My next book on Alabama politics will expound on who I believe have been the top 60 political leaders in Alabama over the past 60 years. More than likely in any political historian’s book George Wallace and Senator Richard Shelby would rank as the top two. The question is, “Who gets the number one spot?” […]

Sports across the world are beginning restarts. Germany’s top soccer league resumed in May, while NASCAR, the UFC and the PGA tour are back underway. Yet are sports truly worth risking a deadly illness? The assumption of risk provides a guiding principle. Adults should be free to engage in risky activities. Voluntary, informed consent makes […]

Many years ago, as a younger lawyer, I was crossing the street to the courthouse when I met a familiar black woman. We exchanged pleasantries, and she flattered me. “You sure do look like that lawyer on that movie, ‘A Time to Kill.’” I appreciated the compliment, though I’m not sure how Matthew McConaughey, who […]

These last few weeks have riveted the country’s attention on police brutality. The murder of George Floyd was an atrocity, and unfortunately it’s not the first one. As we have so often in our history, it’s time for America to respond with appropriate and reasonable reform. It’s not time to lose our heads, however. The […]

Stay safe and stay smart. Since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, this is how I’ve ended most of my email correspondence. However, it now strikes me that “stay smart” might also be good advice for my beloved Alabama. It is unwise and unproductive to expend our energy wishing for a return to normal. Rather, […]

With all that the nation and state have been through recently, what we cannot forget is another tragic murder of an Alabama police officer. Moody Police Sergeant Stephen Williams was shot and killed in the line of duty two weeks ago after responding to a 911 call. Williams was posthumously promoted to the rank of […]

In just a few weeks, fireworks will illuminate the night sky, parades will proceed down Main Streets, and the American people, even while social distancing, will pause to celebrate the Fourth of July, or Independence Day. And what event are we commemorating? Not a military victory, not a birth or death, but a mere vote! […]

The American economic landscape has changed considerably over the past few months as coronavirus (COVID-19) has extremely halted activity across the country. Several weeks have passed since Alabama’s economy slowly began to reopen following a phased approach with the amended Safer at Home public health order. The bold action taken by government and public health […]

I’m a white male from Birmingham, Alabama. It’s time we had a talk. I’m 42 years old, born in 1978. I grew up both literally and figuratively in the shadows of the Civil Rights movement and was lucky enough to have two parents, both teachers, who took that as a unique opportunity to educate me […]

First, it was the public health experts whose projections were wrong about COVID-19. They predicted far more spread of the disease, and death from it, than we have actually experienced.  They also predicted that those states which opened up before others would have a widespread breakout and a spike of hospitalization, and that hasn’t happened […]

Like millions of Americans across the nation, my family and I were shocked, angered and saddened by the video that documented the death of George Floyd while in custody of Minneapolis police officers. Anyone who reviews the footage quickly understands that it was a tragic and negligent death and could have easily been avoided. In […]

In America, law enforcement officers, not the outlaws, control the streets. Sadly, that is not true in so many other countries around the world. We cannot allow the radical left activists and Antifa terrorists to succeed in bringing those same failures here. They are in full attack mode, demanding that America “defund the police” so […]

The killing of George Floyd by Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin ignited nationwide protests. While we advise jurors to withhold judgment until presentation of all the evidence, video of the incident seems definitive. Mr. Floyd joins a much too long list of minority victims of police violence. Justice may be served in Minneapolis. The four […]

The human toll of COVID-19 is unprecedented in Alabama, and businesses of all sizes have taken a shellacking due to the pandemic. As such, our tactical focus for workforce development has transitioned from filling positions in the tight labor market we enjoyed in February to pandemic response, incumbent worker training and dislocated worker training today. […]

I was a young teenager in the late 1960s, but I remember the riots and violence that occurred around the country, and especially in the large cities. I was concerned that we were headed down that road again with racial violence around the country in the summer of 2016, President Obama’s last year in office. […]

Have we gone mad? In liberal cities and states, American citizens are more likely to be arrested for attending church than for fire-bombing one – as a crowd of rioters tried to do in Washington, D.C. Enough. Americans cannot and will not abide this violence and destruction any longer. If any government official does wrong, […]

The COVID-19 pandemic has sent shockwaves through the global economy. But recovery is on the horizon and one critical industry in Alabama – the metallurgical coal industry – is poised to help lead the way. When most Americans think of coal, they think electricity, but metallurgical coal – called “met” for short – is used […]

In taking on the political establishment and draining the swamp, President Trump has had no greater ally than Jeff Sessions. Alabama would be well-served to have him back as our United States Senator. During the first two years of the Trump administration, I saw Senator Sessions’ commitment to the president’s agenda first-hand as one of […]

In March, states undertook dramatic and unprecedented measures to stem the spread of the SARS2-COV virus. And yet COVID-19 has claimed 100,000 lives in the United States. Was the lockdown effective? Economists frequently address such questions in our research. Seeing the unseen, or the path that we did not choose, is the key here. It […]

I remember the collective groan that went up from motorists when “red light cameras” became a thing. Suddenly, it didn’t matter if the police were around to see you push your luck with a changing traffic light. Big Brother always would. The heightened accountability at busy intersections felt a bit creepy and oppressive, but most […]

When voters defeat a proposed state amendment, it is often thought that the matter is put to rest. That is often the case, but when Alabama’s voters went to the polls in March and shot down a proposal to replace the elected state board of education in favor of one appointed by the governor, they […]

As you may know, May is Mental Health Awareness Month. Mental health has become a pressing issue, impacting tens of millions of people each year in the United States. Nearly one in five American adults live with mental health disorders and illnesses according to the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH). The coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic […]

Over the past four years during my travels and speaking events over the state, the most asked question posed to me has been, “Why in the world is Mike Hubbard not in jail?” It was four years ago in June 2016 that the speaker of the Alabama House of Representatives, Mike Hubbard, was convicted by […]

As the economic crisis due to the coronavirus has impacted our state, Alabama’s job creators and our state’s workers have been focused on reopening our state and getting back to work. Before the coronavirus, Alabama’s economy was strong and one of the biggest challenges many Alabama businesses faced was filling vacant jobs with skilled workers. […]