April is National Autism Awareness Month and as the father of a child on the autism spectrum, I know firsthand the importance of raising awareness for the 50,000 Alabamians impacted by autism. Affecting one in every 68 people, autism has become the country’s fastest growing developmental disability. I have spent the past decade advocating to […]

I recently read with interest an op-ed written by retired U.S. Supreme Court Justice John Paul Stevens calling on the American people to “repeal the Second Amendment” in the name of making us safer. I could not disagree more. I have been a prosecutor for 20 years. I support efforts proven to reduce crime, protect […]

Let’s face it: It can be tough to eat right. My wife and I do our best to ensure we eat a balanced, nutritious diet full of leafy greens, fish and lean proteins—but I’ll be the first to admit we’re not perfect. The truth is, most Americans aren’t perfect when it comes to their diets. […]

My faith has always come first for me. From my earliest days on our family farm in lower Alabama, to my teenage years when I accepted Jesus Christ as my personal Lord and Savior, and every single day since. That’s why as Governor, protecting religious freedom, and our values, remains my top priority. And make […]

Republicans took control of federal offices and presidential races in 1964 in Alabama. It was referred to as the Goldwater Landslide. The Baxley-Graddick fiasco in 1986 was the game changer for governor. In the last 32 years there have been eight governor’s races. Republicans have won all of them, with one exception. Don Siegelman was an interloper […]

There is no more important function of the federal government than to provide for our common defense. Unfortunately, for nearly seven years, Democrats have held funding for our military hostage, and as a result, we are facing a serious readiness crisis in our military. We have planes unable to fly and ships that cannot sail. […]

This week, the reports of students taking to the streets to demand Congress enact gun-control legislation dominated the news. While some people argue about the issues of gun control and others debate the size of the student movement itself, the very real fact is that many young people across Alabama and the nation are forming their political opinions […]

Part of my job as your Representative in Congress is to listen to the people I have the privilege of working for and to ensure that you have a direct voice in Washington as we debate policy that impacts your everyday life. While I hear from my constituents when Congress is in session through letters, […]

Every constitutional statewide office is up for election this year. Just like the governor’s office you can serve two consecutive four-year terms and then you are through. Kay Ivey would have been term limited as Lt. Governor. She could not have run again for that post even though she ascended to governor last year. Young […]

Each year, during Holy Week, Christians gather in the pews to remember the death and crucifixion of Jesus and celebrate his resurrection. As we retell the story of the Passion and celebrate Easter, we count our many blessings and profess our faith as Christians. For many Americans, Easter marks a time of reflection and celebration […]

As a mother of two young children, I know how important it is that we get it right when it comes to education. I believe decisions about education are best made locally, so throughout my time in Congress, I have worked to implement policies that give local teachers and parents more control over making needed […]

Across the country, lawmakers are realizing the costs associated with the rampant overuse of occupational licensing laws. Alabama Policy Institute’s recent report shows that over 21% of Alabama workers are licensed. This means that more than one in five Alabamians need a government permission slip to work. Although the original impetus behind states’ licensing practices […]

I was always curious why Facebook, did not have a “dislike” button to complement its “like” button. Now we know. The Cambridge Analytica outrage is now a major scandal – both financially and morally – for the multi-billion-dollar business. Surprisingly, and disappointingly for some, the scandal is not about politics or elections.  Instead it’s the massive […]

Fiscal restraint is dead in Washington, and no one seems to care. The March Omnibus spending deal follows through on an agreement to spend significantly more over the next two years than any Obama-era spending cap increase. Such a dramatic departure from fiscal sanity is reckless. The now-certain return of trillion-dollar deficits threaten to undermine Republicans’ most significant legislative accomplishment: tax reform.

For much of the year, the safety of our students rests in the hands of the faculty, staff, and resource officers at our schools.  Without a shadow of a doubt, the people who know best how to protect our schools are the teachers, parents, administrators, police officers, and students in their own communities. In February, […]

For far too long, Congress has relied on short term, stop-gap funding bills to keep the federal government open and running — and have done so when up against holidays and midnight deadlines. Take the most recent continuous resolution: last month, as a member of the House of Representatives, I voted around 5:30 AM on a Friday morning against […]

Serving on the House Appropriations Committee gives me a valuable and unique opportunity to participate in the conversations surrounding funding for the various functions of our federal government. It’s hard to believe it, but the debates on funding for the Fiscal Year 2019 have already begun. I’ve been glad to be part of these important […]

On my radio program last week, a regular contributor mentioned that a bill to eliminate payday lending had passed the Alabama Senate, and I was surprised. Having dealt with the issue back when I was in office, I think payday lending gets a bum rap out in the mainstream media. These short term loans are […]

America may be a country of immigrants, but it’s also a country of laws. No one is exempt from those laws regardless of what some local officials in sanctuary cities may think. As you may have seen on the news recently, Attorney General Jeff Sessions recently announced a lawsuit against the State of California for […]

Do you want to alleviate poverty in Alabama? Do you want to curb the power of special interest groups over government agencies? Do you want more affordable goods and services in basic industries?  Do you want to help disadvantaged groups find good jobs and become productive citizens? Do you want to reduce the population of […]

Students across the nation walked out of class for 17 minutes today – one minute for each victim in the recent school shooting in Florida – demanding that Congress pass gun control legislation. The protest was organized by the youth branch of the Women’s March, which claimed that students were calling for universal background checks, […]

Between late 2010 and the end of 2014, the state of Alabama did not hire a single state trooper. Despite this freeze, we still had over 400 state troopers. Now we have less than 300. That leaves us over 700 men and women short of the number that we need (1000) according to the Center […]

  (Opinion) When I began attending Birmingham School of Law in early 2013, my wife was pregnant with our youngest son, Jaxson, and she utterly refused to move to Alabama. Let’s be honest, Alabama has a dirty past when it comes to the treatment of African-Americans. We both are northerners. I’m from Chicago, she’s from New […]