The World Around You

I told you when former two-year college chancellor Roy Johnson made his deal with the feds that some legislators needed to be very nervouse. Rep. Schmitz will not be the last legislator arrested in this scandal.

Sue Schmitz, D-Toney, was released on $25,000 bond after being charged with four counts of mail fraud and four counts of fraud. The charges accuse Schmitz of setting up a bogus job with a two-year college program and receiving a salary for more than three years for work she never did with the Community Intensive Treatment for Youth Skills Training Consortium, or CITY program.

“It was further part of the scheme and artifice that despite collecting a salary and benefits from the CITY program, defendant Schmitz performed virtually no services and generated virtually no work product for the CITY program, and in fact rarely even appeared for work at CITY program office,” the indictment states.

The grand jury indicted Schmitz on Jan. 9, although the indictment was sealed until her arrest this morning.

North Alabama legislator arrested in two-year college case - Breaking News from The Birmingham News - al.com

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Danny’s information is always reliable (despite what others seem to insinuate) and I’m thrilled that Mayor Bright is running as a Democrat. I haven’t always been a fan of his job as mayor, but I do believe he is honorable and I couldn’t ask for more than to have a Democrat replace Rep. Terry Everett.

He has my full confidence and support.

Bobby Bright Picks a Party » Doc’s Political Parlor

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Even with the flawed polling methodology I discussed yesterday, Barack Obama is leading Hillary Clinton in the latest Capital Survey poll, 40-35 percent.

Potential black voters have surged to Obama’s side, according to a poll by Capital Survey Research Center, the polling arm of the Alabama Education Association. Their latest poll, which includes data through Tuesday night, shows Obama with 68 percent of the vote among likely black voters, up from 54 percent three weeks ago and more than double the 26 percent of likely black voters who said a year ago they would support Obama.

Black voters in Alabama drifting from Clinton’s to Obama’s camp- al.com

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There’s a good piece in the Montgomery Advertiser this morning about who the Edwards supporters will gravitate to in Alabama.

But no one is sure how the Edwards’ votes will go.

Birmingham attorney Giles Perkins, a former executive director of the Alabama Democratic Party, had been spearheading Edwards’ campaign in the state. While expressing disappointment with Edwards’ decision to leave the race, Perkins said, “Barack Obama is going to be carrying a lot of Edwards’ message and will end up with a lot of Edwards’ support.”

When asked why, Perkins said, “He’s talking about a new kind of politics and change in our country. That’s the same thing John Edwards was talking about.”

Two other Edwards supporters, Alabama AFL-CIO President Stewart Burkhalter and state Rep. Randy Hinshaw, D-Meridianville, said they were undecided. “I like the Obama campaign, but there is nobody better to take on the Republicans in November than the Clintons,” Hinshaw said.

I agree that it’s hard to predict, but the rural voters in North Alabama will gravitate toward Clinton for the most part, while the highly educated folks who were supporting him largely on the change message will support Obama. I really think it will largely be a wash.

montgomeryadvertiser.com :: Democrats discuss how to capitalize on Edwards

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I’m so glad someone is finally getting the word out on the flaw in the polling numbers, especially in Alabama.

During a Tuesday telephone conference, U.S. Congressman Artur Davis, former Mississippi Gov. Ray Mabus, and Mobile County Democratic Chairman Brad Warren said pollsters may have egg on their face after Alabama’s primary, just as they did after South Carolina’s.

Davis said a problem with polling methodology caused pollsters to drastically underestimate the number of white voters who wound up voting for Obama in South Carolina.

“Their first question is, ‘Did you vote in the presidential primary in your state in the last cycle?’,” Davis said. “That question wipes out a lot of people who were new voters, who are attracted to Obama but weren’t attracted to the previous contests.”

He said that is particularly true in Alabama, where in the later June 1, 2004, primary, voters got to decide between candidates John Kerry and Lyndon LaRouche.

“The Democratic race had long been decided,” he said of that primary.

We will have extremely high turnout on Tuesday and there will be tens of thousands of voters who didn’t vote the last time around. Obama’s support is strong in Alabama. I won’t predict a victory, but if he doesn’t win, it will be very close.

montgomeryadvertiser.com :: Pollster methods flawed, Obama supporters believe

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NBC News has called Florida for McCain…how much longer can Romney last?

McCain projected FL winner - First Read - msnbc.com

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Sen. Richard Shelby and Rep. Artur Davis don’t agree on much, but they came to similar positions on the President’s proposal to reduce the use of earmarks.

“I do not support abdicating Congress’ constitutionally mandated power of the purse,” said Sen. Richard Shelby, an Alabama Republican who has been particularly adept at steering money into the state for roads, universities, NASA and other projects. “That just gives a lot of power to the president — not just this president, but any president.”

“It’s the equivalent of a last-minute temper-tantrum from the executive branch,” added Rep. Artur Davis, a Birmingham Democrat. “Congress has always had a role in earmarks … when (Bush’s) own party was in power there were three times the number of earmarks we had last year, and he signed those budgets into law.”

The “well they did it too” defense has never been one I admired. I agree with Rep. Davis on the facts, but that doesn’t mean that reduction in the amount of earmarks isn’t a good idea. How it is implemented by the President is still to be seen.

montgomeryadvertiser.com :: Some state lawmakers blast vow to cut earmarks

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I think Randy Brinson is one of the more interesting Christian leaders in America today and I agree with him 100% on the need to encourage Christians to be involved in environmental issues.

Christians must push green issues- al.com

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The support for a ban on PAC-to-PAC transfers has been there before, what we need is action. All Alabamians want this passed this session, let’s get it done.

State legislators show support for bill to ban PAC to PAC transfers- al.com

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So says Alvin Benn:

Davis’ oratory skills are the equal of Obama’s and he also drew loud cheers when he began his comments by saying: “Welcome to the day the next president came to Birmingham.”
Raised in Montgomery, Davis is a student of civil rights history and he knew the average age of most of those in the arena.
Davis asked how many were around in 1963 when Bull Connor’s firefighters directed their hoses on civil rights demonstrators marching to protest racial inequities.
Only a few hands shot up. As far as most in the audience were concerned, Davis was referring to ancient history. That was then. This is now.

It sounds like Senator Obama got everything he could have hoped for from the rally here today.

montgomeryadvertiser.com ::  ANALYSIS: Obama thrills; Huckabee falls flat

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I was having a pretty good day…

1. Purdue’s mens basketball team defeated the #11 Wisconsin Badgers in a great game this afternoon on ESPN.
2. Their archrivals, the Indiana Hoosiers lost to a depleted UConn team, AT HOME, ending a 29 game home winning streak.
3. Senator Barack Obama (the candidate I have endorsed for president) won the South Carolina primary by a very large margin.

Yet, around the same time I found out that Obama had a big win, I also found out my best friend’s mother had her colon punctured during a colonoscopy and is in extremely poor condition.

Life will throw you a curveball…especially when the going seems good.

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I’m glad to see Michelle Obama reaching out to the Alabama media.

“I really don’t spend a whole lot of time focusing on the opponents,” she said. “I know all I can really do in this race is bring my values, my life experiences to the table, and be open and honest with people about who I am, who Barack is.

“That’s really the goal, to connect with people … and that’s what I really focus on. When I am standing in front of a crowd out in a church or in a community center, I am completely lost in the stories that connect us.”

montgomeryadvertiser.com :: Focus is on people, Michelle Obama says

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Obama in Bama

Democratic presidential hopeful Sen. Barack Obama will be in Birmingham Sunday, his campaign said today.

Obama will host a “town hall” meeting at 2 p.m. at the Bartow Arena on the UAB campus. The meeting is open to the public. Free tickets may be obtained at http://www.barackobama.com. Or they may be picked up starting at 9 a.m. Friday from Obama campaign offices. Doors of the arena open at noon.

This is Obama’s third visit to Alabama this year. He was in Birmingham in July for an event that drew 2,000 to a downtown hotel. In March, he was in Selma.

Obama coming to Birmingham Sunday - Breaking News from The Birmingham News - al.com

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There a bunch of people who need to be getting real nervous this morning over the headline from the Birmingham News this morning. Former two-year college chancellor Roy Johnson is cooperating with prosecutors…

Johnson’s cooperation is significant in a case focusing on political corruption inside the state’s college system. The former veteran legislator who rose to become House speaker pro tempore served for decades as one of the state’s most powerful political figures and kept close ties to lawmakers after he took over the college system in 2002.

Dozens of legislators, their close relatives and businesses received jobs in the system, and some of those arrangements are under federal investigation.

Efforts to reach Johnson and his lawyer, Joe Espy of Montgomery, failed Wednesday. Johnson has denied any wrongdoing.

Prosecutors identified Johnson last year as a major target in their corruption investigation. The state school board fired Johnson as chancellor in July 2006 after a series of articles in The Birmingham News detailed college contracts and jobs his relatives received. Johnson and his family received more than $600,000 in jobs and contracts the year before he was fired, system records show.

Former Alabama 2-year colleges chancellor Roy Johnson expected to plead guilty, cooperate with corruption probe- al.com

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Another life cut too short by drugs…

NYPD spokesman Paul Browne said Ledger had an appointment for a massage at the Manhattan apartment believed to be his home. The housekeeper who went to let him know the masseuse had arrived found him dead at 3:26 p.m.

The Australian-born actor was nominated for an Oscar for “Brokeback Mountain,” where he met his wife, actress Michelle Williams, in 2005. Ledger and Williams had lived in Brooklyn and had a daughter, Matilda, until they split up last year.

Heath20Ledger20found20dead207C20TuscaloosaNews.com

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One of the odder Presidential candidacies in recent memory officially ended today:

In a three-sentence statement on his website, former Tennessee Sen. Fred Thompson announced that he has resigned from the Republican presidential campaign.

“Today I have withdrawn my candidacy for President of the United States. I hope that my country and my party have benefited from our having made this effort. Jeri and I will always be grateful for the encouragement and friendship of so many wonderful people.”

NPR: Thompson Out of GOP Presidential Race

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I heard a comment made last week on NPR…I apologize that I can’t remember who made it, that the Clintons were going to do everything they could to make Senator Obama look like the “angry black man”. I hope that they didn’t succeed last night.

This campaign is way too important to let the attacks become the story of the day. People should be picking a candidate as the best of a bunch of good choices, not the one of which they are the least afraid.

Democrats go for the jugular - Ben Smith - Politico.com

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I don’t have a big problem with the GOP attempting to raise big money to elect Republicans to the Alabama Legislature in 2010, but I agree with Joe Turnham (head of the Alabama Democratic Party)…

Turnham also questions why Riley and his party are making so much noise about defeating Democrats two weeks before the start of a legislative session. In Turnham’s view, stirring up partisan rancor is not the way to have a successful session.

“The timing is awful,” he said.

This kind of big campaign being announced this close to the session cannot make for good bipartisanship (which didn’t have much chance of happening anyway).

montgomeryadvertiser.com :: State GOP aims to claim majority party status in 2010

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One of the most appropriate efforts to honor Dr. King is taken each year by the Montgomery Advertiser in their awarding of King Spirit Awards. As always, the honorees for this year are very deserving of the honor. My congratulations to Carlton Robinson, David Sadler, Natsha Starr, Rodney Wilkerson and Tafeni English on their honor.

montgomeryadvertiser.com

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Anytime Roy Moore thinks something is a good idea, I am extremely skeptical. Once again, he’s on the wrong side of a debate.

I’ve seen “Facing the Giants”, I attended a showing at my church. It is most certainly a Christian film and is billed as nothing less. It is not appropriate for a school setting and the high school in Huntsville crossed the line in showing it.

The point is not that “most people in Tuscaloosa are Christian”, the point is would you afford the same courtesy to a movie that was attempting to convert people to Hinduism or Buddhism and the answer to that is likely an emphatic “No”.

Group rebuts Giants critics | TuscaloosaNews.com

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Many Alabamians are still undecided in the Democratic primary. If you happen to be one of them, I would strongly urge you to consider voting for real change in Sen. Barack Obama. Senator Clinton is an outstanding leader as well, but she is not going to bring the same kind of fresh vision and new personalities to the problems that face our country.

Thirty-three percent of respondents in a new Press-Register/University of South Alabama poll of likely Democratic primary voters said they had not decided on a candidate.
U.S. Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton of New York received 31 percent, while U.S. Sen. Barack Obama of Illinois garnered 28 percent. Former U.S. Sen. John Edwards of North Carolina received 8 percent.

Poll: Many Alabama Democrats still undecided- al.com

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