When Adam Andrews was born, the attending nurse said, “This boy’s got him some big hands. My people say that means he gon’ be a preacher!” That was sixteen years ago. Adam still has big hands. Huge, in fact. Offer him a shake of your hand sometime and see for yourself. And while he enjoys […]

In the 2015 Alabama Legislative Session, the Legislature passed legislation that required all county candidates and political action committees running for public office to file campaign finance reports with the Alabama Secretary of State’s Office. The 2015 legislation did not change the requirement for all state candidates to file with the Alabama Secretary of State’s […]

Down here on the Gulf Coast, fishing is a way of life for many people. It is a tradition that spans generations and is one way we bond with our family and friends. In fact, some of my fondest memories happened while casting a reel. I remember my father showing me how to bait a […]

It’s no secret that the national debt continues to become an ever-increasing problem in this country. The number has now cleared $20 trillion, and with every dollar added, it becomes ever more critical that we find ways to cut spending and balance the budget. That’s why I’m proud that the Trump Administration recently submitted to […]

Jane and George quietly play together in the summer sun until it comes to an abrupt halt with one scream. Mom races out the front door and finds Jane clutching her bleeding knee and pointing her dagger-sharp finger at her brother. “He pushed me!” Jane wails. George stands at a distance holding Jane’s favorite toy, […]

Fiction has a way of showing us things that would otherwise go unnoticed. I’m ashamed to admit it, but I recently completed C.S. Lewis’ classic work The Screwtape Letters for the first time. I can honestly say, within the pages of this book, I’ve learned lessons that may save my life. Lewis’ satirical apologetic has […]

In 2014, Matthew Durham arrived in Kenya from Oklahoma to serve as a summer missionary in a Nairobi orphanage. Today, he is serving a 40-year prison sentence. Why? Matthew Durham sexually abused four children multiple times in the month he spent in that Kenyan orphanage. But Matthew Durham is an exception, right? Isn’t he just […]

As many of you may have seen recently, Fake News and liberal groups have blamed President Trump with false allegations saying his Administration is to blame for “losing” illegal immigrant children by separating them from their families. What these groups fail to disclose is that these phonies are using photos of illegal immigrant children from […]

You voted Tuesday on a crowded ballot. Historically, in Alabama we have voted more heavily in our Governor’s race year than in a presidential year. That is probably because we were more interested in the local sheriff and probate judge’s races, which run in a gubernatorial year, than who is president. The old adage, “all politics is local,” […]

These days, it is hard to turn on the television or log onto the Internet without being bombarded with the latest “news” of what is happening in Washington. The media gives far too much attention to names like Stormy Daniels and Roseanne instead of focusing on the wide range of substantive issues being debated in […]

Congress was recently out of session for a district work period, and I used this valuable time to travel throughout Alabama’s Second District to visit with my constituents, outstanding local leaders, businesses, and more. During the week of district work, I made stops in Troy, Daleville, Dothan, Opp, Montgomery, and Prattville. I greatly appreciated everyone […]

The journey of being a state legislator who remains open to all Alabamians, makes my time in the legislature worthwhile. My time as a senator would mean little, if it was chalked up to merely sitting in an office. Over the course of my time in office, it has been my joy and a privilege to […]

Three years ago, shortly after my first son was born, I made the life-changing decision to become a stay-at-home mom. While it was something I always considered when I pictured myself as a mother, it wasn’t an easy choice for me like it was for many SAHMs I know. In fact, I went back to work and agonized […]

Amidst the ongoing opioid crisis, government agencies are warning about the rise of another deadly illegal drug methamphetamine. As the New York Times noted earlier this year, methamphetamine has “never been purer, cheaper or more lethal.” Here are five facts you should know about this forgotten killer. 1. Methamphetamine is a stimulant drug usually used […]

A brief perusal of current events or pop culture will make one acutely aware that Christians are not home in this world. As the author of Hebrews stated it, “They seek a city that is come” (Heb. 13:14). While a new city is coming (Rev. 21:1-27), Christians still live in a context and culture that […]

The State of Alabama has received international fame in recent years for all the wrong reasons. Corrupt leadership, pay to play politics, and entrenched Montgomery lobbyists earned us headlines we don’t want to repeat. I believe Alabama can do better. I believe Alabama deserves better! It’s time for new leadership in the state. Someone with […]

Summer driving season is here, and motorists nationwide are seeing an unwelcome sign (literally): higher gas prices. As a result, politicians are playing the blame game, pointing the finger at the Trump administration for higher pain at the pump. But what’s really going on, and is there anything policymakers can do? The law of supply […]

Typical Southern Baptists are barraged with the message that gender is a social construct, which means that gender is something subjective and not the result of nature, purpose, or design. They hear this message on television, in movies, in popular songs, in schools, and even in corporate training material. Southern Baptist churches need to educate […]

It is one thing to hear about the Mobile-Tensaw River Delta, with its 600 species of animals and dozens upon dozens of swamps, rivers, creeks, bayous, marshes and patches of wetlands. It is another thing entirely to actually see the delta up close – to fish its waters, paddle its streams and tramp through its forests. That is […]

In my book, “Of Goats and Governors: Six Decades of Alabama Political Stories,” I suggest that based on seniority, tenure, power and prestige that Alabama’s greatest senators have been Lister Hill, John Sparkman, and Richard Shelby. Folks, Richard Shelby has probably forged to the front of that triumvirate with his elevation to the chairmanship of the Senate Appropriations […]

In the wake of the recent horrific school shootings in Santa Fe, Texas, and Lakeland, Florida, and today’s tragic events at a middle school in Noblesville, Indiana, I found myself reviewing another opinion piece that I wrote in December of 2012. That one was written in the aftermath of the Sandy Hook shooting in Connecticut. […]

It’s been three short months since the deadly school shooting in Parkland, Florida, left 17 people dead , and America has suffered from yet another school shooting. This time in Santa Fe, Texas, where 10 people were gunned down on Friday. As we’ve come to expect, it’s trending on every social media platform and news […]

The following is adapted from a speech delivered at Hillsdale College on April 18, 2018, during a two-week teaching residency at Hillsdale as a Pulliam Distinguished Visiting Fellow in Journalism. Our nation is about to be transformed, thanks to the #MeToo movement. I am not speaking about a cessation of sexual predation in the workplace. […]

As Americans, we know all too well that freedom is not free. Each time we bow our heads to pray or speak up for what we believe in, we exercise rights that many across the world do not have. These are just some of the unique freedoms that the brave men and women of the […]