HARTSELLE, Ala. — An Alabama lawmaker is accusing the Bentley administration of possibly breaking the law by directing counties to withhold infrastructure funding from Districts represented by lawmakers who support his impeachment.
“I’ve been contacted by a county I represent that money has been given or promised to their county for road projects, but they cannot be used in any of the districts that I, or one other person who signed impeachment documents, preside over,” State Rep. Ed Henry (R-Hartselle) said on Yellowhammer Radio.
This is not the first time the Bentley administration has been accused of attempting to withhold infrastructure funding from their political opponents.
The administration openly admitted to blocking multiple major road projects totaling roughly $100 million in north Alabama after a senator took out a billboard opposing the governor’s tax hike proposals.
The difference this time, however, is that Henry believes the money had already been given to the local government, at which point the administration is no longer allowed to direct how it will be spent.
“(T)hat is illegal,” Henry explained. “You can’t say, ‘Here’s $500,000 for road projects but you better not spend it in Rep. Henry’s district, or we’re not going to allow you to spend it in Rep. Henry’s district.’ If they’re going to give it to the county, the county needs to look where their road projects need to be and determine (where to spend the money based on) what’s needed most, not on the fact that the governor needs to be impeached or not… For them to be able to direct it, it’s called ‘pass through pork,’ which we outlawed in our first special session in 2010.”
AUDIO: Rep. Henry on Bentley impeachment, Hubbard conviction, & more
Henry has spearheaded impeachment proceedings against the governor, who he says is unable to fulfill his duties in office.
“Here’s what it comes down to,” said Henry. “I’m an elected official. I represent 45,520 people in House District 9. I believe the majority of those individuals want Robert Bentley removed as governor. Therefore, I would vote accordingly. That’s what it comes down to — do the majority of people in your District want Robert Bentley removed as governor. And if they do, then they should vote accordingly.”
Here are the 23 lawmakers who signed Henry’s original impeachment resolution:
• Ed Henry (R-Hartselle)
• Isaac Whorton (R-Valley)
• David Sessions (R-Grand Bay)
• Mike Ball (R-Madison)
• Jim Patterson (R-Meridianville)
• Tommy Hanes (R-Bryant)
• Ritchie Whorton (R-Owens Cross Roads)
• Mike Holmes (R-Wetumpka)
• David Standridge (R-Oneonta)
• Barry Moore (R-Elba)
• Danny Crawford (R-Athens)
• Allen Farley (R-Pleasant Grove)
• Jack W. Williams (R-Georgetown)
• Will Ainsworth (R-Guntersville)
• Craig Ford (D-Gadsden)
• Patricia Todd (D-Birmingham)
• Margie Wilcox (R-Mobile)
• Mack Butler (R-Gadsden)
• Becky Nordgren (R-Gadsden)
• Phil Williams (R-Harvest)
• Johnny Mack Morrow (D-Red Bay)
• Reed Ingram (R-Montgomery)
• Arnold Mooney (R-Birmingham)
Bentley has dismissed the impeachment process as a political attack and insists the people of Alabama are not interested in having him removed from his post.
“The people of Alabama, and I know them better than anybody else because I’ve traveled this state so many times, I’ve seen them through difficult time and hard times, so I know how they think,” Bentley told reporters earlier this week. “They’re not interested in impeachment.”
Articles of impeachment were first filed on April 5 in the wake of revelations that the governor may have misused state resources to facilitate and cover up an affair with his top political advisor, Rebekah Caldwell Mason. But Rep. Henry argues Bentley’s “betrayal of the public trust” began with his incessant attempts to raise taxes after running for re-election on a “No New Taxes” pledge.
House members levied four articles of impeachment against Bentley: neglect of duty, corruption, incompetency, and offenses of moral turpitude. A special meeting of the Judiciary Committee is currently in an ongoing examination of the articles.
The Bentley administration has been mired in scandal since late March when Yellowhammer exposed the existence of audio recordings that captured sexually charged conversations between Bentley and Mrs. Mason. State and federal authorities have also launched criminal investigations into possible wrongdoing that stemmed from their inappropriate relationship.
The Bentley administration did not immediately respond to Yellowhammer’s request for a comment on Rep. Henry’s latest accusations.
