An attempt to add a tax increase to this conversation will kill any rebate or tax cut.
Dale Jackson is a contributing writer to Yellowhammer News and hosts a talk show from 5-9 a.m. weekdays on WVNN and on Talk 99.5 from 10 a.m. to noon.
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Alabama basketball should probably sit Brandon Miller and sort this all out
Dale Jackson is a contributing writer to Yellowhammer News and hosts a talk show from 5-9 a.m. weekdays on WVNN and on Talk 99.5 from 10 a.m. to noon.
Congressman Gary Palmer (AL-06) is pushing back against what he sees as brazen lies coming from the Democratic ticket of Joe Biden and Kamala Harris.
Palmer interviewed on Talk 99.5’s “Matt and Aunie Show” on Thursday morning and reacted to the vice presidential debate the previous night between Harris and Vice President Mike Pence.
The central Alabama congressman praised Pence’s debate performance, saying the vice president did well outlining what a second Trump-Pence term would accomplish. Palmer then turned his attention to the Democratic ticket.
“What really bothers me about this is that they think that the average American is stupid,” he advised of Harris and Biden. “They think that they can get up there and lie about the agenda and that the average American’s going to buy everything they’re selling. And that includes suburban people. They think that we will, that people will go blindly into the night with them on the lies they’re telling us.”
Palmer pointed to Harris’ claims about healthcare last night as one of the top recent examples. (more…)
Congressman Mo Brooks (AL-05) on Thursday morning remotely interviewed on Talk 99.5’s “The Matt & Aunie Show.”
The Republican congressman from North Alabama spoke to Andrea Lindenberg and guest co-host Andrew McClain in a wide-ranging discussion that lasted more than 17 minutes.
Beginning his comments, Brooks addressed President Donald Trump the previous day speaking about a four-year-old boy who was murdered in Kansas City, MO, as he slept. Named after the boy, Operation LeGend has been launched by the president to utilize federal law enforcement resources to crack down on violent crime in certain urban areas across the United States.
Brooks decried “the loss of life associated with the socialist mayors making the decision that they’re going to bend a knee to the criminal element, which of course only encourages more crime, particularly crimes of violence.” (more…)
Former Auburn head football coach Tommy Tuberville’s comments about the Trump administration’s handling of veterans’ issues last August 2019 at the Shoals Republican Club have been a focal point of the contest for the Republican nomination for Alabama’s U.S. Senate seat up in November.
“I’m pissed off at Donald Trump that our vets can’t get health care,” Tuberville said, speaking to the group at the time. “And if I ever get to see him, I’m going to tell him that. You said you were going to fix it, and it ain’t fixed. And that’s who we ought to be taking care of — these young men and women.”
During an appearance on Birmingham talk radio’s 99.5 on Thursday, co-hosts Andrea Lindenberg and Matt Murphy asked Tuberville to address those remarks, which have been used by opponents in political advertising against his candidacy.
Tuesday during an appearance on Talk 99.5’s “Matt & Aunie Show,” former Auburn head football coach Tommy Tuberville, a Republican candidate for the U.S. Senate, warned about the consequences of the hyper-politicization of every nuance of day-to-day living.
Tuberville told co-hosts Matt Murphy and Andrea Lindenberg that Democrats’ unwillingness to put election politics behind them could lead the country down the path of “civil war.”
“I feel bad for the people because there’s nothing any of us can do,” he said. “It’s out of our hands because we watch it, and it is going in the other direction.”
Even though former U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions has been a U.S. Senate candidate for a month, there appears to still be some hard feelings regarding his entry into the race.
During an appearance on Birmingham radio Talk 99.5’s “Matt & Aunie Show,” U.S. Rep. Bradley Byrne (R-Fairhope) discussed a phone call he received from Sessions just before Sessions’ entry into the race asking Byrne to withdraw his U.S. Senate candidacy and run for reelection to the seat he currently occupies in Alabama’s first congressional district.
According to Byrne, Sessions told him he thought he was doing a great job as a member of the U.S. House of Representatives and that Sessions still had a “couple of gallons” of gas left in his tank to serve in the U.S. Senate. Byrne explained how he declined Sessions’ request to co-hosts Andrea Lindenberg and Matt Murphy and argued against the merits of Sessions returning to the U.S. Senate.
Ever since former U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions announced his decision to seek his old U.S. Senate in Alabama, speculation about an attack from President Donald Trump has been rampant.
However, there has not been such an attack, at least not yet.
During an appearance on Birmingham radio Talk 99.5’s “Matt & Aunie Show,” Secretary of State John Merrill, who was a candidate for U.S. Senate until last Sunday, discussed his decision to bow out of the race and how Sessions’ entry into it played a role.
President Donald Trump’s visit to Tuscaloosa for last week’s Alabama-LSU football game is still reverberating around the state of Alabama.
Despite the outcome of the game, Saturday was seen as a positive sign for Trump and his supporters, given his reception at Bryant-Denny Stadium. U.S. Rep. Gary Palmer (R-Hoover) was in attendance and in the box with Trump for the game. He spoke highly of Trump’s reception in the stadium.
“Someone asked me about it, and I said I went to a football game, and a Trump rally broke out,” Palmer said.
Although the since-postponed I-10 Mobile Bayway Bridge project seems like a distant memory, local officials still control the project’s destiny, according to Gov. Kay Ivey.
Earlier this year, Ivey declared the project “dead” after the Eastern Shore Metropolitan Planning Organization voted to remove it from their Transportation Improvement Plan. The project had come under fire for the tolling component proposed to finance the bridge’s construction.
During an appearance on Birmingham radio Talk 99.5’s “Matt & Aunie Show,” Ivey revisited the subject and maintained it was still a “needed project.”
Last week, Gov. Kay Ivey announced she was replacing State Sen. Chris Elliot (R-Daphne) with State Sen. Vivian Davis Figures (D-Mobile) to serve on the Alabama Transportation Rehabilitation and Improvement Program-II (ATRIP-II) Committee.
Elliott had become an outspoken critic of the I-10 Mobile River Bridge and Bayway proposal in its late stages before Ivey pronounced it was “dead” immediately after the Eastern Shore Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) met on Wednesday to vote on its Transportation Improvement Plan (TIP).
In the days since Elliott was replaced by Figures on the ATRIP-II Committee, which Ivey had said was “a privilege, not an entitlement,” the Baldwin County Republican has appeared on Huntsville radio’s WVNN, Birmingham radio’s Talk 99.5 and Mobile’s FM Talk 106.5 to offer his perspective on the move by the governor.
Thursday during an appearance on Birmingham radio Talk 99.5’s “Matt & Aunie” show, Alabama Republican Party Chairwoman Terry Lathan defended her party’s passage of a resolution calling on Alabama’s congressional delegation to proceed with seeking the expulsion of U.S. Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.) from the U.S. House of Representatives.
Lathan explained that the resolution, which was introduced by State Rep. Tommy Hanes (R-Bryant), laid out the reasoning for the call for expulsion. Included were Omar’s accusation that U.S. armed forces committed war crimes in Somalia, her characterization of the Sept. 11, 2001 terror attack on World Trade Center, calls for leniency for ISIS fighters and alleged anti-Semitic activities.
According to Lathan, state boundaries were not viewed as a limitation for the Alabama Republican Party, given Omar’s oath was to the U.S. Constitution.
On Monday, the political battle over the proposed tolling for the new I-10 Mobile Bayway Bridge escalated when Lt. Governor Will Ainsworth came out in opposition to the toll. Following in Ainsworth’s footsteps and coming out against the proposal as well was another heavy-hitter, State Senate President Pro-Tem Del Marsh.
Tuesday, Gov. Kay Ivey, who has insisted on the necessity of the project and warned that “cost of doing nothing” was too high, offered a response to detractors.
Ivey indicated to Matt Murphy and Andrea Lindenberg, co-hosts of Birmingham radio Talk 99.5’s “The Matt & Aunie Show,” that a reaction to a toll was to be expected. She also said she would listen to alternatives at the Alabama Toll Road, Bridge and Tunnel Authority meeting scheduled for October 7.
Tuesday on Birmingham radio’s Talk 99.5, State Auditor Jim Zeigler, who is one of the leaders of the effort challenging the proposed I-10 Mobile Bayway toll, spoke out critically of Alabama Department of Transportation director John Cooper.
Zeigler blamed Cooper for the tolling proposal and said such type toll proposals were the vision of Cooper for the future in Alabama.
He was asked by “Matt & Aunie Show” co-host Andrea Lindenberg what the possible motivations could be for the tolling proposal given the negative politics surrounding it. Zeigler initially called it “insanity” before invoking former Alabama Democratic Gov. George Wallace.
It would appear that the Alabama Democratic Party has a lot of vocal critics, from the national level down to the local level. And now you can add former Gov. Don Siegelman to that list.
During an appearance on Birmingham radio’s Talk 99.5 on Tuesday, Siegelman, Alabama’s last Democrat governor, called his party “pathetic” and blamed current party chairwoman Nancy Worley and Alabama Democratic Conference chairman Joe Reed for its current state.
“The state of the Democratic Party itself is pathetic,” Siegelman said on “The Matt & Aunie Show.” “Joe Reed and Nancy Worley have succeeded in wrecking anything that might resemble an actual political party.”
Some have floated the possibility of a 2020 rematch of the 2017 U.S. Senate special election between incumbent Sen. Doug Jones (D-Mountain Brook) and former Alabama Supreme Court Chief Justice Roy Moore. Jones pulled off the upset against Moore in the December 2017 contest to give Democrats their first major statewide contest win in over a decade.
The reasoning offered for the repeat match-up is that Democrats might consider participating in the 2020 Republican primary to vote for Moore given that some view Moore as the weaker possible opponent for Jones in the 2020 general election.
During an appearance on Tuesday’s “Matt & Aunie Show” on Birmingham radio’s Talk 99.5, U.S. Rep. Mo Brooks (R-Huntsville) dismissed the possibility of such a crossover strategy playing out for those hoping for Jones’ reelection.
Last night’s passage of HB314, a bill that would effectively criminalize abortion, by the Alabama Senate has drawn a lot of national attention to the state.
If Gov. Kay Ivey should sign it into law, it could set up a challenge to the landmark 1973 Roe v. Wade decision that legalized abortion.
However, State Sen. Cam Ward (R-Alabaster) is skeptical of the chances the law could make it to the high court and warns Alabama taxpayers will foot the bill if the law is not overturned.
On Wednesday, the Department of Justice issued a scathing critique of the prison situation in Alabama, saying the state had violated the cruel and unusual punishment clause in the Eighth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution.
In compliance with the Civil Rights of Institutionalized Persons Act, the Justice Department added in its announcement that it had given the state written notice outlining the conditions and offered the department’s expectations in dealing with the problem.
In an appearance Thursday on Birmingham radio’s Talk 99.5, Rep. Matt Fridy (R-Montevallo) said the prison situation would be the biggest issue the legislature has to confront.
Monday on Birmingham’s radio’s “Matt & Aunie Show,” Rep. Gary Palmer (R-Hoover) advised policymakers in Alabama to avoid falling into what he called the “expansion trap,” referring to a push to expand Medicaid rolls in Alabama.
In recent weeks, some Republican lawmakers in the state legislature have softened their stances on Medicaid expansion, which in Alabama has been a policy promoted by Democrats.
Palmer explained to co-host Matt Murphy and Andrea Lindenberg why he was against it and warned that expanding Medicaid has risks associated with it.
In an appearance on Birmingham’s Talk 99.5 radio on Thursday, Rep. Mo Brooks (R-Huntsville) discussed the possibility of entering the 2020 U.S. Senate election for the seat currently occupied by Sen. Doug Jones (D-Mountain Brook).
Brooks did not completely rule it out but said the odds were against the run.
He also noted his polling numbers were favorable and that there was a credible group pushing for him to run for that office. However, as of now, the North Alabama Republican said he intended to run for reelection to the U.S. House.
Tuesday during Birmingham’s Talk 99.5 “Matt & Aunie Show,” co-host Matt Murphy sounded off on the city of Hoover’s response to protests at local businesses in the wake Thanksgiving night’s shooting at the Riverchase Galleria.
Murphy questioned what impact these protests are having on local businesses and why the city hasn’t taken a more active role in maintaining the peace and protecting private property.
The morning drive host was especially critical of Hoover Mayor Frank Brocato, who he suggested had been missing in action for some time as these events in his city have unfolded.
In a Monday appearance on Birmingham Talk 99.5’s “Matt & Aunie Show,” Alabama Secretary of State John Merrill elaborated on his Twitter back-and-forth with Alabama third congressional district Democratic nominee Mallory Hagan over voter participation that went down on Saturday.
Last week, according to the Associated Press, Hagan alleged that “more than 55,000 voters in the 3rd Congressional District have been disqualified or labeled inactive since February 2017.” She went on to announce at a press conference in Tuskegee she was forming a “Voter Protection Committee” as a response.
However, Merrill said Hagan’s effort was nothing more than an effort to replicate the controversy generated by Georgia Democratic gubernatorial nominee Stacey Abrams.
Tuesday on Birmingham Talk 99.5’s “Matt & Aunie Show,” Gov. Kay Ivey offered specifics on her position on a future lottery.
While Ivey’s opponent Democratic gubernatorial nominee Walt Maddox has made a lottery a centerpiece of his campaign, Ivey offered only tepid support and warned of possible additional forms of gambling being added to any future gambling referendum.
“The bottom line is a lottery will probably be up in the next legislative session,” she said. “I fully expect it to be introduced and by and large, most people — if it’s a pure and simple plain lottery, just a real simple sure-enough plain lottery, I think most folks would vote for that. But the catch comes when you get it in the legislature, and you start adding on.”
Friday during an appearance on Birmingham’s Talk 99.5’s “Matt & Aunie Show,” Rep. Mike Rogers (R-Saks) weighed in on the current controversy surrounding U.S. Supreme Court associate justice nominee Brett Kavanaugh’s confirmation and how his colleagues in the U.S. Senate are handling the confirmation process to date.
During the segment, Rogers responded to a question about his House colleague Rep. Bradley Byrne (R-Fairhope) calling on Sen. Doug Jones (D-Mountain Brook) to vote for Kavanaugh’s confirmation if Kavanaugh accuser Christine Blasey Ford did not step forward and announce her intentions to testify before the Senate Judiciary Committee.
The Calhoun County Republican agreed with Byrne and suggested Jones “represent the majority will” of Alabamians.
(more…)