As the Republican National Convention unfolds this week, you will see all the GOP stars on stage and featured all week, especially on Fox News. You will probably not see one of the former potential rising political show horses featured or interviewed. South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem may be there but will be shunned and snubbed by the GOP faithful and media. She has been relegated to the political graveyard, now and forever. She is now a comedic laughingstock and punchline in political circles. This time, six months ago, the spectacularly attractive South Dakotan was actually being considered ..read more

The Republican National Convention begins next week in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Milwaukee was selected as the home to the GOP Convention for a reason. Wisconsin is one of the sixmajor pivotal battleground states in the presidential race. The others are Arizona, Nevada, Michigan, North Carolina, Georgia,and possibly Pennsylvania. In bygone years, presidential candidates campaigned in 40 or so states because 40 states were in play. Today the candidates will concentrate in these few swing states and will really focus their efforts on certain locales and precincts within these handful of states. Even ..read more

Now that we are midway through the year, allow me to share some thoughts on Alabama political events. There have been some significant elections already this year in the Heart of Dixie as we await a titanic presidential election in the fall. The race for the newly drawn second Congressional district has been the major political attraction of the year. The primaries attracted a plethora of candidates on both political spectrums. There were 11 Democrats and 8 Republicans running for their party’s nomination. Most, if not all, of the Democratic aspirants lived outside the district. Half of them r ..read more

Our First President George Washington advised that America should not have political parties.  Washington was a very wise man. His leadership solidified the beginning of the bedrock of our Democracy. He was one of, if not our greatest presidents.   If he were here today to observe the bitter, tremendous, partisan divide in our nation, he would be amazed at how salient his admonishment toward political parties was 250 years ago. The partisan division in our nation is vast, deep and entrenched. We are basically two Americas. Our states are enshrined into red Republican or blue Democrat ..read more

As former Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives Sam Rayburn once said, and I’ll paraphrase, “Any fool can kick down a barn, but it takes a good carpenter to build one.” In our political landscape today, from Washington, D.C. down, we have plenty of folks kicking down barns, but not nearly enough carpenters building them. During the most recent legislative session, the legislature passed a package of bills called “Working for Alabama,” which is a prime example of building good, effective policy that will serve to address several real problems facing Alabama’s economy – a package that has ..read more

Even though the will of most Alabama voters was thwarted by a minority of Republican Legislators disallowing their constituents the right to vote on a lottery, the Session was a success.  The legislature was thrown a myriad of major issues and they dealt with them in quick order. The paramount factor in any session is whether the two budgets are passed and passed prudently. They were and they are prudent. Ever since Republicans took the majority in the Alabama House and Senate in 2016, our state budgets have been sound, balanced, and fiscally responsible. There is an old tried and true ma ..read more

Many of you took to the roads to travel over Memorial Day. I am sure this resulted in rumblings and discourses about the deplorable conditions of Alabama’s roads.  Most of you, if you went anywhere, had to travel on I-65.  Most Alabamians livealong the I-65 corridor.   I-65 is approximately 366 miles from the Tennessee-Alabama line to Mobile. It is a nightmare.  I can attest to the frustration of being stuck on this highway.  I travel on I-65 from Montgomery to Birmingham at least 100 times a year.  My guess is that I am relegated to being in a parking lot four ou ..read more

Senator Katie Britt has quickly established herself as one of the most effective, well-respected members of the United States Senate. In all my years observing state and national politics, I have never seen someone gain esteem on both sides of the aisle as quickly and as genuinely as Britt during her first 16 months in office. Furthermore, she has done it all while being a steady, strong champion for Christian conservative values and priorities that Alabamians hold dear. In recognition of her staunch conservative voting record, Senator Britt was honored with CPAC’s Award for Conservative Achie ..read more

The national media has been keenly interested that a Democrat has been elected to an Alabama House of Representatives seat. I have had several inquiries from national news and political publications asking me to explain and analyze this phenomenon. They are particularly interested in the fact that women’s reproductive rights was a central focus of this special election in Huntsville. Democrat Marilyn Lands indeed won a resounding victory in House District 10, a Madison County seat, in a special election last month. She made woman’s reproductive rights the primary issue of her campaign.  A ..read more

As the end of 2023 was approaching, the U.S. Senate had ignored the custom to adjourn around Thanksgiving for a month-long Christmas break. Instead, they were working right up to Christmas. Our Senior Senator Tommy Tuberville was quietly and effectively maneuvering to get things accomplished with an adroitness exhibited by U.S. Senate veterans. Alabama’s senior United States Senator has become an adept political operator during his three and a half years in the upper chamber of Congress.  Political observers did not know what to expect when a man, who prefers the title “Coach” to “Senator ..read more