Abortion procedure challenged as “torture” in Alabama
A commonly used second-trimester abortion procedure would be illegal under a new bill filed in the Alabama legislature. The House Health Committee on Wednesday held a public hearing on a bill that would prohibit a medical procedure called dilation and evacuation, or “D&E”. The bill refers to the procedure as “dismemberment abortion.” The bill is similar to a law recently enacted in Mississippi. State courts have struck down similar laws in Kansas and Oklahoma. Bill sponsor Republican Rep. Mack Butler calls the procedure “barbaric.” Elizabeth Potter Graham is an attorney who spoke against the bill. She says it’s a “fundamental right” for women to be able to choose the procedure. The committee closed without a vote, but Butler says he expects it to be passed in committee next week. Republished with permission of the Associated Press.
Mo Brooks takes to the House floor to ask “Who will bail out America?”
The United States may be following in the footsteps of Puerto Rico — a territory that has had its credit rating cut to “junk bond status” and is defaulting on its $70 billion debt — if it doesn’t balance the budget soon Congressman Mo Brooks (AL-05) warned Wednesday. Brooks took to the House floor to issue his warning as part of a continued series of floor speeches highlighting “bad example” countries who are reaping the consequences of financially irresponsible leadership. “Puerto Rico, like America, suffers from a bloated central government, welfare programs that undermine the work ethic, decades of financial mismanagement by elected leaders, and a resulting anemic economy and shrinking job market that causes roughly 7,000 citizens to flee Puerto Rico each month,” Brooks said on the House floor. Brooks continued, “Puerto Rico’s debt defaults and resulting economic morass have forced Puerto Rico to delay tax refunds, fire public-sector workers, raise sales taxes to a record 11.5%, and close over 100 schools. Unfortunately, these austerity measures, and more, are inadequate because Puerto Rico’s self-serving and financially irresponsible elected officials waited too long. Puerto Rico still cannot pay its bills or creditors.” The Huntsville Congressman explained America is on the same path of fiscal irresponsibility as Puerto Rico, having blown through the $19 trillion debt mark and is rapidly approaching on the $20 trillion debt mark. “Who will bail out America when America defaults on its debt?” Brooks asked on the floor. According to the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office America faces an unending string of trillion dollar a year deficits beginning a mere six years from now and that America’s debt will blow through the $29 trillion debt mark in a decade. “If voters do not elect financially responsible officials to Washington, America will endure the same debilitating bankruptcy and insolvency that wreaks havoc in Greece and Puerto Rico — with one major difference — unlike Greece, which has been bailed out three times by the European community, and unlike Puerto Rico, which may yet be bailed out by American taxpayers, there is no one who can, or will, bail out America!” Brooks concluded. In his first two speeches in the series, Brooks singled out Greece and Venezuela — both countries with massive, unsustainable debt — and addressed America’s growing annual deficits and accumulated debt, appropriations bills to fund the government, the debt ceiling, and how these issues interplay will significantly impact America’s future. Watch Brooks’ latest speech below:
Alabama lawmaker hopes to ban ‘barbaric’ abortion procedure
Under a proposed bill in the Alabama legislature, a commonly used second-trimester abortion procedure would be illegal in the Yellowhammer State. Introduced by State Rep. Mack Butler (R-Rainbow City), HB 376 the Alabama Unborn Child Protection from Dismemberment Abortion Act, would ban the practice of dismemberment abortions, more commonly referred to as a D&E — dilation and evacuation. The House Health Committee on Wednesday held a public hearing to discuss Butler’s bill. There he called the procedure “barbaric.” According to the National Right to Life, “dismemberment abortions involve introducing a sharp instrument which is used to grasp and pull the child out, piece by piece. The child is alive during this torturous process and dies of bleeding out during the dismemberment.” According to the National Abortion Federation Abortion Training Textbook, “D&E remains the most prevalent method of second-trimester pregnancy termination in the USA, accounting for 96 percent of all second trimester abortions.” Bill Klein, President of Alabama Citizens For Life, weighed-in, “Alabama children should be protected by law from being torn limb from limb. No human should die this way in a civilized society. It shows a total disrespect for the sanctity of human life.” Monday, neighboring Mississippi became the fourth state to enact a similar measure, following West Virginia, Kansas and Oklahoma. According to National Right to Life, Butler’s legislation — based on the pro-life organization’s model bill — also has been introduced in Idaho, Louisiana, Missouri, Nebraska, Pennsylvania, Minnesota, Rhode Island, and Utah and may be taken up in several other states. State Sen. Phil Williams (R-Rainbow City) has also introduced SB 363, a companion bill, in the Senate. The Senate Health Committee will also hold its hearing on Wednesday. The House Health Committee closed its hearing Wednesday without a vote, but Butler says he expects it to be passed in the committee next week.
Dreams of Alabama-native Helen Keller gracing the new $10 bill come to an end
Just weeks after it began the campaign to make Alabama-native Helen Keller the face of the new $10 bill in place of Alexander Hamilton has come to an end. POLITICO is reporting Treasury Secretary Jacob Lew will announce plans Wednesday that Hamilton will remain on the $10 bill following an unexpected public show of support. Wednesday’s abrupt about-face comes as a disappointment to many. “While we are very disappointed that Helen Keller, ‘America’s Ambassador to the World,’ was not chosen for either of these bills, we remain committed to the legacy, and work of Helen Keller,” Keller J. Thompson, great grand-niece of Helen Keller and VP of Education at the Helen Keller Foundation for Research and Education told Alabama Today. “We believe that few people have ever changed the world as she has, and we certainly remain hopefully that she will be chosen for future currency changes that may take place.” In 2015, the U.S. Department of Treasury announced plans to place a woman’s face on the redesigned $10 bill and opened the suggestion process to the public through its website. Instead of changing the face of the $10 bill, Treasury will instead put abolitionist Harriet Tubman on the $20 bill, replacing President Andrew Jackson. “We congratulate Harriet Tubman for her work,bravery and dedication during a very trying time of our nation’s history,” Thompson said of Wednesday’s news. “We hope this exercise will continue to educate America and the world on some of the great women in our history. I am fairly certain that Helen Keller and Harriet Tubman never had the opportunity to meet on another but I think if that had, that would have truly been able to identify with each other, and the obstacles that they overcame in their respective lives.” Earlier this month, state and local officials rallied in Tuscumbia at Ivy Green, the north Alabama home of the late Keller for a press event intended to inform the public of the campaign and to garner public support for a Helen Keller bill.
United Healthcare may leave Alabama Obamacare exchange
United Healthcare, Alabama’s second largest health insurance provider, and the nation’s largest, says it may exit health exchanges in several states, including Alabama as the cost of participating has exceeded the potential profit making opportunities of more enrollees. United’s CEO, Stephen J. Hemsley made the announcement during the company’s first-quarter earnings conference call Tuesday, saying “smaller overall market size and shorter-term, higher-risk profile within this market segment continue to suggest we cannot broadly serve it on an effective and sustained basis.” The company expects to lose $650 million on exchange business nationwide in 2016. As of mid-2015, there were 141,361 people with private coverage through the federally-run Alabama exchange, but if United does pull out of the marketplace, that number could drop as customers either lose their coverage or are pushed to look for another insurer. According to health policy researchers with the Kaiser Family Foundation, United’s exit and the resulting decreases in competition could mean higher insurance prices for other Alabamians in the exchange. Congressman Bradley Byrne (R-AL01) says United leaving the Alabama exchange is evidence of weaknesses Obamacare. “When you have a major insurer like this one that just pulls out altogether, that’s a huge warning sign; that’s not going to crash the program, but it’s indicative of a problem that’s not being addressed in the program,” said Byrne. “Now, what happens when you have fewer people offering insurance? It’s like any other thing the fewer people that off the product or the service, the more the price goes up.” But while opponents of the Affordable Care Act, which established the exchanges, are holding the exit as proof the law doesn’t work, the Obama administration is downplaying the gravity of the situation. “As with any new market, we expect changes and adjustments in the early years with issuers both entering and exiting states,” said Department of Health and Human Services spokesman Ben Wakana in a statement Monday. “The marketplace is a reliable source of coverage for millions of Americans with a robust number of plan choices. We have full confidence, based on data, that the marketplaces will continue to thrive for years ahead. The number of issuers per state has grown year-over-year.”
Alabama House of Representatives approves retirement bill for new state hires
The Alabama House of Representatives on Tuesday approved a bill that would automatically enroll new state employees in individual retirement accounts. HB466 passed 91 to 10 and would apply to new hires after Jan. 1. Sponsored by Rep. Phil Williams (R-Huntsville), the initial contribution rate would be set at 1.5 percent, though employees could adjust that higher — or adjust it to zero — at the time of enrollment. It also allows employees to opt out after 90 days and withdraw any money invested. During the debate, Williams explained the bill was designed “to make it easier for employees to save for their retirement in a tax deferred vehicle.” The bill will now move to the Senate for a vote.
VictoryLand electronic bingo machine bill fails in Senate
A bill that would have allowed electronic gambling machines at VictoryLand dog track failed on a procedural vote Tuesday night in the Alabama Senate. Filed by Sen. Billy Beasley (D-Clayton), SB320 — which would allow VictoryLand in Macon County to operate the same bingo machines being used by the Poarch Creek Indians at casinos in Wetumpka, Atmore and Montgomery — was narrowly supported 14-13 for debate, however, a three-fifths majority is required to debate bills before lawmakers pass state budgets. Beasley said the bill would stand to reinforce the current amendment allowing bingo in the county and help to recoup the more than 2,000 jobs lost when the gambling hall was closed down. Late last month, the Alabama Supreme Court ruled once again that electronic bingo is illegal in the Yellowhammer state, making the bill’s passage necessary to continue operations at VictoryLand. VictoryLand owner Milton McGregor has said he plans to reopen despite losing a three-year legal battle over the legality of electronic bingo machines. The VictoryLand bill was the second electronic bingo bill to fall short in the Alabama Senate this month. Last week, a proposal by Sen. Bobby Singleton (D-Greensboro) to add an amendment to the state constitution that would keep GreeneTrack’s bingo casino operational failed by four votes shy of the necessary 21.
Mike Rogers: It’s time to rein in the Internal Revenue Service
On the heels of Tax Day 2016, the House of Representatives brought several bills to the Floor this week dealing with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). With such a complicated tax code, most folks across East Alabama dread mid-April. The IRS hasn’t helped its credibility in recent years by choosing to target citizens based on their political beliefs while wasting money on conventions and bonuses. This week’s legislation represents just a few of the common-sense improvements we can make to the IRS. H.R. 4903 permanently bars the IRS from using any of its budget to target U.S. citizens for exercising their constitutional rights. It is very revealing about the motives of the Obama Administration that Congress would have to pass such a bill. The IRS Oversight While Eliminating Spending (OWES) Act, H.R. 4885, eliminates fee driven slush funds in the IRS’ budget and makes them subject to Congressional oversight. This change will stop the IRS from using fees on taxpayers to avoid restrictions on their budget. To deal with rogue employees of the IRS were two bills including H.R. 1206, the No Hires for the Delinquent IRS Act and H.R. 3724, the Ensuring Integrity in the IRS Workforce Act. The first piece of legislation prohibits the IRS from hiring new employees until the Treasury Department certifies that no IRS worker has serious tax delinquencies. The second bill prohibits the IRS from rehiring former employees who had been terminated from the IRS for misconduct. The IRS should hold its workers to the same standards it expects from taxpayers. Anyone who has had the misfortune of having to contact the IRS knows firsthand that customer service is not their forte. H.R. 4890, the Ban IRS Bonuses Until Customer Service Strategy is Developed Act, does just what the title says. The bill prohibits bonuses be paid to any IRS employees until the agency develops a comprehensive customer service strategy. I supported all of these bills because Americans deserve better than the bloated bureaucracy the IRS has become and I will continue to support legislation that forces the agency to do a better job. • • • Mike Rogers is a member of U.S. Congress representing Alabama’s 3rd Congressional District.
