Impeachment investigation of Alabama Gov. Robert Bentley begins
An impeachment investigation of Alabama Gov. Robert Bentley opened Wednesday, as lawmakers begin what will be a lengthy look into whether there are grounds to remove the two-term Republican from office. In a series of meetings this year, the House Judiciary Committee will investigate if the governor committed any impeachable offenses in a sex-charged scandal involving a former top aide. Twenty-three representatives, roughly one-fifth of House membership, signed impeachment articles in April accusing Bentley of willful neglect of duty and corruption. “The gravity of the task we are charged with undertaking as a committee cannot be overstated. Few issues should be considered more carefully and deliberately than the removal of a person who was elected by the democratic process to hold office,” Judiciary Chairman Mike Jones said in an opening statement. Bentley, 73, this spring admitted making inappropriate remarks to his senior political adviser but denied accusations of an affair with her and of interfering in law enforcement business, accusations both raised by his fired law enforcement secretary. The legislative probe officially began Wednesday but it also began slowly as lawmakers find their way through an impeachment process not used in a century. Committee members adopted rules and discussed the need to hire special counsel to lead the investigation. Bentley did not attend the meeting. He told reporters Wednesday that he respected the Judiciary Committee and the legislative process, but dismissed the impeachment attempt as political grandstanding. “The people of Alabama do not want this. …They want us creating jobs, building roads, taking care of sick children, taking care of the elderly, helping people. That’s what the people of Alabama want. …. Now there are a few people that want to grandstand politically and that has caused much of this,” Bentley told reporters during a visit in Florence. The effort to impeach Bentley comes amid a season of political upheaval in Alabama. House Speaker Mike Hubbard was removed from office Friday after being convicted of violating state ethics law. Alabama Chief Justice Roy Moore faces possible removal from office after being accused of violating judicial ethics during the fight over same-sex marriage. Any resolution of the governor’s impeachment investigation is likely far away. Jones said it couldn’t begin in earnest until the committee hired special counsel. The impeachment articles filed in April did not lay out specific accusations against Bentley. Jones said it will be up to the special counsel to decide how to proceed and what to investigate. Joe Espy, the governor’s personal attorney, said attorneys for the governor requested a more specific list of what lawmakers think he did wrong. “We’ve got to understand what we are accused of,” Espy said. State Rep. Ed Henry, who spearheaded the impeachment drive, had said he suspected Bentley used office resources to cover up or enhance the alleged affair. Henry said he was pleased the investigation was moving forward, but feared there was an effort to “complicate the process.” Espy said he wanted the three committee members who signed the impeachment articles to be removed from the probe. “It taints the process.” Jones said it’s up to committee members to recuse, and only the acting House speaker can force them off the committee. The committee will eventually make a recommendation to the full House. Lawmakers don’t meet in regular session until February. However, under a procedure set up by the state Constitution, they could call themselves into session to consider impeachment if a majority of House members petition the Alabama secretary of state. It would require a vote of 53 lawmakers in the 105-member House to impeach Bentley. If House members voted to impeach Bentley, the Alabama Senate would hold a trial to determine if there are grounds to oust him. Legislators in many ways were starting from scratch on handling the impeachment articles against Bentley. The last impeachment attempt in Alabama was in 1915 against the secretary of state. The 1901 Alabama Constitution says elected officials can be removed for offenses ranging from moral turpitude to drunkenness, but gives only a general outline of the process. The rules adopted Wednesday borrowed heavily from procedures used in other states, including in the 2009 impeachment of former Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich. A key exception, Jones, said is subpoena power. The Alabama committee can issue subpoenas, but unlike other states, Alabama law doesn’t give the committee enforcement power to compel people to testify. “It is clearly a complication,” Jones said. Republished with permission of The Associated Press.
Mike Rogers: Agriculture and East Alabama
As most folks across East Alabama know, the agriculture industry is a money maker and job creator in our state. The agriculture industry boasts over 500,000 jobs and brings in more than $70 billion total a year to Alabama. Because of this, I know firsthand how important agriculture is to all of us. As a senior member on the House Agriculture Committee, I make it a priority each year to hear back from folks across the state so I can best represent them in Congress. Since I was first elected, I have held meetings with the Third Congressional District Agriculture Advisory Committee, which is made up of farmers and producers from each of the 13 counties that make up the district. When I am in Washington, I meet regularly with agriculture groups from Alabama about issues important to them. Just in the past few months, I have met with Golden Flake Snack Foods and George Atwood, an egg producer from Alexandria, Alabama, about GMO labeling standards. I met with representatives from the Southern Crop Production Association on issues important to their organization. I also met with the Alabama Cattlemen’s Association regarding the overreaching EPA and trade issues important to them as well as the American Association of Crop Insurers about President Obama’s dangerous proposed cuts to crop insurance in his budget. In May, I attended an Agriculture Full Committee Hearing titled, “Past, Present and Future of SNAP: The Retailer Perspective.” Opelika’s own Jimmy Wright, owner of Wright’s Market, testified at that hearing. This year I supported H.Res. 591, which commends cooperative owners and employees of the Farm Credit System, which was signed into law through the Farm Loan Act of 1916, for their continued service in meeting the credit and financial services needs of rural communities and agriculture. Today, the Farm Credit System plays a vital role in the success of rural communities in all 50 states and provides over $237 billion in loans to more than 500,000 customers. I also signed onto to letters that are important to our state’s agriculture industry. One was a letter to House Leadership opposing a Senate Resolution of disapproval of the Catfish Rule. The catfish inspection rule provides important oversight for American consumers when they buy catfish. It guarantees they are buying American-raised, properly inspected catfish. Another was sent to the secretary of the USDA, Tom Vilsack, to express concern regarding the Food and Nutrition Service’s (FNS) recently proposed rule to modify retailer eligibility requirements in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). These are just a few examples of what is going on in Washington when it comes to Alabama’s agriculture industry. I will continue to fight for our hard-working farmers and all individuals in that industry. • • • Mike Rogers is a member of the U.S. Congress representing Alabama’s 3rd Congressional District.
Greater Birmingham has the 8th biggest resemblance to the U.S. as a whole
It’s hard to define what is or isn’t American, but according to a new study from personal finance site WalletHub, the Birmingham-Hoover metro area has the 8th biggest resemblance to the United States. Which is to say, Birmingham-Hoover closely mirrors the nation as a whole on metrics such as age, gender and income. To determine which metro areas mirror the demographics of the United States most and least, WalletHub examined 379 of the most populated U.S. metropolitan statistical areas across four key dimensions: 1) Sociodemographic Stats, 2) Housing Stats, 3) Economic Stats and 4) Education Stats, using 26 relevant metrics. Here’s how Birmingham-Hoover ranks as compared to the rest of the U.S. (1=Most; 190=Avg.): 5th: Age 156th: Race 110th: Household makeup 126th: % of Population with health insurance coverage housing 42nd: Household income 16th: Wealth gap 77th: % of Households receiving food stamps 2nd: Educational attainment WalletHub says findings can be useful, “whether you’re a parent looking out for your family, an entrepreneur nurturing a nascent business or even a marketer trying to target customers.” Characteristics such as ethnic makeup, household size, educational attainment and household help illustrate America’s uniqueness from a statistical perspective. As for the metro area that most resembles the rest of the country? Indianapolis-Carmel-Anderson, Indiana, followed by Cincinnati, Ohio and Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. View all of the rankings in the interactive graphic below. Source: WalletHub
Southern Baptists: Discontinue display of Confederate flag
The Southern Baptist Convention on Tuesday urged Christians to stop displaying the Confederate battle flag, recognizing that it is perceived by many as a “symbol of hatred, bigotry and racism” that offends millions of people. The resolution, originally presented by African-American Pastor Dwight McKissic, had stirred debate and led to at least one call to withdraw it. The version presented to thousands of delegates to the denomination’s annual meeting in St. Louis was less strongly worded. Despite some opposition on Tuesday from delegates who thought even the more conciliatory version was divisive and political, delegates voted by a wide margin to strengthen the language. They removed a sentence saying that the flag serves for some as a memorial to loved ones who died in the Civil War and not as a racist symbol. They also changed the call for Christians to “consider prayerfully whether to limit, or even more so, discontinue” the flag’s display. The final version approved by delegates simply asks Christians to discontinue its use. The vote followed an earlier address by convention President Ronnie Floyd, a white pastor who has made racial unity a priority of his presidency. He told the audience in St. Louis, “I believe the issue of racism is from Satan and his demonic forces of hell. It is an assault on the Gospel of Jesus Christ.” The nation’s largest Protestant denomination was founded in a split with northern Baptists over slavery, has a history of complicity with Jim Crow laws and is still 80-90 percent white. But with 15.3 million members, that translates to at least 1.5 million non-white members in the Nashville-based denomination. And while membership at white churches is decreasing, membership at churches that Southern Baptists identify as predominantly “non-Anglo” is on the rise. That emergent diversity was on display as Floyd convened a group of pastors who were African-American, Hispanic, Asian, Native American and white to discuss racial unity along with Jerry Young, the president of the largest historically black denomination, the National Baptist Convention U.S.A. Southern Baptists also passed a resolution condemning the recent shooting in Orlando. Southern Baptists consider same-sex marriage and sexual relations to be sinful, but the resolution says “we regard those affected by this tragedy as fellow image-bearers of God and our neighbors.” At the same time, the thousands of delegates to the meeting also adopted a resolution seeking protection for the religious liberties of those who oppose gay marriage and transgender bathroom access. “We stand in solidarity with those whose jobs, professions, businesses, ministries, schools, and personal freedoms are threatened because their consciences will not allow them to recognize, promote, or participate in activities associated with unbiblical marriage,” the resolution states. Delegates also approved a resolution of support for Israel that criticized the boycott, divestment and sanctions movement. Resolutions on drafting women into the military and affirming “In God We Trust” as the national motto were postponed until Wednesday. All Southern Baptist churches are independent and the resolutions are not binding on them, but resolutions are an expression of the opinions and concerns of the delegates who represent those churches. Republished with permission of The Associated Press.
Convicted former Speaker Mike Hubbard’s name removed from state legislature website
Former House Speaker Mike Hubbard‘s name has been removed from the Alabama Legislature’s website in the wake of his conviction on ethics charges. A jury convicted Hubbard Friday evening on 12 felony ethics charges. The felony convictions caused Hubbard’s automatic and immediate removal from office. The Legislature’s website was updated to remove Hubbard’s name as the leader of the House of Representatives. His legislative district is listed as vacant in the roster of members. House Speaker Pro Tem Victor Gaston is fulfilling the speaker’s duties. A spokesman for the House of Representatives says the site was updated Monday to reflect the change. A judge will sentence Hubbard on July 8 Republished with permission of The Associated Press.
Jac VerSteeg: Lessons from a blended gun family
I have a blended family. A blended gun family. Some of us own guns – lots of guns. Some of us don’t own any. There are shotguns, hunting rifles, revolvers and semi-automatic pistols among the weapons we own. Nobody in my blended family owns an “assault weapon,” as far as I know. Here’s another thing about my family: Two of us have been shot and killed. It was a murder-suicide nearly 20 years ago. And here’s an ironic thing: The deaths came in the non-gun-owning branch of the family. That fact has not made me less passionate about gun control. I don’t see any reason for those assault weapons. The crime rate might not have declined during America’s assault-weapon ban. But the goal would not be to stop the criminal who robs a grocery store from using an assault weapon – most don’t anyway. The goal would be to make it harder for the criminal who massacres people in an Orlando gay club from getting his hands on an assault weapon just days before his attack. That kind of killer, it seems, adores assault weapons. If you just make him settle for killing fewer people, that’s something. Right? Oh, and I’m for the toughest, most comprehensive and most thorough background checks you can have, too. You won’t catch everybody, but you should catch everybody you can. It’s a crime we’re not doing that. Still, I know from bitter experience that even people who can’t legally buy guns can get guns. The murder-suicide in my family was carried out with a stolen gun (in fact, the gun was stolen from a juvenile court judge who kept it to protect his family). My family’s tragic experience teaches something else. Even if you know that somebody suffers from mental illness, and you get them all kinds of help, they still can get their hands on a gun and start killing. The shooter in our family was sick, and everybody knew it. Treatment just didn’t work. I like to think other families have more success. Another tip: Keeping dangerous people locked up helps. The shooter in our family should have been in jail or a locked mental facility. A late-night judge without access to his whole record let him out, with disastrous results. And one last thing: The folks in my family who own guns – for hunting and for protection – are some of the most careful, stable people I know. Personal responsibility is a huge part of gun safety. (I just hope I’m not jinxing them.) I wouldn’t want to take away their guns or the guns of any folks like them. None of the gun control restrictions I favor would deprive any of them of their guns. The tear-your-hair-out problem is setting up a system that can separate the knowledgeable, careful gun-owners from the ones who are going to leave loaded guns around for kids to play with. Or get a little drunk and pop the annoying neighbor for playing her music too loud again. Or have one-too-many fights with the cheating spouse and decide that the only tolerable love triangle is a dead love triangle. Being able to foresee the future sure would help. With guns, guys, there are a whole lot of things that can go wrong. But what do I say to my family member – a recent widow – who keeps a handgun so she can feel safe in her too-empty home? Yes, an intruder might take the gun and use it on her. Or, she might blow him away before he can hurt her. There are simple things you can say about guns. Most basically, they shouldn’t be used to kill innocent people. And we should do what we can to keep them out of the hands of bad people. Don’t expect to find a simple, practical, foolproof way to make those simple truths become true in reality. But don’t use that as an excuse to quit trying. That’s what I’ve learned from my blended, wounded family. ___ Jac Wilder VerSteeg is a columnist for The South Florida Sun Sentinel and former deputy editorial page editor for The Palm Beach Post.
Senate passes $602 billion defense authorization bill, defies White House veto threat
Defying a White House veto threat, the U.S. Senate on Tuesday overwhelmingly approved a sweeping $602 billion defense bill. Among its many Pentagon reforms it bars shuttering the prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, includes 1.6 percent pay raise for military troops as well as a historic provision that would mandate young women to register for a potential draft, and denies the Pentagon’s bid to start a new round of military base closings. The National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for fiscal year 2017 passed the Senate 85-13, with support from both of Alabama ‘s U.S. senators, Richard Shelby and Jeff Sessions. “From the lack of a comprehensive, coherent, bi-partisan strategy to deal with Islamic terrorists, to the purpose for the detention facility at Guantanamo Bay, to policies about who is eligible for combat, the current Administration continues to make illogical choices for ideological and political reasons that are counter to common sense,” said Sessions, a senior member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, in a news release. “While this bill is not perfect, I supported it because it provides needed resources for our national defense, for our service men and women fighting overseas, and for Alabama’s military assets that are so crucial to our national defense.” Sen. Shelby had a personal victory by ensuring an amendment, which will allow the U.S. Air Force to continue to use the RD-180 rocket engine for critical national security launches until a domestic alternative is available, was included in the final bill. “The inclusion of this amendment in the NDAA is a significant victory for national security and reflects what Congress has heard time and again from every senior official currently serving in the Air Force, Pentagon, and Intelligence Community,” said Shelby in a news release. “The NDAA now safeguards the U.S. Air Force’s authority to maintain competition for the most vital national security and intelligence launches. Not only is this authority critical to ensuring America’s assured access to space, but it is also positive news for American taxpayers.” The amendment safeguards roughly 1,000 jobs in Decatur, Ala., where the rockets are produced by United Launch Alliance – a joint venture of Boeing and Lockheed-Martin. The House passed a version of the NDAA last month, but significant changes by the Senate mean lawmakers must meet to negotiate a final bill. “For this defense bill to become law, the Senate must go to conference with the House of Representatives and get the President’s signature,” Sessions continued. “As our country faces increased threats abroad and at home, I hope this legislation can be improved and made final. I continue to work to make sure Alabama’s contributions to our national defense are properly recognized and protected, and that our men and women overseas have the resources, support and policies in place that will allow them to succeed.”
Beat the press: Donald Trump’s contempt for media is calculated
Donald Trump‘s favorite nickname for the news media is the “dishonest press.” He swaps in “disgusting press” from time to time. And sometimes, he puts it all together: “disgusting, dishonest human beings.” The presumptive Republican presidential nominee has a whole menu of takedowns for individual reporters and news organizations. In recent weeks, he’s used his microphone and his tweets to label them “third-rate,” ”not nice,” ”disgraceful,” ”phony,” ”low-life,” ”very unprofessional” and “bad people.” Or, for extra emphasis in a tweet, “BAD.” He’s also been quick to yank or withhold credentials from news organizations whose coverage he doesn’t like — most recently, The Washington Post. Trump seems to be perpetually mad at the press, but there’s a method to his madness. He sees little downside to bashing the media — and plenty of potential benefits. “It’s a truism of American politics that you don’t lose an election by criticizing the media,” said Robert Lichter, president of the private Center for Media and Public Affairs. “It plays well with the public, particularly with Republicans.” While Trump’s language is more incendiary and he lashes out more personally at reporters than typical for past candidates, he’s following a long tradition of modern politicians who shoot barbs at the messenger. Former President Dwight Eisenhower energized the 1964 Republican convention with his complaint about “sensation-seeking columnists and commentators.” Richard Nixon‘s vice president, Spiro Agnew, famously threw shade at “nattering nabobs of negativism” in the press. President George H.W. Bush, who played horseshoes with press photographers and invited reporters to White House picnics and other events, still exhorted voters during his re-election campaign to act on the bumper-sticker slogan: “Annoy the Media: Re-elect Bush.” His wife, Barbara, had some biting advice for Hillary Clinton when the incoming first lady visited the White House in November 1992: “Avoid this crowd like the plague,” Bush told Clinton, sweeping her hand toward the reporters and photographers on the South Lawn. Trump is taking the beat-the-press strategy to a whole new level. In a recent one-month period, he delivered 39 tweets skewering reporters and media organizations, mixed in with a much smaller number of positive and neutral references in his Twitter feed. Just one example: “The media is really on a witch-hunt against me. False reporting, and plenty of it – but we will prevail!” This week, Trump revoked the Post’s credentials, citing what he called the paper’s “incredibly inaccurate coverage and reporting.” Other news organizations he’s banned, either short-term or permanently, include Politico, the Des Moines Register, BuzzFeed, the Daily Beast and the Huffington Post. Post editor Martin Baron called Trump’s latest move “nothing less than a repudiation of the role of a free and independent press.” Kathleen Carroll, executive editor of The Associated Press, said his credentialing bans do a disservice to the public. In the race for the most powerful position on the planet, she said, “the public is interested in what the candidates do and say, and having independent coverage is part of what keeps the public informed.” Why is Trump so quick to pick a fight with the press? For one thing, his over-the-top language can be a successful strategy for changing the subject when he wants to divert attention. Last month, when reporters pressed Trump to document what he’d done with millions of dollars raised for veterans, he turned on them, calling one reporter “a sleaze” and sarcastically referring to another as “a real beauty.” That language itself became a big part of the story, shifting some of the attention away from questions about his handling of the money for veterans. Trump’s constant criticism of the press also helps to inoculate him against future negative news stories. Conservatives, in particular, already are wary of the mainstream media, and Trump’s rhetoric reinforces the message that nothing from the media is to be believed. “Part of what he’s probably decided is that he wants to be very aggressive, to make sure that his supporters routinely discount any kind of news media attack,” former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, a Trump supporter, said in a recent interview with Fox News. With the Republican Party in turmoil over Trump’s candidacy, the billionaire’s broadsides also serve as a unifying theme within the party. GOP faithful may have big differences with Trump on the issues, but they’re at one with him on contempt for the mainstream media. While Trump’s very public display of disdain is strategic, says Lichter, it’s also just “part of his daily dose of pugnacity.” At the same time, though, Trump can be charming in one-on-one interviews, flattering reporters and complimenting their questions. He calls many of them by their first names. He takes questions and offers considerable access, seeming to understand that for all his complaints about the press, he can’t live without them. “You know the press is the most dishonest people ever created by God,” he said at a March press conference. “So I would love to take a few questions from these dishonest people. Go ahead, press.” Republished with permission of The Associated Press.
