This article is the second in a three part series by the Alabama Policy Institute focusing on energy issues in Alabama. The first article can be viewed on AL.com The stated mission of the Alabama Public Service Commission (PSC) is “[t]o ensure a regulatory balance between regulated companies and consumers in order to provide consumers […]

This weekend the Alabama Republican Party will elect a Chairman who will lead our Party through the 2014 election cycle — the first in which we will be defending every constitutional office and majorities in both chambers of the legislature. After considering my personal experience during the past election cycle, reviewing November’s election results, and […]

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“Rumors and Rumblings” is a weekly feature that runs each Wednesday. It includes short nuggets of information that we glean from conversations throughout the week. Have a tip? Send it here. All sources remain confidential. 1. ALGOP Chairman Race Update Sources inside the Governor’s office told Yellowhammer Tuesday that the Governor is excited to be […]

Yellowhammer has now been around for a little over a year. It’s been exciting to watch the site grow from a little-known “insider” political blog to the go-to source of conservative political commentary for tens of thousands of conservatives all across Alabama. We’ve also been fortunate to establish a solid readership in the nation’s capital. […]

A bipartisan group of 8 senators today announced a framework for comprehensive immigration reform. According FoxNews.com’s coverage of the plan, the senators are seeking to accomplish four main goals: 1. Creating a path to citizenship for the estimated illegal immigrants already in the U.S., contingent upon securing the border and better tracking of people here […]

Fox News released a poll this past week that shows just how strong opposition to the gun grabbers is among the vast majority of gun owners in America. The poll, which was conducted under the joint direction of Anderson Robbins Research (D) and Shaw & Company Research (R), asked “If the government passed a law […]

Alabama Senator Jeff Sessions claimed a big victory in the Senate this week as Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid and Senate Budget Chairman Patty Murray finally agreed to comply with federal law and offer a budget for the first time in almost four years. Murray declared Senate Democrats are “ready to get to work.” …Everyone […]

By Cameron Smith, Alabama Policy Institute At the end of 2012, while Alabama families were focused on the holidays, the Alabama Supreme Court issued an opinion that undermined private property rights in Alabama and created a significant deterrent to economic investment in the state. In 2003 and 2004, M&N Materials, Inc. purchased property in an […]

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Rep. Howard P. “Buck” McKeon (R-CA), Chairman of the House Armed Services Committee, yesterday named Rep. Martha Roby Chairman of the Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations. Rep. Roby thanked Chairman McKeon for selecting her for this post, and promised to continue working diligently to ensure proper oversight of the Department of Defense. […]

“Rumors and Rumblings” is a weekly feature that runs each Wednesday. It includes short nuggets of information that we glean from conversations throughout the week. Have a tip? Send it here. All sources remain confidential. 1. ALGOP Chairman Race Update Matt Fridy’s ALGOP Chairman campaign is said to have huddled Tuesday to get a fresh […]

Marking the 40th anniversary of the landmark Roe v. Wade Supreme Court decision, the Alabama Policy Institute yesterday released an infographic titled “Abortion by the Numbers” packed with some jaw-dropping statistics. Based on the Alabama Policy Institute’s numbers, it appears that over six years worth of pregnancies in Alabama have ended in abortion since Roe […]

Rep. Jim Barton goes up today with his second TV ad (see his first ad HERE) in the Senate District 35 special election set to take place one week from today. Barton’s ad sticks pretty close to homebase for a Republican candidate — cut government spending, reduce taxes, conservative leadership, etc. — and is probably […]

CBS News White House Correspondent and guru of all things relating to the Presidency, Mark Knoller, put out some interesting numbers over the weekend on President Obama’s first term in office. “As President Obama’s first term nears an end, the numbers reflect a chief executive who cast few vetoes, was tightfisted with pardons, granted hundreds […]

The House Republican Caucus led by Speaker Mike Hubbard conducted a press conference today in the State House briefing room to announce their 2013 legislative agenda. Below is a tweet stream from folks who were there live followed by the text of the House agenda. Waiting on House Republicans, @speakerhubbard to begin pressed twitter.com/SouthUnionSt/s… — […]

“Rumors and Rumblings” is a weekly feature that runs each Wednesday. It includes short nuggets of information that we glean from conversations throughout the week. Have a tip? Send it here. All sources remain confidential. 1.House Republicans To Release Agenda State House insiders say the House Republican caucus will release their 2013 legislative agenda on […]

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Rep. Martha Roby (R-AL) today introduced an amendment to the U.S. Constitution that, if passed and ratified, would require Congress to annually pass a balanced budget and finally force the federal government to live within its means. Rep. Roby’s proposed amendment would also require the President to submit a balanced budget to […]

According to Barton campaign insiders, the below TV ad goes up today with about 1,000GRPs/week. The campaign has also begun dropping mail pieces. Here’s where the three campaigns stand financially as of January 4: Barton: $264,050 raised, $217,497.53 cash on hand Hightower: Loaned his campaign $20,000 and raised $2,400, roughly $12,000 cash on hand. Matranga: […]

A behind-the-scenes battle for the future of energy production in Alabama finally came to a head last week at the Alabama Public Service Commission. As we mentioned in mid-December, radical environmentalists — being aided by an inside man at the PSC — have been plotting to overtake the state’s utility review process. Republican Public Service […]

Although it has not yet been announced to the public at large, Yellowhammer can confirm that RNC Chairman Reince Priebus will be the headline speaker at the ALGOP Winter Dinner February 1 at the Sheraton Birmingham Hotel. Yellowhammer first heard earlier this week from sources close to the Armistead campaign that Priebus would possibly be […]

Read more about United States Economy. See more from the 2013 Index. The Heritage Foundation and The Wall Street Journal have teamed up once again to publish a fascinating look at economic freedom across the globe. Each year, these two groups release what they call their “Index of Economic Freedom.” They measure data in four […]

“Rumors and Rumblings” is a weekly feature that runs each Wednesday. It includes short nuggets of information that we glean from conversations throughout the week. Have a tip? Send it here. All sources remain confidential. 1.AEA vs. RSA The hottest buzz among Montgomery insiders right now is the covert war between AEA (Alabama Education Association) […]

With the 2012 election cycle behind us, we took our first look yesterday at the trend of Governor Bentley’s approval numbers over the first two years of his term. There are less than five months before the 2014 election cycle begins with the opening of the fundraising window in June. But with the Governor’s sky-high […]

Alabama Speaker of the House Mike Hubbard today announced a slate of new committee chairman and vice chairman appointments that will begin during the 2013 Regular Legislative Session, which is scheduled to convene on February 5. Most notable about the assignments is that several freshmen House members have been named to important leadership positions on […]