Alabama leaders celebrate Martin Luther King Day
Today is a national and state holiday honoring the Civil Rights Movement icon, the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. Banks, government offices, post offices, most schools, and many businesses will be closed today in observance of the holiday. King was born in Atlanta on October 15, 1929. In 1955 he was the new pastor of the Dexter Avenue Baptist Church just a block from Alabama Capitol Building in Montgomery. King ignited the Civil Rights Movement when Rosa Parks was arrested for failing to surrender her seat to a White man on a Montgomery bus – then the law in Montgomery and many southern cities. King responded to Parks’ arrest by launching the Montgomery Bus Boycott. Black people, at the urging of King and the NAACP, refused to ride the buses, bringing the bus system to its knees. Eventually, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that government buses could not discriminate on the basis of race. The Montgomery Bus Boycott made King a national celebrity. He and like-minded Black ministers formed the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) to urge non-violent protest to fight discrimination and for social justice. King was the SCLC’s first president. When Alabama State Troopers attacked voting rights marchers in Selma, King went to Selma and led a new march that went all the way to Montgomery, protesting for voting rights. He was beaten, jailed, and his life threatened repeatedly for his bold activism. The Civil Rights Act of 1964 outlawed discrimination in the United States and the Jim Crow laws that had been on the books for generations in southern states. King won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1965 for his work. He was assassinated in Memphis in 1968. He was only 39. King’s “I have a Dream” speech that he made at the Civil Rights March in Washington D.C., was highly influential at the time and is quoted frequently today. King Jr. is easily the most well-known and celebrated civil rights leader in American history, though many people were involved in the movement. President Ronald Reagan signed legislation making Martin Luther King Jr. Day a national holiday. On Monday, at 1:00 p.m. CST, Congresswoman Terri Sewell will host a “TerriTalks” virtual discussion entitled “Carrying the Torch Forward: The Life and Legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.” Sewell will be joined by King’s son, global human rights activist Martin Luther King III. The conversation will focus on the legacy of Dr. King and the struggle for racial equality and voting rights that continues to this day. It will be streamed live on Sewell’s official Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube pages. Sewell is the first Black woman to represent Alabama in the United States Congress. There are a number of prayers, breakfasts, and other events today across the state honoring Dr. King and his legacy. The Birmingham Civil Rights Institute is hosting a whole day of activities beginning at 10:00 am CST. Visit their website for more information or to buy tickets. Alabama celebrates Martin Luther King Jr. Day and Robert E. Lee Day on the same day. Lee, a noted Confederate general, was born on January 19. This angers some in the civil rights movement. To connect with the author of this story, or to comment, email brandonmreporter@gmail.com.
Today is Robert E. Lee Day
Confederate General Robert E. Lee’s birthday is on January 19, but it is celebrated by the State of Alabama today. Robert E. Lee Day has been an official state holiday in Alabama since sometime in the late 1800s. Lee was the most renowned general of the Confederacy in the Civil War. Today is an official state holiday. State offices and most schools will be closed in observance of the holiday. Federal offices, post offices, and many businesses will also be closed, but that is because today is also Martin Luther King Jr. Day. Alabama and Mississippi merged its Lee celebration with MLK Day after President Ronald Reagan signed legislation, making it a national holiday. Some state legislators have advocated for dropping Robert E. Lee Day from the list of official holidays and making the holiday observance for Dr. King alone. That legislation has not advanced in past legislative sessions. Robert Edward Lee was the son of Revolutionary War hero General Henry “Light-Horse Harry” Lee. Lee was born in Stratford Hall, Virginia, in 1807. His father was a hero, a governor of Virginia, and the dignitary was chosen to write the eulogy for President George Washington. By young Robert’s birth, the Lee’s fortunes had turned sour, and Light Horse Harry served time in debtor’s prison. The older Lee’s health declined, and he passed away in the West Indies without ever getting to know his young son. Robert received an appointment to the United States Military Academy at West Point, where he graduated second in the class of 1829. Lee married Mary Anna Randolph Custis. Lee spent most of his early military career as an engineer, where he supervised and inspected the construction of the nation’s coastal defenses. During the Mexico-American War, Lee served on the staff of General Winfield Scott. Lee distinguished himself in that war and became a colonel. He was the Superintendent of West Point from 1852 to 1855. He then took command of the cavalry. In 1859 he crushed abolitionist John Brown’s attempted insurrection at Harpers Ferry. President Abraham Lincoln offered Lee the command of the Union Army being assembled to invade the South. Lee declined and resigned from the army when Virginia seceded. The Confederacy made Lee a general. His first military engagement in the Civil War was at Cheat Mountain (now West Virginia) on September 11, 1861. On June 1862, he was given command of what he would rename the Army of Northern Virginia when General Joseph E. Johnston was wounded. Lee would become a legend in that command. He won several victories against vastly superior Union forces. Ultimately though, his two attempts to invade the North at Antietam and Gettysburg were failures – costly failures that the outmanned Confederates could not sustain. After the simultaneous Union victories at Gettysburg and Vicksburg, Mississippi, Ulysses S. Grant assumed command of Union forces. Rather than making Richmond the aim of his campaign as previous generals had done – with no success – Grant attacked Lee’s Army. By the summer of 1864, the Confederates were forced into waging trench warfare outside of Petersburg. On April 9, 1865, Lee was forced to surrender his depleted army to Grant at Appomattox Court House. Lee returned home from the war and eventually became the president of Washington College in Virginia (now known as Washington and Lee University). He died on October 12, 1870, in Lexington, Virginia. His life and military exploits have been revered by generations of southerners. To connect with the author of this story, or to comment, email brandonmreporter@gmail.com.
Kevin McCarthy makes big gains for speaker, but still falls short
Republican leader Kevin McCarthy flipped 15 colleagues to support him in dramatic votes for House speaker on Friday, making extraordinary gains on the fourth day and the 12th and 13th ballots of a grueling standoff that was testing American democracy and the Republicans’ ability to govern. The changed votes from conservative holdouts, including the chairman of the chamber’s Freedom Caucus, put McCarthy closer to seizing the gavel for the new Congress — but not yet able. The stunning turnaround came after McCarthy agreed to many of the detractors’ demands — including the reinstatement of a longstanding House rule that would allow any single member to call a vote to oust him from office. That change and others mean the job he has fought so hard to gain will be weakened. After McCarthy won the most votes for the first time on the 12th ballot, a 13th was swiftly launched, this time just between McCarthy and the Democratic leader, with no nominated Republican challenger to siphon GOP votes away. But six GOP holdouts still cast their ballots for unnominated others, denying him the majority needed. The showdown that has stymied the new Congress came against the backdrop of the second anniversary of the January 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol, which shook the country when a mob of then-President Donald Trump’s supporters tried to stop Congress from certifying the Republican’s 2020 election defeat to Democrat Joe Biden. A few minutes before voting began in the House chamber, Republicans tiring of the spectacle walked out when one of McCarthy’s most ardent challengers railed against the GOP leader. “We do not trust Mr. McCarthy with power,” said Republican Matt Gaetz of Florida as colleagues streamed out of the chamber in protest of his remarks. Contours of a deal with conservative holdouts who have been blocking McCarthy’s rise emerged, but an agreement had seemed still out of reach after three dismal days and 11 failed votes in a political spectacle unseen in a century. But an upbeat McCarthy told reporters as he arrived at the Capitol Friday morning, “We’re going to make progress. We’re going to shock you.” One significant former holdout, Republican Scott Perry, chairman of the conservative Freedom Caucus, tweeted after his switched vote for McCarthy: “We’re at a turning point.” But several holdouts remained. The final 12th vote tally: McCarthy, 213 votes; Democrat Hakeem Jeffries 211. Other Republicans Jim Jordan and Kevin Hern picked up protest votes. With 431 members voting, McCarthy was still a few votes short of a majority. When Rep. Mike Garcia nominated McCarthy for a 12th time, he also thanked the U.S. Capitol Police who were given a standing ovation for protecting lawmakers and the legislative seat of democracy on January 6. The agreement McCarthy presented to the holdouts from the Freedom Caucus and others centers around rules changes they have been seeking for months. Those changes would shrink the power of the speaker’s office and give rank-and-file lawmakers more influence in drafting and passing legislation. Even if McCarthy is able to secure the votes he needs, he will emerge as a weakened speaker, having given away some powers, leaving him constantly under threat of being voted out by his detractors. But he would also be potentially emboldened as a survivor of one of the more brutal fights for the gavel in U.S. history. At the core of the emerging deal is the reinstatement of a House rule that would allow a single lawmaker to make a motion to “vacate the chair,” essentially calling a vote to oust the speaker. McCarthy had resisted allowing a return to the longstanding rule that former Speaker Nancy Pelosi had done away with, because it had been held over the head of past Republican Speaker John Boehner, chasing him to early retirement. But it appears he had no other choice. The chairman of the chamber’s Freedom Caucus, Scott Perry of Pennsylvania, who had been a leader in Trump’s efforts to challenge his presidential election loss to Democrat Joe Biden, appeared receptive to the proposed package, tweeting an adage from Ronald Reagan, “Trust but verify.” Other wins for the holdouts include provisions in the proposed deal to expand the number of seats available on the House Rules Committee, to mandate 72 hours for bills to be posted before votes, and to promise to try for a constitutional amendment that would impose federal limits on the number of terms a person could serve in the House and Senate. Lest hopes get ahead of reality, conservative holdout Ralph Norman of South Carolina said: “This is round one.” It could be the makings of a deal to end a standoff that has left the House unable to fully function. Members have not been sworn in, and almost no other business can happen. A memo sent out by the House’s chief administrative officer Thursday evening said that committees “shall only carry out core Constitutional responsibilities.” Payroll cannot be processed if the House isn’t functioning by January 13. After a long week of failed votes, Thursday’s tally was dismal: McCarthy lost seventh, eighth, and then historic ninth, 10th, and 11th rounds of voting, surpassing the number from 100 years ago in the last drawn-out fight to choose a speaker. The California Republican exited the chamber and quipped about the moment: “Apparently, I like to make history.” Feelings of boredom, desperation, and annoyance seemed increasingly evident. Democrats said it was time to get serious. “This sacred House of Representatives needs a leader,” said Democrat Joe Neguse of Colorado, nominating his own party’s leader, Hakeem Jeffries, as speaker. What started as a political novelty, the first time since 1923 a nominee had not won the gavel on the first vote, has devolved into a bitter Republican Party feud and deepening potential crisis. Democratic leader Jeffries of New York won the most votes on every ballot but also remained short of a majority. McCarthy ran second, gaining no ground. Pressure has grown with each passing day for McCarthy to somehow find the votes he needs or
Will Sellers: A birthday no one celebrates
One hundred years ago this month, delegates from various parts of the old Russian Empire met in Moscow to create the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. The world would never be the same. Prior to this declaration, an internal conflict pitted a variety of groups with differing political ideologies against each other. At the cost of more than 10 million dead, the communists emerged as the victor. Under Vladimir Lenin, they consolidated power to create the first communist state, an experiment that would fail almost 70 years later. The political theories of Marx and Engels, as interpreted by Lenin, were applied in ways that were never intended and created an economy devoid of practical experience. As pointy-headed intellectuals, Marx and Engels theorized an idea of history that saw capitalism losing steam as workers gained power and created a totally egalitarian society. These theories made for interesting discussion among academics and theorists but should never have been taken seriously as a basis for government. It would be akin to founding a new political system based on a combination of Aesop’s fables and Mother Goose. But Lenin, as an idealist, believed the doctrine, and it became, for him, a religion based on a binary concept of society as either capitalist or socialist. If the end of history was the decline of capitalism, why not accept the inevitable, skip a few steps, accelerate the process, and embrace a form of socialism that was bound to occur anyway? This belief set the stage for the most brutal concentration of power that left countless millions dead, all in the name of achieving a workers’ paradise. If you must break eggs to make an omelet, then to create a communist society, you had to murder upwards of 60 million people. But, thought Lenin and his successors, the achievement was worth the sacrifice…of someone else. As with many other utopian dreams, nothing was based on any rational experience. Lenin failed to consider human nature and that various groups might take exception to his goals and objectives. In a modern contorted version of the divine right of kings, Lenin’s anointed vision served as the basis of his ideas and could not be questioned. Anyone standing in the way was banished, if not summarily executed. Rather than advancing, history was retreating. Consider the sharp contrast with the founding of the United States. Here, the experience of colonists formed the basis of America. Rather than discard the English system of government, we embraced what worked, modified faulty systems, and exchanged only the King and Parliament for a President and Congress. Unlike the British experience as conveyed to the new world, Russia never really experienced an Enlightenment that supported liberty and freedom. Indeed, Russia is a sad history of a firm dictator issuing decrees without any thought of getting consent, much less considering the consequences to his subjects. Lenin and his ilk easily slid into this role, but initially, with peasants experiencing freedoms they’d never possessed, there was a certain euphoria about this new state. They subscribed and could see that their lives might be improved. And, with any change or conversion, the newness creates an excitement that something different is happening. Peasants previously under the yoke of their masters were liberated, and their labor marshaled to support the new system. But this did not last forever. Once they tasted a little freedom, they wanted more. But with all things being equal and scarce, freedom was apportioned and limited. Working for the common good was a great motivating factor and created an initial enthusiasm. But in the USSR, under communism, the common good was decided by others. Any sense of individuality, creativity, or ambition was subjected to state control, reducing liberty to the lowest common denominator. People from other countries flocked to see this new workers’ paradise where greed, profit, and selfishness were eliminated and subjugated to a new vision. But just like Russia under the Tsars, what people saw was filtered and limited; the reality was much different. The USSR would have its apologists who would celebrate the collective factories and farms and dream of a new world order. But under the surface, all dissent was barred, fear ruled the day, and any disagreements were met with severe punishment and, in many cases, disappearance and death. Once Lenin died, and Joseph Stalin muscled his way to the top, a killing machine that far surpassed anything seen before assassinated all rivals, banished dissidents to Siberia, and systematically starved untold millions. But elite intellectuals who knew no distinction between theory and practice praised Stalin’s achievements. The USSR was on the cusp of something great, and people across the world were invited to get on board. But then, Stalin allied himself with Adolf Hitler, which ended most optimism about the future of Stalin’s regime. And even when Stalin joined the Allied cause, the reports of the brutality of the Red Army, not only to the Nazis but to their own soldiers were unbelievable. After the war, the rest of the world knew something was wrong when Soviet prisoners of war committed suicide when faced with repatriation. During his concert in Moscow, Paul Robeson was shocked when he learned of Stalin’s elimination of intellectuals. Other activists also realized the workers’ paradise was a myth. After visiting the USSR, United Auto Workers union leader Walter Reuther saw clearly that the American labor movement needed to stay clear. To his credit, he disabused any labor leaders of any miracle in the USSR. He saw firsthand the exploitation of the Soviet workers and anchored labor to a democratic society. Ronald Reagan would be criticized for calling the USSR an “evil empire” and was deemed by detractors to have an inordinate fear of communism. As president, Reagan would pursue an aggressive policy of luring the USSR into a competition they could not win. The Berlin Wall fell soon after, the USSR dissolved, and Reagan’s critics were silenced when his assessment was vindicated. The birth 100 years ago of
Steve Flowers: All politics is no longer local
The legendary Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives, Tip O’Neill, is credited with coining the slogan, “all politics is local.” He quoted it often and lived it. The old Boston machine Democratic politician went home to his Irish neighborhood every week. He knew everyone in his blue-collar district. He knew who was kin to whom. He knew their names, birthdays, parents, grandparents, and children. He did favors, made sure their mail was delivered, lost Social Security checks were found, and even made sure that potholes were fixed and streetlights replaced. He lived the saying, “all politics is local.” He also worked in Washington in an era of bipartisanship. They worked and socialized with each other regardless of party affiliation to get things done. It was well known that Tip O’Neill and Ronald Reagan were best friends and drinking buddies when Reagan was the Republican President and O’Neill was Speaker. That is why Reagan was so successful as President. He had O’Neill as a friend. It was certainly a different day in Washington than today. Democrats and Republicans now not only do not work together, they do not even talk to each other. They despise and denounce each other more than Reagan and O’Neill hated and denounced the Russians. For years, in my column as well as in college classrooms, lectures, and speeches around the state, I have declared the cornerstone of political theory, “all politics is local,” as a truism. However, as we end this 2022 election year and begin the 2024 presidential election campaign, I am changing my song and dance. My theory now is that all politics is no longer local. All politics today is national. It is all partisan based and derived from national and Washington politics. Folks are either in the Republican tribe or the Democratic tribe, and it applies nationally, and especially in Alabama. Seventy-five years ago, Alabama was a rural state. Alabama voters were much more interested in the sheriff’s race than in presidential races. In fact, Alabamians very seldom even voted in presidential contests. There were more votes cast in an off-year Democratic primary for sheriff and governor than in presidential years. That has changed dramatically. Alabama is a more urban state than rural. Today, Alabamians follow national congressional and presidential politics and could not care less who is the sheriff of their urban county. In the just completed Jefferson County Sheriff’s race, it was a Democrat vs. Republican contest. Personalities were irrelevant. The Democrat, Pettway, won because he was Democrat. Hudson lost because he was a Republican. They could have been named Jones and Smith rather than Pettway and Hudson, and neither campaigned, and the results would have been the same. This 2022 election confirmed and solidified the fact that Alabama is a Ruby Red hardcore Republican state in statewide elections. Twenty-three out of 23 statewide elected offices are held by Republicans. The three candidates, Kay Ivey, Katie Britt, and Wes Allen, who each had a Democrat opponent, got 66% of the vote. The Republicans, who had only Libertarian opposition, like Rick Pate, Young Boozer, and Will Ainsworth, got 84%. Lt. Governor Will Ainsworth got the most votes, about 960,000. He also got the most votes of any contested candidate in 2018. This will hold him in good stead as he eyes the 2026 governor’s race. The Democratic Party is dead and irrelevant on the state level in the Heart of Dixie. Everybody with walking around sense knows this. That is why no serious candidate will run as a Democrat. Some idealistic Democrats will write me and lament that the Alabama Democratic Party leadership is inept. My reply is that it is irrelevant whether you have a Democratic Party office in Alabama or not; the result of Alabama races is going to be the same. All politics is national now. The vote is driven from Washington. The same is true of the Alabama Republican Party. It does not matter who is the Chairman of the Alabama GOP; the GOP vote in Alabama will be the same. In fact, the current GOP Chairman is a butterfly farmer, and his butterflies probably know more about Alabama politics than he does. Folks, Alabama is in the Republican tribe; make no doubt about it. Our largest metropolitan counties of Jefferson and Montgomery are in the Democratic column. As I have said for the past 20 years, if Mickey Mouse is the Republican candidate for President, he will carry Alabama even if he does not campaign or spend any money here, and the same applies to the governor’s race. Why? Because all politics today is national. Happy Thanksgiving. Steve Flowers is Alabama’s leading political columnist. His weekly column appears in over 60 Alabama newspapers. Steve served 16 years in the state legislature. Steve may be reached at: www.steveflowers.us.
Tommy Tuberville only U.S. Senator openly backing Donald Trump in 2024
Former President Donald Trump announced last week that he was indeed running for the Republican nomination for President of the United States in 2024. U.S. Sen. Tommy Tuberville has since told reporters that he will support Trump’s candidacy for president and praised his track record in the Oval Office. “He’s the leader America needs in 2024,” said Sen. Tuberville on Twitter Thursday night. “That’s why I’m proud to endorse Donald J. Trump for President of the United States!” Tuberville followed those comments with an interview on Fox News. “He stood up for the American people,” Tuberville said of Trump in a recent comment on Fox News, speaking with Maria Bartiromo, saying that he was “100%” behind Trump. Tuberville followed that up with comments to reporters from Washington, D.C. “He doesn’t have to learn the ropes,” Tuberville said. “He knows the ropes. He won’t be running again (in 2028). I like someone who will come in and say, ‘Listen, I don’t care. I will do what’s good for America.’” The other 48 Republican Senators were not so quick to jump on the Trump bandwagon. Sen. Lindsey Graham stopped short of endorsing Trump’s candidacy. “If President Trump continues this tone and delivers this message on a consistent basis, he will be hard to beat,” Graham wrote following Trump’s Mar-O-Lago speech. “His speech tonight, contrasting his policies and results against the Biden Administration, charts a winning path for him in the primaries and general election.” Graham was non-committal on endorsing Trump, though. Sen. Mitt Romney has been harshly critical of Trump. Romney called former President Donald Trump an “albatross” on electoral prospects for Republicans in the midterms. “I think President Trump was an albatross on the electoral prospects for some of our candidates,” Romney told MSNBC’s, Saul Kapur. “He helped select some of the people who turned out not to be very effective candidates.” “I understand that he’s going to run for president and announce that tomorrow. It’s like the aging pitcher who keeps losing games,” Romney added. “If we want to win, we need a different pitcher on the mound.” Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell has said that the party has scared off moderate Republicans and independents. Trump, for his part, has blamed McConnell for the underwhelming GOP performance in midterm Senate races. “It’s Mitch McConnell’s fault,” Trump wrote on Truth Social. “Spending money to defeat great Republican candidates instead of backing Blake Masters and others was a big mistake. Giving 4 trillion dollars to the Green New Deal, not infrastructure, was an even bigger mistake. He blew the Midterms, and everyone despises him and his otherwise lovely wife Coco Chow.” Former Speaker of the House Paul Ryan came out strongly against another Trump run for the Presidency. “I am a Never-Again-Trumper. Why? Because I want to win, and we lose with Trump,” Ryan said in a recent interview on ABC News ‘This week.’ “It was really clear to us in ’18, in ’20, and now in 2022.” “I personally think the evidence is really clear. The biggest factor was the Trump factor … I think we would have won places like Arizona, places like Pennsylvania, New Hampshire had we had a typical, traditional conservative Republican, not a Trump Republican.” Trump is currently 76 years old. By the 2024 election, he will be older than Ronald Reagan was when Reagan was leaving office. The only President in American history who was older is President Joe Biden, who turned 80 on Sunday. To connect with the author of this story, or to comment, email brandonmreporter@gmail.com.
Tommy Tuberville honors veterans
In recognition of Veterans Day, U.S. Senator Tommy Tuberville honored seven veterans from across Alabama that the Senator recognized by telling their stories of service, sacrifice, and contribution to their communities. Tuberville highlighted the service and sacrifice of seven veterans from Alabama. These are Sergeant Chris Amacker from Slapout, Officer Eric Prewitt from Havana, Lieutenant Colonel Jeff Wishik from Madison, Sergeant Janet Pray from Geneva, George Hamilton from Pleasant Grove, Sergeant Lonnie Phillips from Pell City, and Sergeant Dave Jensen from Foley. “In 1945, a World War II veteran named Raymond Weeks from Birmingham, Alabama —recognized the need for a day to honor ALL veterans,” Tuberville said. “He led the petition to then-Army Chief of Staff Dwight Eisenhower for a National Veterans Day and organized the first Veterans Day Parade in Birmingham on November 11, 1947. In 1954, President Dwight D. Eisenhower signed a bill officially establishing ‘Veterans Day.’” Today Veterans Day is a state and national holiday. Banks, government offices, post offices, courthouses, most schools, and many businesses will be closed today. “It is fitting that the ‘Father of Veterans Day’ was an Alabamian – symbolizing a longstanding tradition among our residents to recognize and show appreciation for our veterans and service members,” Tuberville said. “Every year, we continue this tradition of pausing to recognize our veterans—past and present. Veterans Day reminds us that freedom is a sacred gift—and it is not free. Some endured unthinkable battles and hardships so that we can live in peace.” The Veteran’s Day Parade in Birmingham today will begin at 11:00 am. “These veterans—Chris Amacker, Eric Prewitt, Jeff Wishik, Janet Pray, George Hamilton, Lonnie Phillips, and Dave Jensen—are all heroes,” said Tuberville. “Our country is safer because of their efforts, and Alabama’s communities are better off because of their continued service. Their sacrifices— whether loss of mobility, time spent away from family, post-war trauma, or the most vibrant years of their youth— demonstrate America’s strength to the world. President Ronald Reagan summed it up best when he said, ‘Veterans know better than anyone else the price of freedom, for they’ve suffered the scars of war. We can offer them no better tribute than to protect what they have won for us.’ I hope we will remember the price of freedom and those who have paid it. To all of our veterans, thank you for your sacrifice and endeavors to ensure America remains a country of freedom and opportunity for generations to come.” “Like Sergeant Chris Amacker of Slapout, Alabama, a gun truck commander in the Army’s 465th Transportation Unit, where he moved ammo and equipment during the Iraq War,” Tuberville said. “His military service was cut short after suffering brain and spinal injuries following an explosive attack on his unit. Sergeant Amacker spent more than a year in an Arkansas rehabilitation facility, relearning how to walk and talk.” “There is no more commendable action than using skills learned in the military to help others succeed, like Officer Eric Prewitt from Havana, Alabama, does, day in and day out,” Tuberville said. “A graduate of Hale County High School, Officer Prewitt enlisted in the U.S. Navy in 1992, where he served as a Yeoman Second Class. Officer Prewitt felt led to return to West Alabama after his time in the military and use his skills to assist veterans wishing to use their GI Bill benefits. In 2005, he became the Veterans Affairs Officer and Diversity Liaison at Shelton State Community College in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. When speaking about his job, Officer Prewitt shared how the military invested in him and that he wants to continue investing in our service members and veterans. His role is a huge benefit to not just West Alabama but our entire state.” “Some service members were not well-received upon their return to American soil. They fought a thankless war without feeling supported, but still fought out of devotion to their country,” Tuberville stated. “Born in Montgomery, he was commissioned as a second lieutenant in the U.S. Army through Marion Military Institute’s early commissioning program. Wishik deployed to Vietnam with the 101st Airborne Division, directed to find and engage enemy forces.” “While scouting for a landing zone for a helicopter to evacuate them, Lieutenant Wishik was struck by numerous enemy attacks, including one explosion that blew him into the air, knocked him unconscious, and killed all but three in his scouting group,” Tuberville continued. “After he and the two other soldiers realized they were outnumbered and unable to turn back, they spent the night pretending to be dead to avoid being captured by the enemy. Lieutenant Wishik’s wise reminder to Americans based on his experience is that ‘You may not agree with the politics of the country, but you don’t take it out on American service members.’” “The call to serve may run in the family – where, for some veterans, the lessons and values learned in military service are worth passing on generation to generation. This is the case for Sergeant Janet Pray of Geneva, Alabama, who served in the U.S. Army from 1989-2003,” Tuberville continued. “After retiring from the Army, Sergeant Pray continued supporting the Department of Defense in various roles, including as an administrative assistant at Fort Rucker. Her love for education and empowering the next generation prompted her to become a substitute teacher and aide for the Geneva City Schools System. Her encouragement and tenacious spirit has touched the lives of countless students and teachers. Sergeant Pray says the military taught her to lead by example and be responsible for her own actions—lessons she continues to pass on. People like Sergeant Pray keep the American dream alive by inspiring others to take advantage of opportunities our country has to offer and leading by example.” “For veterans like 100-year-old George Hamilton of Pleasant Grove, the idea of ‘service’ has no age limit. The World War II Navy veteran participates in different events around Jefferson County to share his story and is active in his local congregation at Bethel Baptist Church,” Tuberville continued. “Mission work is a huge part of his life. He has been on eleven trips to Nicaragua and is planning to go again soon. Mr. Hamilton says his only regret about his
Arbiter in Donald Trump docs probe signals intent to move quickly
The independent arbiter tasked with inspecting documents seized in an FBI search of former President Donald Trump’s Florida home said Tuesday he intends to push briskly through the review process and appeared skeptical of the Trump team’s reluctance to say whether it believed the records had been declassified. “We’re going to proceed with what I call responsible dispatch,” Raymond Dearie, a veteran Brooklyn judge, told lawyers for Trump and the Justice Department in their first meeting since his appointment last week as a so-called special master. The purpose of the meeting was to sort out next steps in a review process expected to slow by weeks, if not months, the criminal investigation into the retention of top-secret information at Mar-a-Lago after Trump left the White House. As special master, Dearie will be responsible for sifting through the thousands of documents recovered during the Aug. 8 FBI search and segregating those protected by claims of executive privilege or attorney-client privilege. Though Trump’s lawyers had requested the appointment of a special master to ensure an independent review of the documents, they have resisted Dearie’s request for more information about whether the seized records had been previously declassified — as Trump has maintained. His lawyers have consistently stopped short of that claim, even as they have asserted that a president has absolute authority to declassify information. They said in a separate filing Tuesday that the Justice Department had not proven that the records remained classified. “In the case of someone who has been president of the United States, they have unfettered access along with unfettered declassification authority,” one of Trump’s lawyers, James Trusty, said in court Tuesday. But Dearie said that if Trump’s lawyers will not actually assert that the records have been declassified, and the Justice Department instead presents an acceptable case that they remain classified, then he would be inclined to regard them as classified. “As far as I’m concerned,” he said, “that’s the end of it.” In a letter to Dearie on Monday night, the lawyers said the declassification issue might be part of Trump’s defense in the event of an indictment. Trusty said in court Tuesday that the Trump team should not be forced at this point to disclose a possible defense based on the idea the records had been declassified. He denied that the lawyers were trying to engage in “gamesman-like” behavior but instead believed it was a process that required “baby steps.” He said the right time for the discussion is whenever Trump presses forward with a claim to get any seized property back. Dearie said he understood the position but observed: “I guess my view of it is, you can’t have your cake and eat it” too. The resistance to the judge’s request was notable because it was Trump’s lawyers, not the Justice Department, who had requested the appointment of a special master and because the recalcitrance included an acknowledgment that the probe could be building toward an indictment. Despite the focus on whether the seized documents are classified or not, the three statutes the Justice Department listed on a warrant as part of its investigation do not require that the mishandled information be classified in order to initiate a prosecution. The Trump team has also questioned the feasibility of some of the deadlines for the special master’s review. That work includes inspecting the roughly 11,000 documents, including about 100 marked as classified, that were taken during the FBI’s search. U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon, a Trump appointee who granted the Trump team’s request for a special master, had set a November 30 deadline for Dearie’s review and instructed him to prioritize his inspection of classified records. The Justice Department has asked a federal appeals court to halt Cannon’s order requiring it to provide him with classified documents for his review. That appeal is pending. Dearie, a Ronald Reagan appointee whose name is on the atrium of his Brooklyn courthouse, made clear during Tuesday’s meeting that he intended to meet the deadlines, saying there was “little time” to complete the assigned tasks. Julie Edelstein, a Justice Department lawyer, said she was hopeful that the department could get the documents digitized and provided to Trump’s lawyers by early next week. She noted that the department had given the legal team a list of five vendors approved by the government for the purposes of scanning, hosting, and otherwise processing the seized records. After some haggling, Dearie instructed Trusty’s lawyers to choose a vendor by Friday. Earlier Tuesday, the Trump legal team urged the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit to leave in place Cannon’s order temporarily barring the Justice Department’s use of the classified records for its criminal investigation while Dearie completes his review. The department has said that the order has impeded its investigation into the presence of top-secret information at Mar-a-Lago. Trump’s lawyers called those concerns overblown, saying investigators could still do other work on the probe even without scrutinizing the seized records. “Ultimately, any brief delay to the criminal investigation will not irreparably harm the Government,” Trump’s lawyers wrote. “The injunction does not preclude the Government from conducting a criminal investigation, it merely delays the investigation for a short period while a neutral third party reviews the documents in question.” Republished with the permission of The Associated Press.
Texas shooting is new test for Joe Biden’s long battle over guns
Joe Biden, then the chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, surveyed the collection of black, military-style rifles on display in the middle of the room as he denounced the sale of guns whose “only real function is to kill human beings at a ferocious pace.” That was nearly three decades ago, and Congress was on the verge of passing an assault weapons ban. But the law eventually expired, and guns that were once illegal are now readily available, most recently used in the slaughter at an elementary school in Uvalde, Texas. The tragedy, which came less than two weeks after another mass shooting at a grocery store in Buffalo, New York, has refocused Biden’s presidency on one of the greatest political challenges of his career — the long fight for gun control. Over the years, Biden has been intimately involved in the movement’s most notable successes, such as the 1994 assault weapons ban, and its most troubling disappointments, including the failure to pass new legislation after the 2012 massacre at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut. Now his White House, which was already trying to chip away at gun violence through executive orders, is organizing calls with activists and experts to plot a path forward. “He understands the history of the issue. He understands how the politics have shifted,” said Christian Heyne, vice president of policy at Brady, the gun control advocacy organization. “He feels a sense of missed opportunities from the past, and he understands that this is his last chance to have an impact on gun violence in America.” Even for a politician known for his passion, Biden’s reaction to the latest shooting in Texas has been searing. “Where’s the backbone, where’s the courage to stand up to a very powerful lobby?“ Biden said Wednesday as he called for Congress to pass new laws. Stef Feldman, a deputy assistant to the president, said the cascade of deaths — from Buffalo to Uvalde to everyday shootings that don’t generate nationwide headlines — only increases the urgency of the administration’s efforts. “Every story that we hear about individuals lost to gun violence provides more energy, more of a drive to continue the work,” she said. “If we can save even one life by pushing a little harder on a creative policy idea, it’s worth it.” But executive action — such as Biden’s order targeting ghost guns, which are privately made firearms without serial numbers — might be the best the White House can do if Republicans in the Senate remain opposed to new restrictions and Democrats are unwilling to circumvent filibusters. More challenges could come in the courts, and even the ghost gun rules may become tied up in litigation. “We’ve got to be clear,” said John Feinblatt, president of Everytown for Gun Safety. “This is the Senate’s job. It’s time for the Senate to actually step up and do something.” The first new try fell far short on Thursday. A measure to take up a domestic terrorism bill, which could have opened debate touching on guns, drew just 47 of the 60 votes needed to break a filibuster. It’s a far different situation than when Sen. Biden was working on gun legislation years ago. Fears about violent crime helped foster bipartisan compromises, and conservative rhetoric about gun ownership was less extreme. First, Congress passed the Brady Handgun Violence Prevention Act in 1993, requiring a background check when someone buys a gun from a federally licensed dealer. The measure was named for James Brady, the White House press secretary who was shot and wounded when John Hinckley Jr. attempted to assassinate President Ronald Reagan in 1981. Next, Congress approved the assault weapons ban as part of the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act in 1994. The law outlawed specific guns, such as the AR-15 and restricted the type of military-style enhancements that firearms could have. However, the ban contained a sunset provision, and it was not renewed in 2004. Although the vast majority of shootings are committed with handguns, military-style semiautomatic rifles are staples of the country’s deadliest massacres. One of these weapons was used at Sandy Hook, where 26 people, including 20 children, were killed. The violence shocked the nation, and President Barack Obama asked Biden, then the vice president, to lead a new push for gun control. Sens. Joe Manchin, D-W.V., and Pat Toomey, R-Pa., crafted legislation that would have expanded background checks. In a speech less than three months after the shooting, Biden said “the excuse that it’s too politically risky to act is no longer acceptable.” He recalled successfully pushing for the assault weapons ban years earlier even though the National Rifle Association warned that he was going to be “taking your shotgun away.” “That kind of stuff doesn’t work anymore,” Biden added. But it did work, and the legislation failed in the U.S. Senate. Biden described the vote as a betrayal of families who lost children at Sandy Hook, saying, “I don’t know how anybody who looked them in the eye could have voted the way they did today.” Darrell A. H. Miller, a Duke University law professor who is an expert on the Second Amendment, said the political landscape had already changed. “It’s fair to say that the issue of guns has become even more polarized,” he said. “And the intensity of gun rights opposition to any kind of gun regulation of any description has become more inflexible.” Two years ago, guns became the leading cause of death among children and teenagers, outpacing car crashes. There are roughly 400 million guns in the country, more than one for every person. Military-style weapons are a staple of some Republican campaign advertisements. “The reality is, we’re not keeping up with the pace of the gun lobby to arm citizens,” said Fred Guttenberg, whose daughter was killed at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, in 2018. “It’s time to start asking,” Guttenberg said, “why are Republicans so diametrically opposed to doing whatever it takes to save lives?” There
Danny Garrett: Katie Britt is the best choice for Alabama
President Ronald Reagan was an iconic conservative politician. He was also an effective statesman and leader. Reagan’s conservatism was comprised of eleven principles: Freedom. Faith. Family. Sanctity and Dignity of Human Life. American Exceptionalism. The Founders’ Wisdom and Vision. Lower Taxes. Limited Government. Peace Through Strength. Anti-Communism. Belief in the Individual. Reagan’s conservative principles reflect the values held today by most Alabamians. In November, Alabama Republicans will select as our next Senator – either Katie Britt, Mo Brooks, or Mike Durant, who are all claiming a conservative platform and message. But which candidate is the best choice for Alabama? My analysis of the upcoming Senate race leads me to confidently conclude that Katie Britt is clearly the best choice for Alabama. Katie Britt is the only candidate who was born in Alabama, raised in Alabama, and educated in Alabama. Likewise, her husband and his family have deep Alabama roots. Katie’s story is a testimony to the fact that hard work and perseverance are important values and keys to success – traits I think are especially important for younger generations to embrace. Raised in Enterprise by parents who were small business owners, Katie worked in the family business at an early age and continued working for small businesses to help pay her college tuition. After graduating from the University of Alabama, she worked in Washington, D.C. for about two years on the staff of Senator Richard Shelby, one of the longest-serving and most effective members of Congress. In 2007, she returned to the University of Alabama to serve as special assistant to the President, after which she earned a law degree from the University. In 2016, Sen. Shelby called her back to D.C. – this time to serve as Chief of Staff for a little over two years. In 2018, Katie was selected as President and CEO of the Business Council of Alabama, an organization that had fallen upon hard times and needed a strong leader to resolve a myriad of issues. Katie assembled an impressive team that (1) reunited opposing factions within the organization; (2) significantly grew BCA’s membership; (3) increased recruitment and participation of small businesses in the BCA; and (4) restored the BCA to a strong financial position through fiscally conservative budgeting practices. For Katie to have earned the respect, cooperation, and confidence of powerful and influential leaders of both Alabama’s largest employers and small business owners is a remarkable accomplishment. Her leadership skills and her BCA experience demonstrate her potential to work with other members of Congress and be an effective Senator. In 2020, Katie was instrumental in helping develop reopening plans for small businesses in Alabama that had been shut down by the Governor’s COVID Executive Orders. Throughout her career, Katie has repeatedly demonstrated the tenacity needed to tackle hard tasks as well as an exceptional ability to work with others to achieve outstanding results. Her staunch advocacy for small businesses and hardworking Alabamians during the pandemic was vitally important, including her launch of the Keep Alabama Open movement. Second, Katie’s views and political associations are solidly conservative. As Sen. Shelby’s Chief of Staff, she joined the fight for President Donald Trump’s tax cuts, blocking excessive Federal regulations, confirming conservative judicial nominees, helping to secure the border, and standing up for the values held by most Alabamians. During his presidency, Alabama’s Senate and House delegation membersconsistently supported President Trump’s legislative agenda and judicial nominations. In fact, Sen. Shelby’s votes aligned with President Trump’s position 90.7% of the time, more than Congressman Brooks’ percentage of 88.6%. As Senator, Katie will join her Alabama Republican colleagues in Washington, D.C. to continue supporting and advancing conservative legislation while representing the values of the vast majority of Alabamians. Katie is a proven fighter, but she does more than just fight – her fighting produces results. Her impressive work record and achievements demonstrate her ability to lead, collaborate and successfully build consensus around good ideas. During her time with Sen. Shelby, she gained valuable experience working with multiple administrations to hone and develop these skills. Congressman Brooks has been elected to Congress six times by voters of the 5th Congressional District. During his tenure, he has co-sponsored many pieces of legislation. However, he has only sponsored one bill that passed into law: H.R. 6513, renaming a post office in Athens, Alabama. Durant has a distinguished military and government contracting career, but he lacks legislative experience and does not have a public record to adequately assess how he might perform as a Senator. The fact is, we just don’t know Mike Durant. Katie’s success in turning around the BCA convinces me that leadership is a strength that sets her apart from her competitors. I am convinced Katie will not only fight for conservative values and causes, but she will motivate colleagues and work with others in the Senate to build consensus and be a driving force for enacting conservative legislation that reflect the values and views of the majority of Alabamians. Finally, the U.S. Senate is a body where seniority is extremely important. Committee appointments, financial appropriations, judicial confirmations, and the ability to influence legislation are heavily dependent upon tenure. Sen. Shelby’s 36-year tenure has been extremely beneficial for Alabama, especially in his current role as top Republican on the powerful Appropriations Committee. However, upon his retirement, the next Alabama senator will be positioned at the bottom of the seniority list. Alabama’s delegation lost seniority in 2017 when Sen. Sessions resigned to become the U.S. Attorney General. Age alone is not the determinant of fitness for office, nor should it be in choosing our next Senator. However, the Senate seniority structure is an important consideration. Senator Tommy Tuberville is 68 years old. Congressman Brooks is 67. Mike Durant is 60. Katie Britt is 40. Alabama’s seniority in the Senate has the potential to be an ongoing issue for several election cycles. Katie is the best choice for Alabama to have the opportunity to retain leadership in the U.S. Senate for
Joe Biden calls former VP Walter Mondale ‘giant’ of political history
President Joe Biden saluted his “friend of five decades” Walter Mondale on Sunday, traveling to the University of Minnesota to remember the former vice president and Democratic Party elder whose memorial service was delayed for a year due to the pandemic. Mondale died in April 2021 at age 93. He is credited with transforming the office of the vice presidency — which Biden himself held for eight years under President Barack Obama — expanding its responsibilities and making himself a key adviser to President Jimmy Carter. Mondale “was a giant in American political history,” Biden said of Mondale, known to friends as “Fritz.” He added that Mondale was one of the “toughest, smartest men I’ve ever worked with” both as Senate colleagues and as a mentor when Biden was Obama’s No. 2 and then later as president. Biden emphasized Mondale’s empathy, recalling his own promise during the 2020 presidential campaign to unite the country. That’s something the president has strayed from a bit in recent weeks as he seeks to draw a starker contrast between his administration and congressional Republicans who have opposed it on nearly every major issue. “It was Fritz who lit the way,” Biden said. “Everybody is to be treated with dignity. Everybody.” Biden added of Mondale: “He united people sharing the light, the same hopes — even when we disagreed, he thought that was important.” “It’s up to each of us to reflect that light that Fritz was all about.” The invitation-only, 90-minute service Sunday inside a stately campus auditorium featured plentiful organ music. Biden, who received a standing ovation, said he spoke with Mondale’s family beforehand and “got emotional” himself. Democratic Sen. Tina Smith called Mondale a “bona fide political celebrity” who still dedicated time to races large and small back in their home state. Minnesota civil rights icon Josie Johnson spoke of what a good listener Mondale was and how he championed inclusiveness. Democratic Sen. Amy Klobuchar described once being an intern who climbed under chairs and a table to carry out a furniture inventory when Mondale was vice president. “That was my first job in Washington. And, thanks to Walter Mondale, this was my second,” Klobuchar said of being a senator, noting that Mondale encouraged her to run and taught “the pundits in Washington how to say my name.” Democratic Gov. Tim Walz said Minnesota may be better known as Mondale’s home state than its moniker “The Land of 10,000 Lakes” and praised Mondale’s intellect, humility, humor, and optimism. “He embodied a sense of joy. He lived his life every single day,” Walz said. “At 91, he was still fishing for walleye. Unlike me, he was catching some.” A booklet given to attendees for the “afternoon of remembrance and reflection” quoted from Mondale’s 2010 book, “The Good Fight”: “I believe that the values of the American people — our fundamental decency, our sense of justice and fairness, our love of freedom — are the country’s greatest assets and that steering by their lodestar is the only true course forward.” Its back cover showed Mondale’s face next to the slogan, “We told the truth. We obeyed the law. We kept the peace,” which Klobuchar described as being memorialized after the then-vice president said them at the end of the Carter administration. Mondale was a graduate of the University of Minnesota and its law school, which has a building named after him. During Sunday’s remembrance, Biden wiped his eyes as a performance of “Tomorrow” from the musical “Annie” played, and the service closed with the university’s marching band, which sent people away with the “Minnesota Rouser” fight song. Mondale followed a trail blazed by his political mentor, Hubert H. Humphrey, serving as Minnesota attorney general before replacing Humphrey in the Senate. He was Carter’s vice president from 1977 to 1981. Mondale also lost one of the most lopsided presidential elections ever to Ronald Reagan in 1984. He carried only Minnesota and the District of Columbia after bluntly telling voters to expect a tax increase if he won. But he made history in that race by picking Rep. Geraldine Ferraro, of New York, as his running mate, becoming the first major-party nominee to put a woman on the ticket. Mondale remained an important Democratic voice for decades afterward and went on to serve as ambassador to Japan under President Bill Clinton. In 2002, at 74, he was drafted to run for the Senate again after Sen. Paul Wellstone was killed in a plane crash shortly before the election. Mondale lost the abbreviated race to Republican Norm Coleman. Republished with the permission of the Associated Press.
Steve Flowers: Who is Mike Durant?
Many of you have asked the question, “Have you ever seen anyone simply run a media-only campaign and avoid campaigning like Mike Durant has done in this year’s U.S. Senate campaign.” Surprisingly my answer for many of you is, “Yes, I have.” Ironically, the man that Richard Shelby beat for this U.S. Senate seat 36 years ago, Jeremiah Denton, was almost a carbon copy of Mike Durant. Denton was a POW/national war hero of the Vietnam era. Like Durant, Denton had very distant ties to and knowledge of Alabama. They were both National War/POW celebrities who wanted to be a United States Senator from whichever state was convenient. Alabama had an open seat for the Senate in 1980. Denton called Mobile home but had not lived there since he was a boy. His father was a Naval officer, and Jeremiah followed suit and went to the Naval Academy and became a navy officer and rose to the rank of Rear Admiral. When the race began, Denton was basically living in the Washington D.C. area. Alabama had not had a Republican senator since Reconstruction over 100 years earlier. The Republicans recruited Denton to break the barrier. Denton really did no personal campaigning in Alabama. He was a short-tempered military man whose personality had been even more exacerbated by seven years and seven months of captivity by barbaric Vietnamese. Denton was swept into office in 1980 in the Ronald Reagan Republican landslide. He never aspired to go into politics. He only wanted to be a good soldier. After his release from captivity, he came back to a hero’s welcome. Denton became Alabama’s first Republican and Catholic Senator and never really campaigned. Denton became Alabama’s least effective and insignificant senator in our state’s history. He only served one six-year term, 1980-1986. During that one term, he never came to Alabama, never returned a phone call, and never responded to any letters. He began his career by announcing he was a United States Senator and not the Junior Senator from Alabama. He said his role was bigger than just taking care of mundane, senatorial duties and “kissing babies’ butts.” Thus, he immediately forewarned Alabamians that for the next six years, we would only have one U.S. Senator – the country would be blessed with our other senate seat. Mike Durant is amazingly similar, almost a clone to Jeremiah Benton. Unlike Denton, who was born in Mobile, Durant was born and spent his entire formulative years in New Hampshire. Like Denton, Durant’s father was a military man. Mike Durant followed his father. As is well known, Durant was shot down and captured, and made a prisoner of war for 11 days. Durant’s life is really a mystery after that point. He calls Huntsville his home, and he has had a military defense company in Huntsville, which made him very wealthy through federal defense dollars. Durant’s being an Alabamian or Huntsvillian has come into question. Nobody seems to know him in Huntsville, much less the rest of the state. Speculation is that he lives in Maryland, and he also has a very expensive home in Colorado. If he were to be elected to Alabama’s Senate seat, he would probably go home to Maryland. Durant would not only be a phantom Senate candidate, but he would also be our phantom senator. Durant has only voted in a Republican primary in Alabama one time in his life, and that was in 2008. That means one of three things about him: (1) he is not a Republican, (2) he is not an Alabamian, or (3) he is not a Republican or an Alabamian. The only thing we do know about Durant is that he was born and raised in New Hampshire. Where I come from in Alabama, that would make him what we call a carpetbagger. A carpetbagger who refuses to meet or ask any Alabamians for their vote. The only thing we know about him is that he can fly around in a helicopter, and he can afford to buy a lot of television ads. Guess he thinks we are dumb enough to fall for that pig in a poke, or he might find that after a while, we will wake up and realize that Emperor has no clothes. Durant makes no pretense about the fact that he will not personally campaign in Alabama or even do interviews. You can bet your bottom dollar that wherever you live in Alabama, Durant has not been to your town or city and probably could not even tell you where it is located. You can rest assured that he does not know the difference between the Wiregrass and Sand Mountain. See you next week. Steve Flowers is Alabama’s leading political columnist. His column appears in over 60 Alabama newspapers. He served 16 years in the state legislature. Steve may be reached at www.steveflowers.us.
