Steve Flowers: Sorting out ‘unforeseens’ in Alabama Governor’s race
Those of us who follow Alabama politics had circled June 6, 2017, as the beginning of the 2018 governor’s race. However, we did not foresee Donald Trump’s election as President in November and the subsequent appointment of our U.S. Senator, Jeff Sessions, as his Attorney General, thus, opening a U.S. Senate seat and causing the need for an unanticipated special election for the open Senate seat this year. Therefore, the race for Sessions’ Senate seat will dominate the political news for at least the next three months. This Senate seat race has pushed back the timetable for gubernatorial aspirants by about three months. The thoroughbreds who might enter the Derby for the Brass Ring of Alabama politics probably have the luxury of waiting until Labor Day or maybe after the Sept. 26 GOP runoff for U.S. Senator. However, they do need to declare by Oct. 1, because qualifying will begin in late November for next year’s June 5 Primary. Also, we did not anticipate the resignation of Gov. Robert Bentley April 10 and the ultimate elevation of Lt. Gov., Kay Ivey, to Governor. Kay Ivey has been governor for less than three months; however, she has taken to the post like a “duck to water.” She has been deliberative and decisive and looks very gubernatorial. She is slowly putting her people into Cabinet posts. Enterprise Mayor, Ken Boswell, is a good choice for ADECA Director. This is a prime post as it doles out all the Federal grants that come to the state for infrastructure projects. She has named Christopher Blankenship acting Commissioner of Conservation and Natural Resources. She has removed Serve Alabama Director Jon Mason, and Alabama Law Enforcement Agency Secretary, Stan Stabler. Her two closest advisors throughout her career have been Steve Pelham and Will Sellers. She has brought Pelham with her as her Chief of Staff. She has appointed Will Sellers to a vacant seat on the state Supreme Court. Pelham will be the most important person in state government for at least 18 months. These unforeseen events have changed the political landscape dramatically when it comes to the 2018 governor’s race. This time last year, Roy Moore and Luther Strange were two of the lead horses for governor. They are now the two frontrunners for the open Senate seat. Win or lose they are removed from the governor’s race. Kay Ivey’s elevation to governor has made her the favorite at this time. However, as this past year’s events reveal, a lot can change in a year’s time. As we assess the field with less than a year to the finish line, Kay Ivey is the linchpin of the race. She is the incumbent. She has good name identification and her age, 72, is an advantage and not a disadvantage. She looks like your grandmother. That sells better than young and glamorous, especially among female voters. They can identify and feel comfortable with Kay. Currently, Kay is in the proverbial catbird’s seat. The million-dollar question is does Kay really want to run for a full four-year term. If she were to ask me as a friend, I would tell her no. If I were her, I would not want to go through the rigors of a yearlong campaign. She can go to the house and proudly say that she was Governor of Alabama. A 20-month tenure as governor is not an insignificant amount of time. There are four significant thoroughbreds in the race, regardless of Ivey’s intentions. PSC President, Twinkle Cavanaugh, 50, is popular and well positioned. She has won three statewide races. Agriculture Commissioner, John McMillan, 75, has been at his important post for eight years. He has done an exemplary job. However, he cannot run again. He is well-liked. Huntsville Mayor, Tommy Battle, 61, will be a player in the governor’s race. He is the popular Mayor of Alabama’s economic crown jewel. Jefferson County Commissioner, David Carrington, 69, could be a factor. He has some name recognition from being seen often in the all-important Birmingham media market. If he gets strong support from the Birmingham suburbs, he could be a dark horse. Birmingham-based evangelist, Scott Dawson, 49, might catch fire. Tuscaloosa’s popular young mayor, Walt Maddox, may make the gubernatorial plunge as a Democrat. We will see. 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.
Kay Ivey accepts Stan Stabler’s resignation, installs Hal Taylor as Acting Secretary of ALEA
The Office of the Governor announced Wednesday newly sworn-in Gov. Kay Ivey has accepted the resignation of Stan Stabler, who replaced Spencer Collier as Secretary of Alabama Law Enforcement Agency (ALEA) in March 2016. Stabler, along with the 21 agency leaders of former Gov. Robert Bentley‘s cabinet, were required to submit letters of resignation by Ivey on Tuesday. Following Stabler’s resignation, Ivey named Hal Taylor as Acting Secretary of the ALEA. “Hal Taylor is a man of the utmost integrity who I trust during this time of transition to help in my vision of improving Alabama’s image,” stated Ivey. “I also thank the hundreds of men and women in our state law enforcement ranks who work every day to protect us.” Having most recently served as the Deputy Chief of Staff for the State Bureau of Investigations and ALEA Chief of Staff beginning in 2014, Taylor had previously worked for the ABC Board going back to 1992. There he held multiple positions, including executive security and then assistant director of the Enforcement Division. “Governor Ivey has a significant task to steady the ship of state, and I’m thankful she has entrusted me with the duty of leading our state law enforcement agency,” weighed-in Taylor. “Our troopers, SBI investigators, support staff, and others at ALEA are top-notch, and it’s an honor to work with them in this new capacity.” Ivey intends to conduct a thorough search for a permanent ALEA Secretary.
Gov. Robert Bentley, ALEA Secretary Stan Stabler visit the MPD to say thanks
Alabama Governor Robert Bentley visited the Montgomery Police Department Wednesday to thank the law enforcement officers from across the state for their service and dedication. Bentley was joined by Alabama Law Enforcement Agency Secretary Stan Stabler for the appreciation visit that began at 6 a.m. “Everyday you put your lives on the line. You get up and go to work and you expect to come home, your families expect you to come home and I expect you to come home.” Governor Bentley said to the officers in the room. Bentley is honoring the men and women who willingly put themselves in harm’s way to protect Alabamians on a daily basis. “I want everyone across this country to know that as Governor of this state, we are going to have your back and we are going to do whatever it takes and whatever is needed to protect you,” Bentley continued. Tuesday, Bentley announced the Alabama State Capitol will be illuminated blue through Friday night to show appreciation for the 16,000 law enforcement officers in Alabama and others across the nation, in the wake of the shootings in Baton Rouge and Dallas that killed several officers.
Robert Bentley called before special grand jury
Acting on orders from Alabama Attorney General Luther Strange, Montgomery County Circuit Judge Gene Reese ordered a special grand jury to convene this week to investigate the firing of former Alabama Law Enforcement Agency Secretary Spencer Collier by Governor Robert Bentley. Collier was fired by Bentley in March for allegedly misusing funds in his role as ALEA secretary. The special grand jury was impaneled on Monday, July 11. Multiple sources confirm, Ray Lewis, the former head of Bentley’s security detail, testified Monday and Tuesday. Bentley himself testified to the grand jury Wednesday, followed by Hal Taylor, the former Chief of Staff to former Alabama Law Enforcement Agency Secretary Spencer Collier and current ALEA head Stan Stabler. “At 8:39 am, Wednesday, Gov. Robert Bentley walked into the Special Grand Jury being held in Montgomery County as Alabama Political Reporter reported yesterday. Bentley’s entourage included legal counsel David Byrne and one of his personal attorneys, Bill Espy,” the Alabama Political Reporter reported in an article published on Thursday. The Attorney General’s Special Prosecutions Division, under the direction of Division Chief Matt Hart — who most recently made headlines for successfully prosecuting and convicting former House Speaker Mike Hubbard — is handling the investigation.
Former top cop files suit against Robert Bentley, Rebekah Mason
Alabama Gov. Robert Bentley‘s former law enforcement secretary sued his former boss Tuesday, claiming he was wrongly fired. Spencer Collier, who the day after his firing accused Bentley of having an affair with an adviser, says in the lawsuit filed in Montgomery that Bentley and the adviser, Rebekah Mason, made misleading statements to the media to try to discredit him. “Their lies have hurt me financially, have severely damaged my reputation and they have made it their mission to permanently end my career in law enforcement,” Collier said in a statement. Jennifer Ardis, a spokeswoman for Bentley, said the governor’s office had not seen the lawsuit and did not have an immediate comment. Bentley has previously said Collier was fired after an internal review found a misuse of funds at the state law enforcement agency. A text message to Mason and a call to Mason’s attorney were not immediately returned. The lawsuit is the latest twist in a sordid political tale that has engulfed the 73-year-old governor in controversy. It has been punctuated by back-and-forth salvos between Bentley and Collier, who were once close friends when they served together in the Alabama House. Collier’s lawsuit accuses the governor of firing him because the two disagreed over a request to file an affidavit saying investigators found no evidence of misconduct by prosecutors in the ethics case against House Speaker Mike Hubbard. Collier said he wanted to file the affidavit, but the governor didn’t want him to. He says Bentley asked him to lie to prosecutors and that he was unwilling to do that because it would be illegal. The governor is expected to be a prosecution witness at Hubbard’s ethics trial next month. Among the charges Hubbard faces is using his public office to benefit his clients by lobbying the governor’s office. “The governor did not tell anyone including Spencer Collier not to comply with the law – just the opposite. The governor wanted everyone treated correctly and in accordance with the proper law enforcement procedures,” the governor’s spokeswoman has said in a previous statement. A day after being fired, Collier accused Bentley of having an affair with Mason. The governor later admitted making inappropriate remarks to Mason, who has since resigned, but said he did not have a “physical affair.” However, racy recordings have surfaced of Bentley making sexually charged remarks, referencing kissing and touching, to someone with the same first name. The governor’s new law enforcement secretary, Stan Stabler, said last week that it was Collier who sent a state helicopter in 2014 to fly Bentley’s forgotten wallet from his hometown in Tuscaloosa to his beach house at Fort Morgan. Collier said he never approved the flight. Bentley said he did ask state security to retrieve his wallet, but he did not know they were going to use a helicopter to do it. Republished with permission of the Associated Press.
Official: State aircraft used to deliver Governor’s wallet
The head of the Alabama law enforcement agency confirmed Wednesday that a state aircraft was used in 2014 to deliver Gov. Robert Bentley‘s forgotten wallet to him at the beach but said that Bentley did not request the air delivery method. Alabama Law Enforcement Secretary Stan Stabler issued the statement in response to reports that state resources were used to deliver the governor’s wallet. “Gov. Bentley did not request a specific method be used to relay his wallet from Tuscaloosa to Fort Morgan – the decision to utilize department equipment to facilitate the request was made through ALEA’s chain of command, using standard agency protocol,” Stabler said. Stabler defended the move. He said it is the job of the dignitary protection unit, which serves as security detail for certain elected officials, to, “protect and safeguard its protectees and provide assistance to ensure protectees are fully prepared to perform their duties as constitutional officers.” Stabler said his predecessor, Spencer Collier, approved the decision, but Collier disputed that Wednesday. Collier, who was fired by Bentley last month, said he didn’t know about the wallet and never authorized aviation resources to retrieve it. “I’ve never authorized a flight for a wallet,” Collier said in a brief telephone interview. Collier said Stabler and Bentley went around him to authorize the flight. The disagreement over who authorized the wallet retrieval is the latest back-and-forth between Bentley’s administration and Collier, who for years was the governor’s friend and appointee. Collier last month accused Bentley of having an affair with a high-ranking staff member. Bentley denied that he had a “physical affair” but admitted making inappropriate remarks to the woman. Republished with permission of the Associated Press.
Audit calls into question Robert Bentley’s stated reason for firing head ALEA officer
An audit by the Alabama Examiners of Public Accounts released last month, which found no “significant instances of noncompliance with applicable laws and regulations” within the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency (ALEA), calls into question Gov. Robert Bentley‘s stated reason for firing the agency’s former director Spencer Collier. The audit, first reported by WBRC, covered six years from Oct. 1, 2009 to Sept. 30, 2015, which includes all but four months of Collier’s leadership of the agency. The audit is a notable discrepancy to the governor’s stated reason for booting Collier earlier this week. “(Collier’s replacement, Stan Stabler) identified several areas of concern in the operations, policies and procedures at ALEA,” Bentley said in a news release Tuesday announcing Collier’s dismissal. “After an internal review, the ALEA Integrity Unit found a number of issues, including possible misuse of state funds. I am disappointed to learn these facts, and today, I relieved Spencer Collier of his duties as ALEA Secretary.” Collier, during his news conference Wednesday, which set off the firestorm of allegations about the governor’s personal life, claims he only learned about his dismissal and the governor’s stated reason through social media. Stabler has acted in the capacity of ALEA director since Collier was placed on medical leave in February. In addition to having made the claims about misuse of money in the agency under Collier’s watch, Stabler also maintains he was not a witness to any evidence of the governor’s alleged affair, as was stated by Collier. “The allegation and implication from Mr. Collier is completely false and without merit,” Stabler wrote in a statement. Attempts to contact a spokesman from the Examiners of Public Accounts’ office to ascertain whether the department has plans to conduct more audits of ALEA were unsuccessful. Another audit could determine whether there was any misuse of funds between the end of the agency’s scheduled audit on Sept. 30, 2015, and Collier being placed on medical leave in February. Attorney General Luther Strange said Thursday afternoon his office “takes very seriously any allegations involving potential criminal misconduct,” and, “has a strong record of probing illegal activity in this state and we will continue to do our job,” but his office will not release any further information about “pending criminal investigations.”
Robert Bentley terminates Spencer Collier as head of Alabama Law Enforcement Agency
Following reports from multiple news agencies that an internal investigation had uncovered a possible misuse of funds in the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency, Gov. Robert Bentley announced the termination of ALEA Secretary Spencer Collier Tuesday. According to a statement from Bentley’s office, Collier was placed on medical leave a few weeks ago to recover from back surgery. It was during that time that Acting Secretary Stan Stabler uncovered “several areas of concern in the operations, policies and procedures at ALEA.” An internal review by the ALEA Integrity Unit discovered the possible misuse of state funds, though further details are scarce at this time. “Spencer Collier and I have served together a long time, dating back to my time in the Alabama House of Representatives,” Bentley said in a press release. “He is a friend of mine, and led the implementation of the consolidation of state law enforcement functions into one singular agency, the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency (ALEA). I appreciate Spencer’s service to the State of Alabama.” Collier contends that he has done nothing wrong and believes an outside investigation by the Attorney General’s office will prove that. Stabler has been appointed to the top spot in the department effective immediately. Since the announcement of Collier’s termination, he has accused the governor of instructing him to lie to the Attorney General’s office in regard to the ongoing corruption scandal surrounding House Speaker Mike Hubbard (R-Auburn). Bentley asserts that such allegations are unfounded.
