A-Mole. Just as you help one family member with a […]

Like many of you, I have lived in Alabama all of my life. Therefore, I am an avid college football fan. As a boy, I followed Major League Baseball, but as an adult, I barely watch or pay attention to professional sports. However, I feel compelled for some reason, I guess as an American Patriotic […]

As students, we all remember the emphasis our teachers and administrators placed on finishing high school and getting our diplomas. Today, most people assume that everyone has a high school diploma, but the reality is that some students still drop out. We all know that dropping out of high school is truly a fork-in-the-road moment. […]

Imagine quietly invading a foreign country without making the first threat, firing a single bullet, or raising any alarm. Instead of taking hostile action, you simply purchase the nation you are invading one acre at a time. That is exactly what China is doing in the United States today. It is becoming increasingly obvious that […]

Although complaints about dog deer hunting have fallen dramatically in the past several years, dog deer hunting has continued to cause conflicts, particularly around the Talladega National Forest. The Alabama Conservation Advisory Board provided Conservation Enforcement Officers with the Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources’ (ADCNR) Wildlife and Freshwater Fisheries (WFF) Division another tool […]

Oct. 7, 2023, didn’t happen in a vacuum. The effects of the deadliest terrorist attack in Israel’s history reverberated across the globe, and this evil found its way into the dark corners of our homeland. The Jewish people have been persecuted for centuries, but many Jewish Americans are experiencing violence today that they’ve never witnessed […]

As a physician, I’ve witnessed firsthand the growing gap between patients and the care they need – fueled by a physician workforce stretched thin. Rising costs, declining reimbursement rates, physician burnout and the increasing cost of liability insurance all make it harder to recruit and retain doctors in Alabama. But a new law, passed by […]

When President Trump first announced his campaign in 2015, I remember telling my sons, Tucker and Troy, that he was exactly the leader our country needed. Unlike most politicians, he’d actually had a real job building and running a successful company. For decades, Donald Trump had been adored by Hollywood, musicians, elites, and the media. […]

That great standard of liberty, the Magna Carta, is 810 years old this month. Historians and political scientists have examined its provisions extensively, carefully allocating each clause to various rights and freedoms we now take for granted. Indeed, it is a fascinating inquiry to consider that so many centuries ago, various rights now considered standard […]

When Republicans finally took control of the Alabama Legislature in 2010, they put a conservative stamp on Alabama’s legislative process and lawmaking. They have made sure that Alabamians, and for that matter the rest of the country, know that Alabama is a ruby red Republican state, both socially and fiscally. A good bit of the […]

For the past four months, legislators met in Montgomery to address issues that affect Alabamians every day. Lawmakers brought back a handful of victories to their districts – policies that will directly impact their neighbors’ quality of life and shape their communities for years to come. They also returned with a litany of accomplishments that […]

For too long, Alabama conservatives have had to settle. We’ve watched the Republican supermajority in Montgomery expand the size of government, increase spending, and delay the reforms we were promised. With Senator Tommy Tuberville’s announcement that he’s running for Governor, we finally have the opportunity to change that. This is more than a campaign, it’s […]

Elon Musk has stepped away from DOGE to run his companies full time. Numerous commentators suggest that DOGE has failed. I see DOGE as a crucial step in disrupting Washington’s culture of spending. DOGE could never cut spending by $2 trillion by itself. Discretionary Federal spending, the portion approved by Congress annually, was only $1.8 […]

My neighbor stopped me to announce he’d taken up lawn care as a second job. He asked if I’d be interested in patronizing him. I’ve always taken care of our yard, without charge, but I know sometimes things happen on weekends, or I get rained out. “How much would it cost?” I inquired. “Probably about […]