7. High-profile COVID-19 cases in Alabama

• U.S. Rep. Barry Moore (R-Enterprise) and his wife have tested positive for the coronavirus. Moore is experiencing a fever, sore throat and exhaustion. When asked about his vaccination status, Moore would not tell The Daily Beast whether he had taken the vaccination or not.
• Auburn head football coach Bryan Harsin has also tested positive but he is asymptomatic. Assistant coach Jeff Schmedding will handle coaching duties for the next week-plus. This has led to some in the sports media to become completely unglued because he has not been as adamantly pro-vaccine as they demand.

6. Science on masks is lacking

• As state after state and school system after school system have decided that masks are the answer to slowing the latest coronavirus surge, the evidence to back that assertion up is lacking, and no one really seems to care. A CDC study found that requiring students to mask up had no statistical impact on the spread of the coronavirus. Blue surgical masks also do very little.
• This further goes to show that this move for masking, and the media’s harping on the issue, is more about politics than kids. U.K., Ireland, all of Scandinavia, France, the Netherlands, Switzerland and Italy have all been holding school without masks for students. It is apparent the political advantage that polling has given the media and their Democrats over Republican governors like Alabama’s Kay Ivey, Florida’s Ron DeSantis, Texas’ Greg Abbott and Tennessee’s Bill Lee is what is driving these stories and this lust for masking of all faces big and small.

5. Not looking at shutting down the economy any time soon

• State Senator Chris Elliot (R-Daphne) has reacted to the idea that the area should shut down economically due to the increase in coronavirus cases, by essentially saying “over my dead body” at the idea of a shutdown.
• There is new discussion that the “Redneck Riviera” is responsible for spreading coronavirus cases, and Elliot has said that shutting down tourist locations is not viewed as “flippant or frivolous to the folks that own those businesses.” He went on to describe the areas as “the lifeblood of our economy.”

4. Ainsworth calls for Biden to be impeached

• Lieutenant Governor Will Ainsworth publicly called for President Joe Biden to be impeached at the rally held for President Donald Trump in Cullman. Ainsworth said that “if a football coach in Alabama performed as poorly as Biden has as president he’d be fired and looking for another job.”
• Ainsworth followed his statement to call for Biden’s impeachment. He went on to say that Biden is “working to bring millions of illegal aliens into our country with the plan of registering vote for Democrat candidates so they can steal our elections.”

3. Evacuate by all means necessary if the Taliban lets you

• President Joe Biden’s handling of the crisis in Afghanistan continues to show that he seems to be unaware of the situation on the ground and that he views the Taliban as a potential partner rather than an adversary. At a press conference Sunday, Biden said, “Look, the Taliban has to make a fundamental decision. Is the Taliban going to attempt to be able to unite and provide for the well-being of the people of Afghanistan, which no group has ever done, since hundreds of years.” The Taliban responded by warning of “consequences” if the Americans are not gone by August 31.
• Senators like U.S. Senator Tommy Tuberville (R-AL) are demanding that President Joe Biden’s administration try to evacuate all Americans from Afghanistan. Tuberville, as well as 15 other Senators, signed a letter to Biden that says there are concerns “to establish a coherent plan to get all Americans and Afghans who have aided us out of the country as quickly and safely as possible.” The Senators go on to say that Biden “must devote all means necessary to ensure every American citizen and all eligible Afghan partners are successfully evacuated.”

2. Critical situation with ICU beds

• Alabama Hospital Association Dr. Don Williamson appeared on Alabama Public Television’s “Capitol Journal” and discussed the situation of ICU hospital beds in the state due to the coronavirus and specifically addressed the “negative” number of beds.
• Williamson clarified that there are hospitals that are turning “non-ICU” beds into ICU spaces. He added that the state is “in a critical situation where we cannot guarantee you will not be housed in the ER,” as there are so few beds available at some hospitals.

1. Trump rally brings more than 30,000 people

• Event organizers have said that there were more than 30,000 in attendance for the President Donald Trump rally in Cullman, where U.S. Senator Tommy Tuberville (R-AL), U.S. Representative Mo Brooks (R-Huntsville) and Attorney General Steve Marshall were all speakers. During his speech, Trump talked about the U.S. Space Force headquarters moving to Huntsville, saying he “made some enemies,” adding, “A lot of states wanted it but we put it in Alabama.”
• As usual, the media focused on the pandemic (while ignoring it with other large gatherings) and statements that drew a negative reaction from some in the crowd. Brooks illicited boos when he made an accurate statement about the 2022 election being the most important and Trump received boos when he touted the vaccine again.