7. Iran is threatening stability in the Middle East As fighting between Israel and Hamas continues, former President George W. Bush has made a statement on the issue, saying what “you’re seeing playing out is Iranian influence targeted toward Israel.” Bush added that Iran’s “influence is dangerous for world peace.”  Current President Joe Biden has […]

MONTGOMERY — Governor Kay Ivey this week signed into law two bills passed by the Alabama Legislature designed to drive innovation and entrepreneurship in the state while attracting and retaining talented workers for a 21st century economy. HB 540 and HB 609 were developed based on interim policy recommendations by the Alabama Innovation Commission, which […]

Scholarships. Funding for rural health care. New roads and bridges. These are just a few examples of what revenue from gaming and a state lottery could provide to Alabama. Like so many of our fellow Alabamians, we had great hopes that in this legislative session, elected leaders would have both the will and a way […]

U.S. Representative Mike Rogers (R-AL), the ranking member of the House Armed Services Committee (HASC), released a statement on Wednesday regarding recent reports of political bias within the Department of Defense. “I am greatly concerned by numerous press reports of conservative voices being silenced in the Department of Defense while Departmental leadership defends and protects […]

In a public service announcement released Wednesday by the Alabama Department of Public Health, University of Alabama Crimson Tide head football coach Nick Saban urges Alabamians to get their COVID-19 vaccinations. “College football fans and players both want full stadiums this fall,” Saban says. “Let’s make sure we can safely make this happen by getting […]

General Charles Q. Brown Jr., the chief of staff of the Air Force, last week visited MGMWERX, Montgomery’s state-of-the-art innovation hub. Brown toured the facility with Lt. Governor Will Ainsworth, Montgomery Mayor Steven Reed, Air University Commander and President Lt. General James Hecker and Brig. General Trent H. Edwards (USAF, Ret.) — the director of […]

In recent days, local friends and acquaintances have understandably reached out to me asking variations of the same question: what is going on in the Middle East? The conventional wisdom is that there is no easy answer. But there is: the free and democratic nation of Israel was attacked by the terrorist group Hamas, and […]

On Monday, the Alabama Legislature wrapped up its 2021 regular session with a typical last-minute push to pass bills before the bewitching hour of midnight. Unfortunately, for some members in both chambers, they had to watch their bills die as their respective counterparts ran out of time for consideration. Often, that is a cause for […]

7. Some pipelines are better than others After five-plus years of accusations that former President Donald Trump was too kind to Russia, or a flat-out Russian asset, imagine a scenario where his administration lifted sanctions on a Russian project that is “sanctionable.” But the current occupant of the White House, President Joe Biden, appears to […]

The 2021 regular session of the Alabama Legislature just wrapped up on Monday night, however there are already rumors of a special session — or multiple — that could be called this summer regarding major lingering issues, such as prisons, gaming and appropriating the latest batch of federal COVID-19 relief sent to the State. This […]

Madison County Commission Chairman Dale Strong on Tuesday announced that he has raised over $300,000 from more than 200 donors to strongly kickoff his Republican candidacy in Alabama’s Fifth Congressional District. The impressive fundraising haul covered six weeks of campaigning following Strong’s entry into the race at the end of March. With over a month […]

The Connect Alabama Act (SB 215) has been signed into law by Governor Kay Ivey and is now set to enable transformational broadband expansion across the Yellowhammer State. Sponsored by Sen. Del Marsh (R-Anniston) and carried in the House by Rep. Danny Garrett (R-Trussville), the bill received nearly unanimous bipartisan support and was supported by […]

A successful launch from Alabama’s United Launch Alliance (ULA) has positioned the United States to strengthen its intelligence gathering efforts. On Tuesday afternoon, ULA’s Atlas V rocket powered the Space Based Infrared System Geosynchronous Earth Orbit (SBIRS) Flight 5 mission for the U.S. Space Force. Launched from Cape Canaveral, the Atlas V carried the fifth […]

Governor Kay Ivey and the Alabama Department of Early Childhood Education on Tuesday announced that the renowned Alabama First Class Pre-K program will add 135 new classrooms in 41 counties this fall. This is only the first round of new classroom funding that will be released by the Department of Early Childhood Education for the […]

The AEA is back, baby! That’s what the Alabama Education Association and their part-time political commentators will tell you. Probably worth pointing out that AEA has won the 2021 session. Could be a sign of things to come. #alpolitics — Josh Moon 🇺🇸 (@Josh_Moon) May 18, 2021 The AEA retweeted that tweet. So, what does […]

MONTGOMERY — The Alabama Senate on Monday unanimously gave final passage to HB 237, which now heads to Governor Kay Ivey’s desk after passing the House earlier in the session. Sponsored by State Rep. Ginny Shaver (R-Leesburg), the “born-alive” bill — to be known as “Gianna’s Law” — is named after a survivor of an […]

7. Shelby is introducing a flat tax again Once again, U.S. Senator Richard Shelby (R-AL) is reintroducing the flat tax as the Simplified, Manageable, and Responsible Tax Act (SMART), which would create a 17% flat tax for all incomes. Shelby has supported a flat tax since he was elected in 1986, and he’s said that […]

Last week, Mobile County Sheriff Sam Cochran removed State Rep. Shane Stringer (R-Citronelle) from the position of captain, reportedly for taking a pro-constitutional carry stance that contradicted the stated position on the issue of Cochran and other law enforcement throughout the state. Cochran has faced somewhat of a backlash for his decision. However, he maintains […]

Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall is calling on President Joe Biden to put America’s national energy security first, including by resuming construction of the Keystone XL pipeline. In a letter dispatched to the White House on Monday, Marshall and 18 other attorneys general forcefully called out the Biden administration for its opposition to the vital […]

MONTGOMERY — State Reps. Thomas “Action Jackson” (D-Thomasville) and Juandalynn Givan (D-Birmingham) on Monday evening spoke against a resolution “expressing solidarity with Israel in its defense against terrorism in the Gaza Strip.” SJR 138 was introduced and passed by a voice vote in the Senate earlier the same day. The resolution reads as follows:

U.S. Senator Richard Shelby (R-AL) on Monday re-introduced legislation, known as the “Simplified, Manageable, and Responsible Tax (SMART) Act,” that would establish a federal flat tax on all income. This continues Shelby’s consistent advocacy for the flat tax since he was first elected to the Senate in 1986. Alabama’s senior senator has introduced legislation to […]

On Friday, the Mobile County Sheriff’s Office announced it was terminating State Rep. Shane Stringer’s (R-Citronelle) employment as a captain within the agency, citing a “difference of opinion” with Mobile County Sheriff Sam Cochran on the so-called constitutional carry issue. Stringer was the lead sponsor of HB618, which would allow Alabamians to carry or conceal […]

Over the course of the past few days, Hamas has fired several thousand rockets at Israelis – both Jews and Arabs alike. Hamas has long been Iran’s proxy in the region, promoting conflict, hatred and violence in deliberate attempts to kill Israeli civilians. Let’s be clear – Israel absolutely has a right to defend itself […]

Governor Kay Ivey on Monday officially signed into law SB 46, which legalizes the permitted medicinal use of cannabis in the state of Alabama. The bill establishes the Alabama Medical Cannabis Commission to oversee and manage a comprehensive regulatory system related to medical marijuana in the Yellowhammer State; the cultivation, processing, transporting, testing and dispensing […]