Governor Kay Ivey already threw the legislature under the bus when she released a “wish list” — containing a few projects that had nothing to do with COVID-19 relief — that a small group of legislators proposed to start conversations on how to spend CARES Act funding.
After they were run over, and the media spent a week picking at the bones, she seized the money and walked away.
Well done.
Some legislators are legitimately upset about this, but at least one legislator did put a $200 million dollar State House on the list and, come on, that was a no-brainer.
Because our local political media can only understand one simple thing at a time, they continued this same narrative when Ivey made it clear she was moving forward with her prison plan.
Alabama legislators have never seemed enthusiastic about new prison construction. Now they face a potential worst-case scenario: Paying unknown costs for prisons they have no practical input on. https://t.co/LVJmpcIryV #alpolitics
— Brian Lyman (@lyman_brian) May 20, 2020
Lyman is considered one of the “best” “straight news” guys who covers Alabama politics.
This is a direct insult to the others who do the job, the job itself, all of the state’s journalism programs, Edward R. Murrow, William Hearst, spankin’ H. Brandt Ayers and probably Alabama in general.
As for praise, it is faint praise at best.
Unsurprisingly, Lyman thinks legislators wanted to take up, develop and appropriate money for a massive redo of the prison system, and the governor now took this away from them?
Something they needed to do for over a decade? Something they talk about every year? Something they know the federal government will (allegedly) force on them any day?
She took that off their plate?
She will decide how much it will cost?
She will decide to take money from [insert pet project that must be done or people will die] and now wants to spend it on gangbangers, murderers, rapists, child molesters, former elected officials and future journalists?
She will own this completely on every single level?
She will absolve them of their responsibility and failure?
She will force them to go to their constituents and declare, “Gee, I didn’t want to spend all that money on the prisons but that darn Governor Ivey made us do it!”?
“Oh no! Please, Governor Ivey, don’t throw me in that there briar patch!“
“Oh no! Please, Governor Ivey, please don’t resolve that there prison issue for us!”
I am sure the legislature hates this.
Yeah, smart take.
Dale Jackson is a contributing writer to Yellowhammer News and hosts a talk show from 7-11 AM weekdays on WVNN.
