New state record alligator gar weighs in at 162 pounds
Alabama is the home of a lot of different fish species, but there aren’t many freshwater fish that get bigger than the alligator gar. On Thanksgiving, Fruitdale fisherman Keith Dees and his son, Huntley, caught an Alabama gar that set a new state record. The seven-foot-long alligator gar weighed in at a state record 162 pounds. Dees is a veteran fisherman who has spent his life on the water. Dees was fishing for bass in the Mobile-Tensaw Delta on Thanksgiving Day with his son – as is their tradition – when the big fish struck his bait. “My first thought was I had hooked another big redfish,” he said. “I was cranking as fast as I could to try to get the line tight. The water is salty and cold that time of year, so the clarity was not great. I see a fish go by the front of the boat, a glimpse of a fish. I told my son, ‘I’ve got one of those big redfish.’ We caught one that weighed 32 pounds up there a few years ago. Then it went about 30 or 40 yards out and just kind of stopped. It wasn’t like a redfish run.” Dees had thought that it was a redfish and then possibly a black drum. He and his son were fighting the fish for a half an hour before they realized that they had hooked a big alligator gar. Dees hooked the big fish with a medium-sized rod and real with a 15-pound line, so he realized that was going to be difficult to actually bring in. “After about two hours, it got to where we could pull the boat up by the fish, and it would just swim along,” Dees said. Dees and his son eventually lassoed the fish with the tow rope to get the massive fish in the boat. “I figured that was our only chance to get him.” The Dees had to put the big fish in an old pool in order for it to be inspected as a possible state record. Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources Wildlife and Freshwater Fisheries biologist Tommy Purcell did the required inspection to verify that it was an alligator gar. The fish had to be weighed on certified scales, so Dees put tarps and $200 worth of ice in the back of his truck to drive the fish to Orange Beach Marina to be weighed. “The Delta is a very, very special place to me,” Dees told Alabama Outdoors, David Rainer. “Catching that fish doesn’t happen if I hadn’t spent my whole life on the water. I was known as a river rat by all my bass fishing buddies that I traveled to tournaments with, and they said there was nothing more appropriate for me than to have a state record with a gar.” The carnivorous alligator gar (Atractosteus spatula) is one of the largest freshwater fish in North America. Gars have the ability to breathe air as well as the ability to pull air out of the water with their gills. The alligator gar is the largest of the gar species. As big as the Dees fish is, alligator gars can get even bigger. The largest alligator gar on record was caught by Kenny Williams on Lake Chotard in Mississippi. That Mississippi fish was almost eight and a half feet in length and weighed 327 lbs. The previous record had been taken in Texas in 1951 and weighed 279 pounds. Fossil gars have been found dating back 100 million years ago to the dinosaurs in the early Cretaceous Period. Alligator gars are slow-moving predatorial fish that is an ambush predator preying on fish, young waterfowl, and small mammals. Alabama anglers are limited to taking just one alligator gar per day. The Dees fish was certified as the new state record last week. Alabama is a sportsman’s paradise with year-round freshwater fishing, hunting, and saltwater fishing opportunities. To connect with the author of this story, or to comment, email brandonmreporter@gmail.com.
State’s December unemployment rate is just 2.8%
On Friday, Alabama Governor Kay Ivey announced that Alabama’s preliminary, seasonally adjusted December unemployment rate is 2.8 percent. That is up slightly from November’s rate of 2.7%; but still well below December 2021’s rate of 3.1%. December’s rate represents 63,412 unemployed persons, up slightly from 63,004 in November but down significantly from 69,434 in December 2021. “As we close out our economic reporting for 2022, I’m pleased to say that Alabama has recovered well from the pandemic and has maintained positive momentum throughout the year,” said Governor Ivey. “We broke records all year long, reminding everyone that Alabama is the best place to live, to work, and open a business. Our wages are up, jobs are plentiful and still growing, and we’re seeing some of our highest employment in major sectors in more than a decade. I couldn’t be more proud of the progress we’ve made.” Over the year, wage and salary employment increased from 55,900 to 2,120,500. This is a new record high. The largest gains were in the education and health services sector (+15,400), the professional and business services sector (+12,700), and the government sector (+8,600), among others. Wage and salary employment increased in December by 300. Monthly gains were seen in the trade, transportation, and utilities sector (+3,100), the government sector (+1,100), and the construction sector (+500), among others. “Our economy is supporting more jobs than ever before, with the addition of nearly 56,000 jobs since last year,” said Alabama Department of Labor Secretary Fitzgerald Washington. “This represents over-the-year job growth of 2.7%, which, excluding immediate pandemic recovery, is one of the highest job growth rates in more than 20 years. Also, we’ve got record high employment in the trade, transportation, and utilities sector, and more people are working in the manufacturing and construction sectors since 2008.” The counties with the lowest unemployment rates are Shelby County at 1.5%, Cullman County at 1.6%, and Morgan and Marshall Counties at 1.7%. The counties with the highest unemployment rates are Wilcox County at 9.1%, Clarke County at 6.6%, and Dallas County at 5.3%. The major cities in Alabama with the lowest unemployment rates are Vestavia Hills and Homewood at 1.3%, Trussville, Madison, Hoover, and Alabaster at 1.4%, and Athens and Northport at 1.7%. Major cities with the highest unemployment rates are Selma at 6.3%, Prichard at 5.2%, and Bessemer at 3.5%. President Joe Biden is also celebrating the good economic news, which includes slowing of inflation, “The economy has created more than 10 million jobs since I took office, and the unemployment rate is near a 50-year low,” Biden wrote in an op-ed. “The unemployment rate for Black Americans and Hispanic Americans is near historic lows. The number of Americans filing for bankruptcy is half its pre-pandemic rate. 2021 and 2022 are on track to be the best and second-best years for small business applications on record.” To connect with the author of this story, or to comment, email brandonmreporter@gmail.com.
St. Clair County GOP elects new leadership
The St. Clair County Republican Party met Thursday night at the St. Clair County Courthouse in Pell City for officer elections. The members of the party voted to elect new party leadership. St. Clair County Republican Party Chairman Ren Wheeler was challenged by former Chairman Freddie Turrentine. The dues-paying members of the St. Clair County GOP voted for Turrentine to be the new Chairman. Freddie Turrentine is the Administrator of Operation Center at the St. Clair County Sheriff’s Office. Turrentine said that the GOP is fighting for America against the radical left. Members thanked Wheeler for his service over the past four years as Chairman. “I have had a lot of fun,” Wheeler said. In the race for Vice Chairman of the St. Clair County Republican Party, Vice Chair Glass was challenged by both State School Board Member Marie Manning and retired Deputy and cattleman Jonathan VanPelt. VanPelt and Manning both advanced to the runoff, where VanPelt was then elected. Van Pelt is married to St. Clair County School Board member Nickie Stevens VanPelt. He retired from the St. Clair County Sheriff’s Department after 33 years of service. Glass still chairs the St. Clair County Young Republicans, which has its own membership and officers. The St. Clair County Republican Party is a member affiliate of the Alabama Republican Party and elects its own delegates to serve on the Alabama Republican Party Executive Committee. The elections were held following a presentation by Lawrence County native Earl “Buster” Smith, who, during his U.S. Air Force service as an Airman First Class, diffused two hydrogen bombs inadvertently dropped on South Carolina in a B52 crash during the Cold War – saving millions of American lives. Smith held a book signing following the meeting. The next meeting of the St. Clair County Republican Party is on the third Thursday in March. To connect with the author of this story, or to comment, email brandonmreporter@gmail.com.
Bulldozers are on the site to fight the Moody landfill fire
For eight weeks, an underground landfill fire has been belching out smoke and odors across the Moody/Trussville area and beyond. Now there are workers on the site to begin the difficult work of putting the fire out. On Wednesday, Alabama Governor Kay Ivey signed an order declaring a limited state of emergency in St. Clair County to address the ongoing underground inferno at a 50-acre state-permitted landfill in Moody at the intersection of Annie Lee Road and Blackjack Road. At the state’s request, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is now taking the lead role in the disaster response. On Thursday, Alabama Today spoke with St. Clair County Chairman Stan Batemon about the situation. “There are bulldozers on site working to cover up the fire,” Bateman said. The Alabama Department of Environmental Management (ADEM) had taken a lead role in the disaster. Their early opinion had been to build a fire break around the site so that the fire was contained to the site and then to let it burn itself out. Days became weeks, and weeks became months, and thousands of people in the suburbs ringing the eastern edge of Birmingham have woken up each day to the smell of smoke – lots of smoke. Still, the fire has not burned itself out. Now ADEM is taking a back seat to the federal authorities, attempting a more aggressive approach to dealing with fire. Alabama Today visited the site Thursday night, and there were trucks, machinery, and workers on site to begin the hard, dangerous work of putting out the multi-acre underground inferno. Flames could be observed shooting from the top of the large manmade hill in dozens of places. The smoke was not as heavy or as malodorous as in earlier trips to the site. Alabama Today asked Batemon how much is all of this cleanup effort going to cost St. Clair County. “Not anything,” Batemon said. “At least for now. It is being handled like a Superfund site.” State Senator Lance Bell said residents have been phoning him constantly to complain about the smoke. The landfill was permitted by ADEM but was not closely monitored and regulated. It is not a lined landfill that accepts garbage and other waste. The site is permitted to be strictly limited to limbs and other yard waste. Many Moody residents insisted that the smoke smelled more like burning plastics or old tires. The EPA requested that ADEM monitor the air quality and water quality around the site. The testing shows that the smoke is consistent with what you would find from burning wood. Residents of the area have had to deal with ongoing odors from the fire and the smoke since November, over the Christmas holidays, thru New Year’s, and to the present. It is not known at this time how long putting the fire out will take or what the effort to combat the raging inferno will cost the taxpayers. Once the fire is out, there is a possibility that the site operator could be assessed penalties associated with the cost of putting out the fire. Work is ongoing at the site. To connect with the author of this story, or to comment, email brandonmreporter@gmail.com.
Sandy Stimpson: In support for the LMXT project between Lockheed Martin and Airbus
Currently, the U.S. Air Force is wrestling with the decision to press ahead with the planned competition to acquire its next refueling tanker or continue procuring the KC-46, a refueling tanker that has left our men and women in uniform desperately wanting a more reliable and capable aircraft. The Secretary of the Air Force seems unaware of the shortfalls of the KC-46, as he recently said, “It doesn’t look necessary or cost-effective as it once did to introduce another aircraft.” However, as the lead administrator of thousands of city employees, I disagree with the Secretary. I know firsthand how important it is to get resources that work to those executing the mission. The KC-46 tanker does not work. Our service men and women deserve an Air Force tanker that does. The LMXT is an Air Force-unique platform built in partnership with Lockheed Martin and Airbus. The companies announced their collaboration in January, selecting Alabama and Georgia as the homes for the program. I was honored to join Governor Kay Ivey, along with Senators Richard Shelby and Tommy Tuberville, at the announcement, which included the proposed construction of a new $400 million facility located at the Mobile Aeroplex at Brookley. This facility would create more than 300 direct jobs, but the investment in our economy hinges on the Air Force moving forward with a fair and open competition for the tanker. The Air Force’s Request for Proposal (RFP) for the competition is expected in 2023, with the projection that the Air Force will award the contract in 2024. They must follow through on their proposed competition. Lockheed Martin will be the prime contractor and base its LMXT offering on the Airbus A330 Multi-Role Tanker Transport (MRTT), which is currently in service with 13 U.S. allies around the world. The MRTT is proven and capable, as it has been refueling U.S. Air Force, Navy, and Marine Corps aircraft in combat since 2015. The baseline A330 aircraft will be built in Mobile and converted to the LMXT military tanker in Marietta, Georgia. Further, the LMXT would have the greatest flight range of any tanker in the world, carry more fuel than any other tanker, and be equipped with the ability to automate aerial refueling – giving the U.S. Air Force back its edge in the sky. This state-of-the-art aircraft is the right plane for the warfighter, and we are thrilled it would be built in Mobile. When I first took office in 2013, I pledged that Mobile was open for business. We have the tools to help high-tech manufacturing succeed. Our world-class workforce produces products that strengthen national security and maintain military readiness. The LMXT is yet another opportunity to showcase the capabilities of hardworking Mobilians. It would be an aircraft built in America, by Americans, for Americans. It is exciting to know that Mobile would play a key role in building this aircraft, which would support both military and humanitarian missions around the globe. An Alabama-built tanker that delivers on its promised performance would benefit our nation’s military and our alliances while creating good-paying jobs right here at home. Our congressional delegation has been on the front lines fighting for Alabama, and I know they share my belief that the Air Force should pick the best aircraft for its missions. The way to ensure that the Air Force is equipped with the best aerial tanker is through fair and open competition. Sandy Stimpson serves as the Mayor of Mobile, Alabama.
Joe Biden on classified docs discovery: ‘There’s no there there’
A frustrated President Joe Biden said Thursday there is “no there there” when persistently questioned about the discovery of classified documents and official records at his home and former office, “We found a handful of documents were filed in the wrong place,” Biden said to reporters who questioned him during a tour of the damage from storms in California. “We immediately turned them over to the Archives and the Justice Department.” Biden said he was “fully cooperating and looking forward to getting this resolved quickly. “I think you’re going to find there’s nothing there,” he said. “There’s no there there.” The White House has disclosed that Biden attorneys found classified documents and official records on four separate occasions — on Nov. 2 at the offices of the Penn Biden Center in Washington, on December 20 in the garage of the president’s Wilmington, Delaware, home, and on November 11 and 12 in the president’s home library. Discovery of the documents in Biden’s possession complicates a federal probe into former President Donald Trump, who the Justice Department says took hundreds of records marked classified with him upon leaving the White House in early 2021 and resisted months of requests to return them to the government. The two cases are different — Biden, for example, willingly turned over the documents once found. But the issue is wearing on the president and his aides and allies, who have repeatedly said they acted swiftly and appropriately when the documents were discovered. They have sought to focus the media’s attention back on his agenda. Biden expressed frustration that the documents matter was coming up as he surveyed coastal storm damage, telling reporters that it “bugs me” that he was being asked about the handling of the classified material even as “we have a serious problem here” in California. “Why you don’t ask me questions about that?” he pressed. Attorney General Merrick Garland last week appointed Robert Hur, a former Maryland U.S. attorney, to serve as special counsel to oversee the Justice Department’s inquiry into the documents. Republished with the permission of The Associated Press.
Debt ceiling sets up major battle in Congress
U.S. Secretary of the Treasury Janet L. Yellen sent a letter to Congressional leaders Thursday notifying them that the agency has begun taking “extraordinary measures” as the federal government bumps up against its debt limit of just over $31 trillion. That means Congress has until about June to raise the debt ceiling or potentially default on the U.S. debt obligations for the first time ever. “First, I have determined that, by reason of the statutory debt limit, I will be unable to fully invest the portion of the Civil Service Retirement and Disability Fund (CSRDF) not immediately required to pay beneficiaries, and that a ‘debt issuance suspension period’ will begin on Thursday, January 19, 2023, and last through Monday, June 5, 2023,” the letter said. “I respectfully urge Congress to act promptly to protect the full faith and credit of the United States,” she added. The Congressional Budget Office recently released budget figures showing that the federal government borrowed $4 billion per day in 2022, which is more than $10,000 per household and on overall deficit of about $1.4 trillion. Pre-pandemic deficits were less than $1 trillion. Lawmakers can raise the debt limit, but they were hardly able to agree on who should serve as Speaker of the House, raising serious questions about whether they can come together on this issue. Many want to use the opportunity to implement fiscal reforms. “The debate over our debt ceiling is the perfect example of Washington elites refusing to prioritize your best interests,” said U.S. Sen. Rick Scott, R-Fla. “We can’t keep rubber-stamping reckless spending. I’m fighting every day to stop it.” Republicans also blasted the Biden administration and the recent omnibus spending bill. The White House said earlier this week there will be no negotiations with Republicans on the debt limit. “Just a few weeks ago, Joe Biden signed a $1.7 trillion spending monstrosity,” said U.S. Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio. “And now the White House says it will not negotiate with Republicans over the debt ceiling. They created the problem!” Experts raised the alarm, arguing this need for yet another debt ceiling increase shows the current unsustainable trajectory of federal debt spending. “America will hit the $31 trillion debt ceiling today,” said economic expert Stephen Moore. “That’s 120% of our GDP and $246,876 per taxpayer. How can anyone believe this is sustainable?” Maya MacGuineas, president of the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget, cautioned about the consequences of going too far with using the debt ceiling for political purposes. “The debt ceiling is too important to turn into a game of chicken, and default should never be suggested by those with a fiduciary responsibility to govern the nation,” she said. “Politicians who are rightly worried about the nation’s unsustainable borrowing path should take a hard stance against new borrowing and oppose legislation that would add to the debt while offering specific solutions to control the debt already on the books, rather than threatening not to pay the bills on borrowing that has already been incurred.” MacGuineas also argued that the debt problem is only going to get worse. “The debt ceiling does offer the opportunity for all lawmakers to pause, assess the fiscal situation of the nation, and take action as necessary. And it is necessary. The debt as a share of GDP is at near record levels,” she said. “We are on track to begin adding $2 trillion per year to the debt by the end of the decade. Interest payments are the fastest-growing part of the budget and are projected to start costing $1 trillion annually in only a few years. The Social Security and Medicare Hospital Insurance trust funds are headed toward insolvency. And last year alone, Congress and the President passed bipartisan legislation that added nearly $2 trillion to the projected national debt. This is an urgent problem that is not getting the attention it needs.” Republished with the permission of The Center Square.
Supreme Court leak investigation fizzles
An investigation into who leaked a draft of Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, the opinion that overturned Roe v. Wade, was unable to determine who was responsible. The U.S. Supreme Court released a report from Supreme Court Marshal Gail Curley on Thursday. “The team has to date been unable to identify a person responsible by a preponderance of the evidence,” the court said in a statement. The leak, which was a significant scoop for Politico, was a major breach of trust for the Supreme Court. “The leak was no mere misguided attempt at protest,” the court said in a statement. “It was a grave assault on the judicial process.” But the investigation was unable to pinpoint a culprit. “After months of diligent analysis of forensic evidence and interviews of almost 100 employees, the Marshal’s team determined that no further investigation was warranted with respect to many of the ’82 employees [who] had access to electronic or hard copies of the draft opinion,’ ” according to the statement. Republished with the permission of The Center Square.
Kay Ivey awards $2.5 million grant to create 800 jobs in Baldwin County
On Thursday, Gov. Kay Ivey awarded a $2.5 million grant to help a world leader in aluminum manufacturing and recycling build a plant in south Alabama and create 800 new jobs. Site work is now underway, and a groundbreaking ceremony was held in October. Community Development Block Grant funds will provide the infrastructure required for Novelis Inc. to invest in a $2.4 billion facility in Bay Minette. The mega-plant will be on a 3,000-acre site off Alabama Highway 287 and Interstate 65. “This commitment from Novelis Inc. to construct a high-tech aluminum plant will have a major impact on Baldwin County and is evidence of Alabama’s strong business climate and its capable workforce,” Gov. Ivey stated. “I am pleased to award these funds in support of this project which will bring hundreds of job opportunities to the area.” In May 2022, Atlanta-based Novelis announced plans to build the low-carbon and energy-efficient aluminum rolling and recycling plant at the south Alabama location and use state-of-the-art equipment. “This investment marks the start of another transformational growth phase for Novelis,” said Kumar Mangalam Birla, Chairman of the Aditya Birla Group and the Novelis Board of Directors. “We continue to invest in each of the markets Novelis serves – from beverage can to automotive, aerospace, and specialties – and in all geographies. Novelis has a track record of success in delivering customers the low-carbon, sustainable aluminum solutions they seek, and we will continue that storied history with this investment and others to come.” Novelis provides products used in the automotive, aerospace, and general manufacturing businesses. The grant, administered by the Alabama Department of Economic and Community Affairs (ADECA), will be used to extend public water and sewer services to the plant. The city of Bay Minette has pledged $650,000 in labor and equipment for the utility extensions. “Projects like this do not just happen on their own. They take a lot of teamwork and cooperation by local leaders who work tirelessly to put all the pieces in place,” ADECA Director Kenneth Boswell said. “ADECA is pleased to join Gov. Ivey in being part of this project which will provide many benefits to Bay Minette, Baldwin County, and the entire region.” Gov. Ivey notified Mayor Robert Wills that the grant had been approved. Community Development Block Grant funding is made available to Alabama through the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. ADECA manages a range of programs that support law enforcement, economic development, recreation, energy conservation, and water resource management.
