Personnel Update: Ex-aide Stephen Boyd joins Huntsville consulting firm Horizons Global Solution
Stephen Boyd, a former top aide to Sen. Tommy Tuberville, has joined a Huntsville-based firm Horizons Global Solution. Boyd announced earlier this month that he would be leaving the office to pursue opportunities outside of government. The boutique government relations consulting firm announced today that longtime Boyd is joining as Partner. Boyd’s consulting practice will focus on aerospace, defense, intelligence, and investigative and law enforcement matters. “Stephen is the quintessential Washington expert,” said David Lasseter, Founder and Partner at Horizons Global Solutions. “His career serving at the top echelons of both the Executive and Legislative Branches makes him elite, with few equals having this level of experience. We are ecstatic to have such a respectable and thoughtful professional joining our HGS team.” Boyd brings nearly twenty years of high-level government experience. He was a Presidentially nominated and Senate-confirmed Assistant Attorney General at the U.S. Department of Justice, a Chief of Staff in both the U.S. Senate and the U.S. House of Representatives, and a Communications Director for a prestigious Senate committee. Boyd has served as Senator Tuberville’s chief of staff since the Senator assumed office in 2021. The Birmingham native served as the Senate-confirmed assistant attorney general for the Office of Legislative Affairs at the U.S. Department of Justice. He previously worked as chief of staff to former U.S. Representative Martha Roby and in various roles for former U.S. Senator Jeff Sessions. Boyd is an alumnus of the University of Alabama College of Communications and School of Law. The press release said Boyd will focus his consulting practice on aerospace, defense, intelligence, and investigative and law enforcement matters. Boyd expressed excitement about the new position and the opportunity to build relationships. “The way that Washington works has changed dramatically in the last two decades. Strong relationships will always matter, but to gain a strategic advantage today, you must truly understand the decision-making process behind the scenes — not just on Capitol Hill but also at the highest levels of the Executive Branch, inside the legal and enforcement arena and in media newsrooms,” Boyd said in the announcement. “I’m excited to join HGS because the firm has the real-world Washington experience to navigate every area of policy making and implementation and the agility to integrate with business leaders to seize strategic opportunities, build valuable relationships, and manage political risk.” Mary Blanche Hankey has been tapped to serve as Tuberville’s next chief of staff. Hankey also served as Tuberville’s chief counsel and policy advisor.
Personnel Update: Tommy Tuberville names Mary Blanche Hankey as new chief of staff
Today, Senator Tommy Tuberville announced he has named Mary Blanche Hankey as his next chief of staff. Hankey is currently Tuberville’s chief counsel and policy advisor. Senator Tuberville also thanked outgoing Chief of Staff Stephen Boyd for his dedicated service to the U.S. Senate, the country, and the people of Alabama. Boyd announced earlier this week that he would be leaving the office later this month to pursue opportunities outside of government. “Stephen Boyd exemplifies the values Alabamians hold dear,” Tuberville said.“His service to his country, loyalty to his beliefs, and pursuit of excellence have made him an invaluable part of my team. When I was elected, my first order of business was building a staff with the knowledge and skills required to deliver for my constituents. As a lifelong Alabamian with years of experience on Capitol Hill and at the Department of Justice, Stephen was the first person I asked to serve in our office. His leadership has been the foundation of a team I am very proud to see working for the people of Alabama every day. I am thankful for his service, and I look forward to seeing what he achieves in the future.” Boyd has served as Senator Tuberville’s chief of staff since the Senator assumed office in 2021. The Birmingham native served as the Senate-confirmed assistant attorney general for the Office of Legislative Affairs at the U.S. Department of Justice. He previously worked as chief of staff to former U.S. Representative Martha Roby and in various roles for former U.S. Senator Jeff Sessions. Boyd is an alumnus of the University of Alabama College of Communications and School of Law. “Mary Blanche Hankey is the model of leadership with integrity, and I am proud to have her assume the role of chief of staff,” said Tuberville.“Mary Blanche’s experience and work ethic have made her a valuable member of our team since the beginning, and I am confident she will continue to serve her state and country at the highest possible level. In just two years, our office has accomplished much on behalf of the state, but it takes a dedicated team of public servants in Washington and across the state to represent Alabamians in the U.S. Senate. Mary Blanche will be the steadfast leader that team needs to continue to deliver.” Hankey is a graduate of the University of Alabama and Samford University’s Cumberland School of Law. Hankey has served in several roles at the U.S. Department of Justice, including deputy assistant attorney general and chief of staff and counselor in the Office of Legislative Affairs, as well as the White House liaison in the Office of the Attorney General. Hankey was also legislative counsel to former U.S. Senator Jeff Sessions.
Steve Flowers: Groundhog Day
Happy Groundhog Day. It is an ironic juxtaposition that the State of the Union address by the president and Groundhog Day occur on the same day. One involves a meaningless ritual in which a doddering octogenarian who is as outdated as the State of the Union event stumbles through some scripted predictions. The other involves an outdated mythical tradition celebrating a prediction by a rodent. Both prognostications by Biden and the Groundhog are insignificant and irrelevant. Our marquee race for 2022 in the State of Alabama is the race to replace our retiring U.S. Senator, Richard Shelby. Before I delve into the rivalry to follow Shelby and sit in his seat, allow me to say that his junior counterpart in our current Senate tandem, Coach Tommy Tuberville, is doing a good job after his first year as our junior U. S. Senator. There was some speculation regarding his effectiveness, given his lack of governmental experience. Tuberville has put together an excellent staff. He did a good day’s work when he secured Stephen Boyd as his Chief of Staff. Tuberville and his staff are doing an excellent job with constituent service, which is an integral part of a senator’s job when you want to be an effective senator for your state. Tuberville’s staff is especially interested in helping veterans in Alabama. He has a full-time staff member who is assigned to helping Alabama veterans get their deserved benefits for their service to our country. You could tell Tuberville was driven to making sure that military veterans and current servicemen and women were taken care of when he was running. His father was a career military man, and Tuberville revered him. Coach Tuberville has not sought the spotlight and tried to become a Fox News darling and be a right wing ideologue. He has taken on a workhorse mentality and has voted consistently conservative and been a team player within the GOP Senate caucus. Tuberville realizes that he will never be a Richard Shelby because he got there later in life after his career as a college football coach. He has learned that seniority counts. Arriving in the U. S. Senate at age 66 is not conducive to being a senate giant. Seniority is king in Washington. Tuberville also understands the importance that defense spending and agriculture are to Alabama. He is applying himself to protecting these two vital concerns as any senator from Alabama should strive to accomplish. It is all about seniority in the U.S. Senate. It will be at least 15 years before anybody we elect to this senate seat has any real power to bring home the bacon. Katie Britt is 40, and Mo Brooks is 68. You can do the math as to which one has the potential to be effective for Alabama and build seniority and power. Katie Britt not only has the youthfulness to gain seniority, but she also possesses the ability, acumen, and more importantly, she wants to be an effective senator for Alabama and protect our military bases and jobs. Mo Brooks has shown over his 40-year political career and, more recently, his 10-year congressional tenure that he does not want to be effective for Alabama. He is more interested in bomb throwing than doing anything for his district or Alabama. Brooks could not be effective, even if he wanted to. He will be 69, and the Republican leadership would dismiss him as a rightwing gadfly and an old one at that. The wildcard in the Senate race is one Mike Durant. He came out of the blue three months ago and has bombarded the airwaves with a constant saturation of television ads. He has run a total media campaign with no one-on-one campaigning. Few people have ever met him. He is like a stealth candidate who only appears on your television as a POW war hero. Durant, who hails from New Hampshire, is primarily self-funding his campaign. However, he is also being financed by a PAC headed by a wealthy donor Harriman, who wants to elect five independent non-partisan senators in the mold of Mitt Romney of Utah and Susan Collins of Maine, which would put Durant in a small group of liberal Democrats and Republicans. Durant may also be torpedoed by a family situation that has come to light recently. The U.S. Senate race is fluid at this time, with most people undecided on their choice. It will be interesting to watch. 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.
Steve Flowers: Donald Trump comes to Alabama
Former President Donald Trump paid a visit to the Heart of Dixie last week. Obviously, this is Trump country. Alabama was one of Trump’s best states in the 2020 Election. He got an amazing 65% of the vote in our state. If the turnout for his August 21 rally in rural Cullman County is any indication, he would get that same margin of victory this year if the election were held again. Many of those in attendance were insistent that Trump won last year’s presidential contest and that it was stolen from him. The event was held on a desolate rural north Alabama farm. It was reminiscent of the 1969 Woodstock event in rural New York. In fact, our newly minted U.S. Senator Tommy Tuberville referred to it as “Trumpstock.” Tuberville nor I either one attended Woodstock, but we are old enough to know about the legendary music and imbibing event. It was also reminiscent of some of the old George Wallace rallies in the 1960’s – only much larger. The rally drew an enormous crowd. Estimates said there were 45,000 Trumpites in attendance, and I am not an expert on estimating crowds, but I do not disagree with that number. It took me 30 minutes to walk through the crowd to get to my car. Trump is truly an entertainer, and Alabama is truly Trump Country, although there were quite a few folks in attendance from neighboring states. I was very appreciative to be given a VIP front row private reception invitation to the event. Allow me to share some of my observations. Coach/Senator Tommy Tuberville won his seat in the U.S. Senate because Trump endorsed him. It is obvious that Trump and Tuberville like each other and have bonded. Tuberville ran for and is in the Senate for the right reason. He wants to spend some of his retirement years giving back to this country. Tuberville was not groomed to be a politician. He is a football coach, but he is doing a good job representing Alabama in Washington. He has put together a good staff headed by veteran Stephen Boyd. They are doing a good job with constituent service. Tuberville looked jovial, relaxed, and dapper when he spoke prior to Trump. Lt. Governor Will Ainsworth gave a great speech. It was fiery and almost George Wallace level. He is a true conservative. He has two young sons who accompanied him to the rally. They are very gentlemanly young men who are always courteous and mannerly. Attorney General Steve Marshall gave an excellent speech. It was conversational, sincere, and well-received. Congressman Robert Aderholt was spectacular and gave a great speech and welcome. He represents Cullman in congress. His 4th Congressional District gave Trump the largest percentage votes of any congressional district in the country. Aderholt looks like a congressman. He is polished and erudite but has a grassroots appeal. His people in North Alabama love him. Mo Brooks spoke and was fiery as ever. Trump has endorsed him in the senate race. However, Trump only endorsed him once on this night. There is a lot of internal discord among the Republican Party membership. It appears that the Mo Brooks supporters have taken over the Republican Party hierarchy and that this Trump event was a Mo Brooks rally. Trump probably was asked to temper his Brooks endorsement. Indeed, Mo Brooks’s opponents, Katie Britt, Lynda Blanchard, and Jessica Taylor were all in attendance. Several state senators were there, along with the aforementioned state constitutional officers. I saw Greg Reed from Jasper, Tom Whatley from Auburn, along with hometown Cullman Senator Garlan Gudger, and PSC Commissioner Jeremy Oden, also from Cullman County. In addition, Secretary of State John Merrill and Jefferson/Shelby Congressman Gary Palmer were in attendance. It was good to see some of the old, longtime, 50 year Republican Party faithful founders there – Elbert Peters from Huntsville, Joan and Paul Reynolds from Shelby County, and Vicki and Mike Drummond from Jasper. They were laboring in the Republican vineyards before it was cool to be a Republican and still are. I had a chance to see Trump closeup. He looks amazing for 75. People age differently. He is a lot more cognizant and alert than 78-year-old Joe Biden. If you made me bet, I would say that Trump is running for President in 2024 and that he will carry Alabama. Happy Labor Day. See you next week. Steve Flowers is Alabama’s leading political columnist. His weekly column is seen in over 60 Alabama newspapers. He served 16 years in the state legislature. Steve may be reached at: www.steveflowers.us.
Tommy Tuberville names Stephen Boyd as chief of staff
Senator-elect Tommy Tuberville on Wednesday announced that Assistant Attorney General Stephen Boyd, an Alabama native with a lengthy Washington D.C. resume, will serve as his chief of staff. Boyd is currently the assistant attorney general for the Office of Legislative Affairs at the U.S. Department of Justice. The post is responsible for managing the Justice Department’s relationship with Congress. He was nominated to the position by President Donald Trump in 2017. He previously was chief of staff for U.S. Rep. Martha Roby and also worked for former Sen. Jeff Sessions in policy and communications roles. Boyd is a 2004 graduate of the University of Alabama School of Law and 2001 graduate of the University of Alabama College of Communications. “He is well-known throughout Alabama and knows how to get things done on Capitol Hill. Stephen is a leader of tremendous integrity and during my discussions with him, it became abundantly clear that he is the right person for the job,” Tuberville said in a statement announcing the appointment. “Stephen is a true conservative who has fought for our Alabama values since moving to Washington D.C. and I’m proud to announce him as my chief of staff,” Tuberville said. Boyd is Tuberville’s first announced staff hire. Tuberville defeated incumbent Sen. Doug Jones to win back the Alabama Senate seat for Republicans. The former college football coach who has never held public office has acknowledged he will have a steep learning curve in the U.S. Senate. He told The Associated Press in an earlier interview that one of his first priorities will be to put together an experienced staff. Republished with the permission of the Associated Press.
Devin Nunes threatens Jeff Sessions with contempt charges over Russia
House Intelligence Committee Chairman Devin Nunes is threatening to hold Attorney General Jeff Sessions in contempt of Congress for failing to hand over classified materials related to the Russia investigation. Nunes phoned into Fox & Friends Sunday to explain that two weeks ago, he sent Sessions a classified letter demanding “very important” documents regarding counterintelligence investigations. He claims he was ignored. Then, last week, he sent a subpoena for the information. “On Thursday, we discovered that they are not going to comply with our subpoena on very important information that we need,” Nunes explained, adding, “The only thing left to do is we have to move quickly to hold the attorney general of the United States in contempt and that is what I will press for this week.” The Department of Justice (DOJ) pushed back on Sunday, and released a letter they sent to Nunes on Thursday, May 3, which addressed the classified information Nunes had requested.According to the letter, Nunes had asked for information on a specific individual, that the DOJ considers to be a very valuable person for a counterintelligence operation. “The Department has determined that, consistent with applicable law and longstanding Executive Branch policy, it is not in a position to provide information responsive to your request regarding a specific individual,” Assistant Attorney General Stephen Boyd wrote in a signed letter. “Disclosure of responsive information to such requests can risk severe consequences, including potential loss of human lives, damage to relationships with valued international partners, compromise of ongoing criminal investigations, and interference with intelligence activities.” Boyd continued, “The Department and its intelligence community partners would welcome the opportunity to discuss whether there are other ways to accommodate the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence’s oversight inquiry.”
Former Martha Roby Chief of Staff Stephen Boyd confirmed Asst. Attorney General
On the last day before August recess, the U.S. Senate confirmed Rep. Martha Roby‘s former Chief of Staff as the Assistant U.S. Attorney General for Legislative Affairs. Stephen Boyd, who served as Roby’s top adviser for more than six years before joining Attorney General Jeff Sessions at the Department of Justice in February, was confirmed amid more than five dozen Trump administration nominees on Thursday. Roby congratulated her former chief of staff following his confirmation. “It is with great pride and admiration that I congratulate Stephen Boyd upon his confirmation as Assistant Attorney General of the United States,” Roby said. “Stephen is exactly the kind of person our country needs to serve in such a position of great influence. In Stephen, Attorney General Jeff Sessions has an experienced, rock-solid adviser and Congress has a principled, trustworthy conduit to the Department of Justice. “I join Stephen’s wife, Brecke and his parents, Ron and Floranne in celebrating this special day.” Prior to launching Roby’s congressional office when she first joined the U.S. House of Representatives, Boyd served as Communications Director for both then-U.S. Senator Sessions and the Senate Committee on the Judiciary.
Martha Roby’s former Chief of Staff nominated Assistant Attorney General
If University of Alabama School of Law graduate and Birmingham-native Stephen Boyd has any luck, his resume will grow bit longer this spring Boyd, who joined Attorney General Jeff Sessions team as the Chief of Staff in Office of Legal Policy at the Department of Justice (DOJ) back in February, was nominated by President Donald Trump on Tuesday to serve as Assistant U.S. Attorney General under Jeff Sessions. Prior to his time with the DOJ Boyd served as the longtime Chief of Staff to Alabama 2nd District U.S. Representative Martha Roby, a position he assumed when Roby was first sworn into office in January 2011. U.S. Representative Martha Roby (R-Ala.) today congratulated her former chief of staff Stephen Boyd on his nomination to serve as an Assistant Attorney General of the United States. Boyd served as Roby’s top adviser for more than six years and recently joined Attorney General Jeff Sessions at the Department of Justice. His nomination by President Trump was submitted Tuesday and now awaits confirmation by the Senate. “There is no one better suited to serve our country in this key role than Stephen Boyd. Stephen possesses a keen intellect, conducts himself with the utmost professionalism and decorum, and he works extremely hard,” Roby said of Boyd’s nomination. “Above all, the primary reason he is so well suited for this important role is this: Stephen Boyd will do the right thing. I join his wife Brecke and his parents Ron and Floranne in celebrating this special achievement.” Prior to launching Roby’s congressional office, Boyd served as Communications Director for both then-U.S. Senator Sessions and the Senate Committee on the Judiciary. Alabama U.S. Sen. Richard Shelby echoed Roby’s approval of Trump’s nominee. “Stephen is well-respected across the state of Alabama and is known for his ability to reach across the aisle and get things done,” said Shelby. “President Trump has made a great pick in nominating someone with Stephen’s level of integrity and character for this esteemed position.” Boyd currently awaits confirmation by the U.S. Senate.
