The Opelika Career Center wins national award
The Opelika Career Center in Alabama received the prestigious Mark Sanders Award at the National Association of State Workforce Agencies (NASWA) 10th Annual Veterans Conference in Washington, D.C. NASWA’s Mark Sanders Award is bestowed each year upon one individual or group in the U.S. that provides exceptional workforce and job market assistance to veterans, especially those with significant barriers to obtaining and retaining employment. Scott B. Sanders is the President and CEO of NASWA “The Opelika Career Center has worked tirelessly to help assist veterans and military spouses transition back to civilian life,” said President Sanders. “I applaud the Opelika Career Center staff on the exemplary service they provide to the men and women protecting our country and congratulate them on earning the 2023 Mark Sanders Award!” The Opelika Career Center was nominated by the Alabama Department of Labor. In 2022, the Opelika Career Center established the Citywide Careers Skills Program (CSP) in conjunction with Opelika Mayor Gary Fuller and the Opelika Workforce Council. To date, 25 businesses have enrolled in the program and are instrumental in offering internships and career opportunities for transitioning service members, veterans, and military spouses. The Citywide CSP also provides employers with a conduit of quality applicants for internship and apprenticeship positions in the community. Fitzgerald Washington is the Alabama Secretary of State. “Veterans are such an integral part of our workforce,” said Sec. Washington. “The skills that our veterans bring to any job are valuable, and we are working hard to ensure that while veterans transition from military service to the private sector, they are as prepared as they can be, and that they have easy access to any programs that can ease that transition. I’m proud of the staff at the Opelika Career Center for this program and the partnerships it represents.” The Opelika Career Center focuses on developing relationships with military bases, support networks, workforce boards, and businesses to enhance job opportunities for veterans. In addition to its work with the Citywide CSP, the Opelika Career Center has organized and hosted veteran hiring events for 31 businesses. It has also partnered with the county on a Second Chance Job Fair and has hosted resume and mock interview workshops. Through its numerous program and service partnerships, the Opelika Career Center has gone above and beyond to serve its Veterans. The award is named in honor of Mark Sanders, who, during his career with the California Employment Development Department and in leadership positions with NASWA, was untiring in his efforts to promote excellence in services to disabled veterans. The National Association of State Workforce Agencies is the national organization representing all 50 state workforce agencies, the District of Columbia, and U.S. territories. These agencies deliver training, employment, career, business, and wage and hour services. They also administer unemployment insurance, veteran reemployment, and labor market information programs. NASWA provides policy expertise, shares promising state practices, and promotes state innovation and leadership in workforce development. To connect with the author of this story or to comment, email brandonmreporter@gmail.com.
Paul DeMarco: Alabama leaders should work towards increasing penalties for false reporting of crimes
Both Alabama and the Nation have followed the case of Carlee Russell, the Hoover woman who has now been charged with deceiving the public and police by alleging she had been kidnapped. Hoover Police arrested her for two misdemeanor counts of false reporting to law enforcement authorities and falsely reporting an incident. Both are Class A misdemeanors punishable by not more than one year in jail and a fine of up to $6.000. Attorney General Steve Marshall’s office will be prosecuting Russell and will be seeking restitution from those that expended resources to search for her when she called 911, and it was feared that she had been abducted. But there is more to the story that has to be uncovered, and more importantly, Hoover Police Chief Nick Derzis wants the penalties for the false reporting of a crime increased by state lawmakers. Alabama State Representatives and Senators should sit down with the Police Chief and Attorney General to determine how to enhance the criminal statutes to stiffen the penalties for those who misrepresent alleged crimes to public safety. The entire episode has the public frustrated and wanting a strong law to deter this from happening again. The next Alabama legislative session will be in six months, in February of 2024, but it is not too early to have a bill drafted and pre-filed. There should be bipartisan support to pass such a new law in Alabama based on recent events. Paul DeMarco is a former member of the Alabama House of Representatives and can be found on Twitter at @Paul_DeMarco.
Alabama Republican Party leaders support Tommy Tuberville’s abortion stance
On Saturday, the Alabama Republican Party State Executive Committee passed a resolution reprimanding President Joe Biden for his circumventing the Hyde Amendment and using taxpayer money to fund abortion-related expenses for service members and their dependents. The resolution also supported Senator Tommy Tuberville for his stance in standing up to the Biden Administration’s policy. Tuberville has been widely criticized by the mainstream media, Senate Democrats, and the Whitehouse, including by President Biden himself, for his refusal to give unanimous consent to military and Department of Defense promotions until the policy is reversed. “The Senator from Alabama’s actions are not just the usual back and forth in Washington. His holds pose a grave threat to our national security and our military readiness,” said Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Massachusetts). “Sen. Tuberville’s hold is just another indication of the madness that seems to have seized extremists in the Republican Party.” President Biden has called Tuberville’s position “ridiculous” and “bizarre.” However, 99.1% of his party colleagues in Alabama, from all 67 counties, voted to support Tuberville’s stance, a move that has stalled 360 military promotions, including that of the Commandant of the Marine Corps and the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. The resolution reads: “Reprimand of the Biden Administration for Violating the Principles of the Hyde Amendment WHEREAS, The Hyde Amendment was enacted as part of the federal budget in 2022 and bars the use of federal funds to support abortions at any level, and WHEREAS, The Biden administration has gone against the principles of the Hyde Amendment by ordering the use of federal funds to pay for <me off from work and travel costs to obtain abortions for both service members and their dependents, and WHEREAS, A Marist poll sponsored by the Knights of Columbus earlier this year showed 60% of all American adults oppose the use of taxpayer money to fund abortion related expenses, and WHEREAS, U.S. Senator Tommy Tuberville has stood strong against the actions of the Biden administration. THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the Alabama Republican Party calls on the Biden Administration to reverse the policy of using taxpayer money to fund abortion related expenses against the will of the people, and thanks Senator Tommy Tuberville for his stand against this flawed policy. This resolution adopted by the Alabama Republican Executive Committee on this the 5th day of August, 2023, in session at Montgomery, Alabama.” The 475-member Republican State Executive Committee meets at least two times a year to elect officers, pass resolutions such as this, and consider bylaws changes. Tuberville spoke to the group on Friday night when he introduced former President Donald Trump. To connect with the author of this story or to comment, email brandonmreporter@gmail.com.
Donald Trump tells Alabama Republicans: “They are after me because they are after you!”
Former President Donald Trump spoke to the Alabama Republican Party at their annual Summer Dinner on Friday night in Montgomery. Trump’s speech was just a day after he appeared in court to plead not guilty to charges related to the January 6 protests at the Capitol and his effort to have the election results overturned by Congress. This was Trump’s first speech in the aftermath of the latest indictment, and his tone was angry but confident in his eventual acquittal and optimistic about his return to the White House. “Eight years ago, this month, we held one of the very first rallies of the 2016 campaign – right here in Alabama,” said Trump. “Together, we launched one of the greatest political movements in the history of our country, and we are going to do it again.” Trump won the Republican primary in Alabama by a wide margin in 2016. “We love Alabama. Won it by 45 points,” Trump said. “With Alabama patriots like you, we are going to do it again, but we are going to win it bigger and better than 2016.” ” This state has been right with us from the very beginning. Kay, I have to say right from the very beginning.” “We are going to do something that is so incredible. On election day 2023, we are going to evict crooked Joe Biden from the White House. We are going to evict the criminals and thugs from the halls of power in Washington D.C., and we are going to make America great again.” “The poll numbers are the highest we have ever had, and people are very upset out there about what is going on out there,” Trump said. Trump claimed that the charges against him were the work of “deranged government agents and rogue intelligence agents.” He called the charges against him. “fake” and argued that the latest indictments “could have been filed two and a half years ago.” Trump dismissed the cases against him as “election interference” by the Democrats and the Biden Justice Department. He called prosecutor Jack Smith “deranged.” “This is an absolute case of prosecutorial misconduct.” “It is not going to make any impact because every time they file an indictment, we go way up in the polls,” Trump said. “We need one more indictment to close out this election. One more indictment and this election is closed out. Nobody has even a chance. We’ve already defeated the Republicans.” “It’s not fair, and it is probably not legal what they are doing,” the former President said. “They want to interfere in my campaign, and they want to interfere in the election.” Trump said that this is the sort of thing that they do in third-world countries. “The fake charges they put forth in their sham indictments are an outrageous criminalization of political speech. That’s all it is,” said Trump. “They are trying to make it illegal to question the results of a bad election.” Trump’s assertion that calling the 2020 election “stolen” and urging Vice President Mike Pence to reject the Electoral College results as fraudulent is political speech and thus protected by the Constitution was heavily debated on new talk shows over the weekend. CNN’s Dana Bash blasted Trump’s defense, “You can’t break the law, which is what this indictment alleges.” The country, as a whole, seemed largely unmoved by last week’s courtroom legal drama. If anyone in the room Friday night had any disagreement with his First Amendment defense, it was not apparent. Hours after his third round of indictments, Trump received the endorsements of most of Alabama’s elected Republican leaders. “If someone else was leading this banner, they would attack them as well,” Trump said. “I am being indicted for you – thanks a lot, thanks a lot.” “They want to take away my freedom because I won’t let them take away your freedom,” Trump told the crowd. “They want to silence me because I won’t let them silence you. In the end, they are after me because they are after you.” The crowd roared with approval and jumped to its feet numerous times with standing ovations. Trump was so popular in the Heart of Dixie during the last two elections that neither Hillary Clinton nor Joe Biden campaigned in the state after the primary season. Trump crushed both in the general election in Alabama – even though he lost the popular vote nationally in 2016 and 2020. U.S. Senator Tommy Tuberville (R-Alabama) introduced Trump at Friday’s event. “Traveled around the state this week,” Tuberville said. “Went to the Wiregrass. Went to Mobile, Birmingham, Rainsville, Montgomery. I spoke a lot with the farmers, but everywhere I went, I never realized how big a state this is for Trump. This is Trump country.” To connect with the author of this story or to comment, email brandonmreporter@gmail.com.
Alabama Republican Party State Executive Committee approves rule change banning AEA, NEA contributions for certain candidates
On Saturday, the Alabama Republican Party State Executive Committee voted to pass a rule change barring candidates for State Board of Education, county school superintendent, and county board of education from accepting donations from either the National Education Association (NEA) or its Alabama affiliate, the Alabama Education Association (AEA). The rule change, which does not retroactively apply to past election cycles, will apply to the 2024 elections. The rule change was sponsored by Alabama Republican Party Chairman John Wahl. “One of my goals with this Standing Rule Amendment is making sure our school board and superintendent candidates are not dependent on any special interest group,” said Wahl. “With that in mind, I have already committed that the Party will step in and replace any funding lost should it become necessary. The Alabama Republican Party is in an extremely strong position financially, and we will have our candidate’s backs.” Since Wahl was the author of the proposed bylaws change, he handed over his Chairman’s gavel to Alabama Republican Party Vice Chair Joan Reynolds for this debate while leading efforts on the floor to pass his bylaws change. The Wahl amendment was weakened somewhat in an agreed-on change when the words “and coordinate with” were removed. This effectively means that the candidate could still coordinate with AEA efforts to smear their opponent on an issue such as a school tax increase that both support. The original wording would have made both activities grounds for removal from the ballot. Hale County Commissioner Don Wallace offered an amendment to the rule change that would have also applied to candidates for the Alabama Legislature. State Representative Ron Bolton (R-Northport) objected to Wallace’s amendment and asked that it be tabled. State Auditor Andrew Sorrell said there would be time to consider extending this to other offices in future meetings, but with the 2024 election cycle beginning this fall, this was a time sensitive matter. Sorrell is the Bylaws Committee Chairman for the Alabama Republican Party and the State Auditor. Wallace replied that the State Legislature just passed the largest school budget in state history and voted down school choice legislation, and were likely to consider an even bigger $10 billion education budget next year. Wahl said Governor Kay Ivey has pledged that the state will pass one of the strongest school choice laws in the nation next session. The members of the executive voted to take consideration of the Wallace amendment. They also voted to table a second amendment which would have applied to all Republican candidates – no matter what the office. Jefferson County Republican Party Chairman Chris Brown made the argument that while he advises all of his clients and candidates never to take AEA dollars, the GOP has disqualified candidates from the ballot for several different reasons, and by putting this in the bylaws, it could make those efforts to disqualify future candidates more difficult. He then introduced a resolution to table the Wahl bylaws change. In what appeared to be a stunning rebuke of Chairman Wahl, the Executive Committee voted to table the proposed bylaws change. The State Executive Committee then moved on and passed a number of other bylaws changes – including making the bylaws and rules committees permanent committees and establishing that the state executive committee will pick the delegates to the Republican National Convention. After the other bylaws changes had passed, Sorrell said that in respect for all of the hard work that Chairman Wahl put into his AEA bylaws change, he asked the Committee to reconsider its earlier vote. The Committee then voted to pass the bylaws change. “The Party is strongly committed to protecting our children from indoctrination in the classroom by left-wing groups like the NEA and its affiliated organizations,” Wahl explained. “Parents should decide what their children learn about divisive concepts, not education unions that have lost touch with the values of the American people. Transgender ideology and other woke policies have no place in our schools, period. So many of our parents and local teachers want to see change in our education system, but how can we expect our superintendents and school board members to stand up against teaching these woke concepts if they are afraid of the money and financial power coming from liberal unions responsible for pushing this type of curriculum? It’s a blatant conflict of interest and something that needs to be addressed. Our elected school representatives must be responsible to Alabama parents, not special interest groups. This will stop this conflict of interest and is no different than the state’s prohibition on members of the Alabama Public Service Commission accepting donations from the utilities they regulate. The bottom line is it’s time to get woke agendas out of our curriculum and out of our classrooms.” This rule change only applies to Republicans. The AEA may still donate to candidates for school board, superintendent, or State Board of Education, but candidates who accept AEA contributions will have to run as Democrats or as independents. Republican state legislators, as well as statewide and county officeholders (outside of the school boards and school superintendents), may still take AEA and NEA contributions. The roughly 475 members Alabama Republican State Executive Committee is the largest state committee in the country. All 67 counties are represented on the state executive committee. It meets at least twice a year, holding meetings in both the summer and the winter. All 67 counties have a county Republican Party where members of that county party elect a chairman. The 67 county chairmen all are members of the state executive committee. There are members of the state executive committee elected by the Republican primary voters of each county. Additionally, the state party awards counties bonus members based on its GOP election performance. The bonus member spots are then filled by the members of the county parties (in most cases, the county party executive committee). To connect with the author of this story or to comment, email brandonmreporter@gmail.com.
Ron DeSantis steps up dire warning to GOP about distraction from Joe Biden, amid Donald Trump’s latest indictment
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis is increasingly urging Republicans to avoid the temptation to refight the 2020 election next year, even as former President Donald Trump remains the dominant favorite for the 2024 GOP nomination on a message of vindicating his defeat. Though DeSantis recently cast doubt on the false theories about the 2020 election at the heart of Trump’s federal indictment, DeSantis is saying in early-voting states that any focus except on defeating Democratic President Joe Biden would be dire for his party. “If that is the choice, we are going to win, and we are going to win across the country,” DeSantis told reporters Saturday after a campaign stop in northern Iowa. “If the election is a referendum on other things that are not forward-looking, then I’m afraid Republicans will lose.” DeSantis was on the second of a two-day trip across Iowa, pressing his recent record in Florida of conservative education, abortion, and gender policy, and an equally GOP crowd-pleasing agenda for the nation. He ignited applause at a Saturday morning event in Cedar Falls promoting a balanced budget amendment, term limits for Congress and promising his audience of about 100 that he would declare a national emergency and dispatch the military to the U.S.-Mexico border upon taking office. His labor to spur the party forward stood in sharp contrast to the Trump campaign’s release of an online ad attacking Justice Department special counsel Jack Smith, who led the investigation that culminated in an indictment charging Trump with four felony counts related to his effort to reverse his 2020 election loss. The charges include conspiracy to defraud the U.S. government and conspiracy to obstruct an official proceeding. Likewise, he boasted at an Alabama Republican Party fundraising dinner Friday that the indictment was a political asset. “Any time they file an indictment, we go way up in the polls,” Trump told his audience in Montgomery, Alabama. “One more indictment, and this election is closed out. Nobody has even a chance.” On Saturday night in South Carolina, Trump kept up his false characterizations of the 2020 election while also maintaining the pressure on DeSantis, a distant runner-up that he said has “gotten so low in the polls we don’t watch him anymore.” Of the new federal charges against him, Trump continued to argue that his political enemies were bringing the charges in an effort to keep him from returning to power. “Only a party that cheats at elections would make it illegal to question those elections,” Trump told more than 1,000 attendees at the state Republican Party’s 56th annual Silver Elephant Gala. “They don’t go after the people that rigged the election — they go after the people that want to find out what the hell happened.” Still, DeSantis has gone marginally further in recent days in discussing Trump’s defeat, though more typically when talking to the media after campaign events than during events with voters, many of whom remain sympathetic to Trump. During Saturday morning campaign events, he blasted “weaponization” of federal agencies, a term that resonates with Republicans sympathetic to the belief that the Justice Department has persecuted Trump. But after a stop to meet voters at a small-town restaurant, DeSantis sidestepped when asked if he would have certified the 2020 Electoral College vote as former Vice President Mike Pence did the day the pro-Trump rioters attacked and breached the Capitol. DeSantis responded that Vice President Kamala Harris does not have the power to overturn the 2024 results, which Congress made explicit by passing an act after the 2020 election that says a vice president has no role in validating a presidential election results beyond acting as a figurehead who oversees the counting process. In January 2025, “the electoral votes will be submitted, and Kamala Harris will certify. She’s not going to have the opportunity to overrule what the American people say,” he said in a brief press conference. “I don’t think that Kamala Harris has that authority.” On Friday, DeSantis, who has often pivoted away from questions about whether the 2020 election was legitimate, went a little further when asked about it, suggesting Trump’s false claim that he actually beat Biden was “unsubstantiated.” But DeSantis minced no words to his audience packed into a meeting room at a Pizza Ranch restaurant in Grinnell. “The time for excuses for Republicans is over,” he said firmly. “It’s time to get the job done.” Republished with the permission of The Associated Press.
Plaintiffs to challenge Alabama’s new congressional redistricting map
The plaintiffs in Allen v. Milligan filed a formal objection on July 28 with the United States District Court for the Northern District of Alabama regarding the state’s revised congressional district boundaries. The plaintiffs requested that the court prohibit the state from using the new boundaries and appoint a special master to draw a new congressional map that the state would use for the remainder of the decade. The U.S. Supreme Court had ruled 5-4 in Allen v. Milligan that the plaintiffs showed a reasonable likelihood of success concerning their claim that Alabama’s 2021 redistricting map violated Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act. SCOTUS’ decision affirmed the Northern District’s earlier decision, and SCOTUS remanded the case back to the district court for further proceedings. Alabama enacted revised congressional district boundaries on July 21 after the legislature approved them and Gov. Kay Ivey signed the redrawn maps into law. The Senate approved the new boundaries 24-6, and the state House passed them 76-26. The Alabama Reflector’s Alander Rocha and Jemma Stephenson wrote that the congressional map the state enacted in 2023 “would lower the percentage of Alabama’s current majority-Black district and create a district in southeast Alabama that would be nearly 40% Black.” The plaintiffs’ objection to the newly enacted boundaries argued, “Alabama’s new congressional map ignores this Court’s preliminary injunction order and instead perpetuates the Voting Rights Act violation that was the very reason that the Legislature redrew the map. The new map (known as SB 5) fails to address this Court’s ruling that the 2021 congressional map likely violates § 2 of the Voting Rights Act (VRA).” After the state enacted new congressional boundaries in July, Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall issued a statement that said in part: “The Legislature’s new plan fully and fairly applies traditional principles in a way that complies with the Voting Rights Act. Contrary to mainstream media talking points, the Supreme Court did not hold that Alabama must draw two majority-minority districts. Instead, the Court made clear that the VRA never requires adoption of districts that violate traditional redistricting principles.” U.S. Rep. Terri Sewell, D-Alabama, issued a statement that said in part: “Today, the State of Alabama has shamelessly chosen to ignore the Supreme Court. The map advanced by the state legislature includes only one majority-minority district and a second district where Black voters make up only 39.9 percent of the voting-age population. “This map does not comply with the Supreme Court’s order and is an insult to Black voters across our state. I fully expect that it will be rejected by the courts.” Now that the plaintiffs have objected to the newly adopted boundaries, the state has until Aug. 4 to file a response. If the federal district court decides to conduct hearings in the case, those have been tentatively scheduled to start on Aug. 14. Republished with the permission of The Center Square.
Donald Trump boasts at Alabama fundraiser that he needs ‘one more indictment to close out this election’
Former President Donald Trump, fresh off his third appearance in court as a criminal defendant, delivered a speech full of defiance and bluster on Friday night, insulting prosecutors and declaring that the charges he faces only help his 2024 presidential campaign. “Any time they file an indictment, we go way up in the polls,” Trump said at a Republican Party dinner in Alabama. “We need one more indictment to close out this election. One more indictment and this election is closed out. Nobody has even a chance.” Trump pleaded not guilty on Thursday to crimes related to his efforts to overturn the results of his 2020 election loss. Although it’s his third criminal indictment this year, this case is the most serious, with the federal government he once ran charging him with orchestrating a scheme to block the peaceful transfer of power. But Trump was characteristically unapologetic as he took the stage Friday night to Lee Greenwood’s “God Bless the USA,” flashing a thumbs-up at the crowd, raising his fist, and taking in a standing ovation of nearly three minutes. “We’re gonna be here for a little while,” he joked, asking the crowd to take a seat. The latest set of charges focuses on the two months between his November 2020 loss to Democrat Joe Biden and the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection at the U.S. Capitol. Trump has denied wrongdoing and has wedded his 2024 presidential campaign to his legal defense and his false claims of 2020 election fraud. In a sign of that defiance, his campaign released an online ad Friday attacking Justice Department special counsel Jack Smith, who led the investigation that resulted in Trump’s latest charges and a separate case where he’s charged with mishandling classified documents. The ad, which is expected to start airing on television next week, also attacks Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, who has charged Trump in a hush-money case, and Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis, who is believed to be close to filing charges in her investigation into efforts by Trump and his allies to overturn the 2020 election results in Georgia. A Trump aide said the ad will start airing Monday and Tuesday in Washington, D.C., New York, Atlanta, and on national cable. The ad was also shown to the crowd at the Alabama dinner Friday night. Trump has continued to receive endorsements from GOP elected officials throughout the investigations and criminal cases, including on Friday from all six of the state’s Republican U.S. House members. Sen. Tommy Tuberville of Alabama, who is waging an unprecedented campaign to try to change Pentagon abortion policy by holding up hundreds of military nominations and promotions, introduced Trump at the dinner on Friday night. “He’s had a tough week. We need to stand behind him,” Tuberville said. “He needs encouragement. They’re after him.” Repeating Trump’s frequent refrain, he added, “They’re after you.” Among the opening acts of the dinner were Catherine Engelbrecht and Gregg Phillips, who produced the movie “2000 Mules,” which made various debunked claims about mail ballots, drop boxes, and ballot collection in the 2020 presidential election. Trump praised the pair in his remarks and said: “Get ready. Get those votes ready. Just get them ready. Keep those tapes handy because you’re going to need them.” The crowd of 2,700 began arriving several hours early for the dinner, a $250-per-ticket fundraiser for the Alabama Republican Party. “They are excited,” Alabama Republican Party Chair John Wahl said. “There is so much passion from Trump supporters and voters across the state.” Trump’s mounting legal troubles do not seem to be dampening his support in the Deep South state that is among more than a dozen that will hold primary contests on Super Tuesday. The March 5 slate of elections is increasingly seen as one of the last chances for any other GOP presidential candidate to try to make inroads in Trump’s front-runner status. Trump’s closest rival, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, has been making a play for Super Tuesday states. In Alabama, though, one gauge of interest doesn’t bode well for the governor: The state GOP sold about 1,000 fewer tickets for a similar dinner in March when DeSantis spoke. Robin Rowan, the owner of a financial company, wore a button and sash with Trump’s image and “NOT GUILTY” emblazoned in sequins as she waited Friday to hear Trump speak. Rowan, who does not believe the criminal accusations against Trump, said the charges have galvanized support for Trump rather than making voters doubt him. “We know the truth. They are trying to wear us down. They are not going to wear us down,” Rowan said. Rich Foster, a retired police officer wearing a black “Bikers for Trump” T-shirt, said he believes some crimes were committed on Jan. 6, such as the attacks on police officers defending the Capitol, but does not consider Trump responsible for the violence that happened. “I don’t think Trump committed a crime that day,” Foster said. He said he believed that Trump, as president, had a right to speak out about the election. Trump has not been charged with inciting the attack, but prosecutors accused him of exploiting the violence and chaos at the Capitol to continue making false claims of election fraud and trying to halt the certification of the election results. Foster said he and other Trump supporters viewed the charges as an attempt to keep Trump from winning in 2024. He said he would write in the former president’s name if he had to. “If they get him off the ballot somehow,” he said, “I know how to write Donald J. Trump on the ballot.” Republished with the permission of The Associated Press.
