Dom Gentile withdraws from Senate race, endorses Mo Brooks
Birmingham businessman Dominic “Dom” Gentile, who entered Alabama’s U.S. Senate in hopes of shaking-up the status quo, withdrew his candidacy on Monday and urged his supporters to back Alabama 5th District U.S. Rep. Mo Brooks. “Two weeks ago my family was hit with a complex issue that I don’t yet have my head around and I must learn more about. My wife of 29.5 years was diagnosed with a rare form of breast cancer,” Gentile explained at a press conference with Brooks Monday afternoon in Birmingham. “It is time for me to spend my time by her side, fighting to help her and others stricken by this nasty disease. So I am immediately withdrawing from the US Senate race, and will be taking the fight to cancer.” Gentile says during the race he had the oppounity to get to know the other candidates running, but only Brooks meets his “extremely high” standards. Gentile continued, “If you are looking for a rare breed of US Senator with true conservative principles who will get the government out of your way. If you are looking for an ethical family man who will represent our state with dignity. If you are looking for a Senator who is smart as a whip and who will work hard for you. If you are looking for a Senator with a huge heart who is guided by the principles of God… Then Mo Brooks is your man.” Brooks offered his prayers to the Gentile family, as he thanked Dom for his support. “Martha and I are very sorry to hear of Karen Gentile’s illness and send her our prayers for a full recovery. Our family has experienced breast cancer so I have some understanding of what Karen and Dominic Gentile are going through,” said Brooks. “It has been an honor to compete with Dominic Gentile during this Senate campaign and to receive his endorsement. It means a lot.” Watch the announcement below:
Mo Brooks tops in Huntsville straw poll, Luther Strange at bottom
Alabama Congressman Mo Brooks came out on top in a straw poll of U.S. Senate candidates at a candidate forum Monday in his hometown of Huntsville. AL.com reports that nine candidates took part in the event organized by the Christian Citizen Task Force, with a bipartisan audience of about 300 people. Out of 200 votes cast for Republicans, Brooks took first with 101 votes. Former state Supreme Chief Justice Roy Moore came in second with 74 votes; state Sen. Trip Pittman of Montrose received eight votes. Incumbent Republican Sen. Luther Strange — who did not attend the event — tied for sixth with only three votes. Three Republicans — James Beretta, Joseph Breault and Dom Gentile — received no votes. Democrats cast about 40 votes; leading the count was Brian McGee, who took 19 votes. According to AL.com, the candidates attending the forum were Democrats Will Boyd, Vann Caldwell and McGee; Republicans Randy Brinson, Brooks, Mary Maxwell, Moore, Bryan Peeples and Pittman. Appointed to the Senate in February by then-Governor Robert Bentley, Strange is facing a crowded 10-person field for the Aug. 15 Republican primary. A primary runoff, if necessary, will be Sept. 26, with a general election Dec. 12.
Steve Flowers: Sizing up the U.S. Senate sprint
Well, folks, the field is set for the sprint to fill the open U.S. Senate seat of Jeff Sessions. The primary Aug. 15 is less than three months away. There will probably be a run-off Sept. 26, and the winner of that GOP run-off will be our Junior Senator from Alabama. In the Heart of Dixie, winning the Republican nomination is tantamount to election. The Dec. 12 General Election will be a coronation for the winner of the Sept. 26 Republican primary. It was an interesting closing day of qualifying Wednesday. It was unbelievable how many people showed up to qualify. Eleven candidates are running in the Republican primary and amazingly, the Democrats fielded eight candidates. It was like ants coming out of the woodwork. It was similar to our olden days of Alabama politics when everybody and their brother ran for an open governor’s race or a seldom seen open Senate race. We ought to refer to this race as an ant race rather than a horse race. Of the 19 candidates, only about five are viable contenders. Therefore, about 14 of these folks are running for the fun of it. In fact, we use to refer to them as “run for the fun of it” candidates. The most colorful run for the fun of it candidate in Alabama political history was Ralph “Shorty” Price. Shorty ran for governor every four years. He usually finished last. His slogan was smoke Tampa Nugget cigars, drink Budweiser beer and vote for Shorty Price. His campaign platform declared that he would change the term of governor from four years to two years. He would say if you are not smart enough to steal enough as governor in two years, you ain’t smart enough to be governor. My guess is that if someone put Shorty’s name on this Aug. 15 ballot, he would run sixth out of the 12-person GOP field, posthumously. He would probably win the Democratic nomination from the grave. The party leaders were probably glad to see them all show up. The raked in $3,400 a pop from each qualifier. You wonder what motivates those also-ran candidates to put their names on the ballot. Maybe they just want to see their name on the ballot, maybe their Aunt Susie left them $5,000 with the stipulation that they had to use it to run for the U.S. Senate, or they want to tell their grandchildren one day that they ran for the U.S. Senate. They can omit that they ran 11th. Maybe they won a 4-H speaking contest when they were in school and figured their destiny was to be a U.S. Senator. It is similar to someone trying to walk on to Bear Bryant’s or Nick Saban’s football team, and Bryant or Saban grants them permission to get a uniform if only for a day and try out. That bold soul who had to be hit by John Hannah like a tackling dummy can truthfully say to their grandson, “I played football at Alabama for Bear Bryant.” Actually, Alabama’s Sixth Congressional Jefferson/Shelby U.S. Representative, Gary Palmer, was elected to Congress by his doing the above thing while in college at Alabama. Some people suspect that his saying he played for Bear Bryant helped propel him to victory when he was elected a few years ago. Well, let’s give them just due and list them for you. I will list them in order of how I would handicap the field as the race for the Republican nomination begins. The two frontrunners are Roy Moore, followed by Luther Strange. Congressman Mo Brooks is within striking distance of Big Luther. State Senator Trip Pittman and Dr. Randy Brinson could be players if they come up with $5 million to spend on the race. Right now, they are unknown to more than 95 percent of the electorate. If Mo Brooks can raise and spend $3 million, or if Brinson or Pittman can pony up $5 million, one of these three could probably knock Luther out of the run-off. Roy Moore is in the run-off – he leads the crowded field. These six brave souls are in for the fun of it. Hopefully, their next-door neighbor or grandmother will vote for them, James Paul Baretta, Joseph Breault, Dom Gentile, Karen Jackson, Mary Maxwell and Bryan Peeples. Enjoy the race. I will keep you posted. Next week I will analyze and handicap the race in-depth. See you next week. ___ Steve Flowers is Alabama’s leading political columnist. His weekly column appears in over 60 Alabama newspapers. He served 16 years in the state Legislature. Steve may be reached at www.steveflowers.us.
Get to know Dom Gentile, Republican running for Alabama U.S. Senate seat
Wednesday marked the deadline for candidates to qualify to run in the Alabama special election to replace Jeff Sessions in the U.S. Senate. 11 Republicans and eight Democrats will officially move forward to their party’s August 15 primaries. With a little over three months until voters head to the ballots, AlabamaToday.com is inviting all of the candidates, including appointed-incumbent Sen. Luther Strange, to complete a questionnaire we believe offers an interesting, albeit, thumbnail sketch of who they are and why they are running. If you are a candidate and would like to complete the questionnaire, email Elizabeth@ALToday.com. Today’s candidate spotlight features Dominic “Dom” Gentile, a Birmingham businessman hoping to shake-up the status quo. Here he is in his own words: Significant other? Wife, Karen – met in college, married 29 years. Kids? We have three boys between the ages 16-23. Education background? Attended the University of Alabama and was a walk-on kicker for the football team. Studied Political Science and received my BA. Then went on to get an MBA. Professional background? I’ve worked in sales, marketing and general management for three Fortune 500 companies Duracell, Gillette and Sara Lee. Those positions provided me with the opportunity to travel the world working in over 25 countries, living in many different cities in the US, and living in Asia. This gave me a global perspective that I will take with me to the Senate. What was your first job? Territory Manager selling batteries for Duracell. In 25 words or less, why are you running for office? Our citizens need a representative, not another politician. Alabamians deserve to have a candidate who is not a bought insider. I have never run for office and owe nobody. Did you speak with anybody in your political party before deciding on running? Receive any encouragement? From whom? I did not speak with anyone from the party. Who do you count on for advice? I am a good listener so I count on a lot of people for advice. Who is your political consultant? Campaign manager? My team is comprised of professionals in Public Relations, Graphic Design, Social Media, Advertising and Promotion and Communications. None of them have political experience, and that is intentional. Who was the first person to contribute to your campaign? Me actually. Why did they donate? I wanted to self-fund my campaign to demonstrate that I am not in anyone’s back pocket. Special interests and the donation money from special interests are ruining our election process. Who, if anyone, inspires you in state government? Nobody Why do people mistrust elected officials and what are you going to do about it? People mistrust elected officials because they don’t actually represent the citizens. The people are frustrated and angry because they realize that special interests have a voice, but they don’t. That is why I’m running. I believe we need people from outside of the ‘system’ to bring sound problem solving and ethics back into office. I will never accept PAC or special interest money, and I will term-limit myself out of a job. I will serve one full 6 year term and then it is someone else’s turn. What are 3 issues that you’re running on? (Please don’t simply say “education” or “improving the schools”) My biggest three issues are: Term limits. I will push to pass a law on term limits at the federal level, and since I’m pretty sure it won’t pass (these insiders would never pass it) I will pledge to only serve one full-term in office. If you think this is a good idea, put your vote where your mouth is and never vote for a candidate who won’t sign such a pledge. Bring competition to Blue Cross Blue Shield, resulting in lower costs for all Alabamians. Flat Tax. Let’s simplify it and get rid of the bloated IRS. What is a “disruptive” issue (i.e. ride-sharing) you are interested in? We have a monopoly in this state with Blue Cross and Blue Shield, and that is not healthy. We need a more competitive landscape that will drive insurance premiums down and make insurance more affordable for everyone from the poor to middle class to the rich, and to businesses as well. Competition makes businesses better, and that results in better options and lower prices for the consumers like us. Who was the best governor in Alabama’s modern history? Next question. One of the primary responsibilities of a governor is to see that our children are educated properly, and education in Alabama is abysmal relative to other states and countries. Show me a governor who rights this ship and I will show you the best governor. Are yard signs an important part of campaigning in your district? No, I don’t think yard sign influences how someone votes, but they are a part of name recognition. As someone who has not run for political office before I will be working to get name recognition and yard signs are a necessary evil. I do pledge to ask my team and volunteers to pick them up after the campaign and recycle if possible. What’s the first thing you read each morning? ESPN.COM Where do you get your political news? I try not to read this junk. 60 Minutes or House of Cards? Neither. My favorite show is Madame Secretary. Social media presence? Twitter handle? Facebook Twitter Instagram In 140 characters, what’s a Tweet that best describes your campaign message. Unbought. Never to be bought. Representative vs politician. Hobbies? Teaching college and exercising. Favorite sport and sports team? Hockey. Nashville Predators.
Birmingham businessman Dom Gentile joins U.S. Senate race
Birmingham businessman Dominic “Dom” Gentile on Tuesday announced he’ll run for the U.S. Senate seat vacated by Jeff Sessions when he became U.S. Attorney General in February. The 51 Hoover, Ala. resident has never held public office and will kick off his campaign by traveling across the Yellowhammer State and talking to business owners, first responders, veterans, active military and citizens who want a fresh voice in Washington. “Dom will bring a fresh and innovative perspective to Washington,” states his newly launched campaign website. “Our politicians are broken. It’s not the system that’s broken; it’s the crooked, crony politicians, and he offers the voters a fresh alternative.” With a platform that includes supporting terms limits and only serving one full-term if elected; supporting the flat tax and dramatically reducing the size and power of the IRS; reducing health care costs and putting an end to what he deems “monopolistic behavior” of insurer Blue Cross Blue Shield; and removing government red tape — the University of Alabama alum is hoping to make the most of his political-outsider persona. He’s also using his first-hand experience as a small business owner as another selling point. “Over the last 13 years, Dom has grown his own business from nothing to a multi-million dollar enterprise. Dom knows how to create jobs and make a payroll. He helps people start businesses,” states his website. “Government is way too big and regulations are too burdensome for businesses. As a small business owner, Dom knows this first hand. Dom will work to reduce red tape.” Gentile joins an already crowded GOP race. Among those who have already thrown their hats into the ring, are Sen. Luther Strange, who was appointed to fills Sessions empty seat by former Gov. Robert Bentley; former Chief Justice of the Alabama Supreme Court Roy Moore; State Rep. Ed Henry; and President of the Christian Coalition of Alabama Dr. Randy Brinson. Other candidates may still join the contest in the coming days, with Republican State Sen. Del Marsh still on the fence. Meanwhile, Sens. Slade Blackwell and Trip Pittman are also considering a run, as is former Rep. Perry Hooper Jr. Ron Crumpton is the only Democrat in the race at this time. The deadline for candidates to qualify for the Senate run is May 17. The primary vote is August 15. The special election is December 12.
