Posts by Will Blakely

In 2018, Alabama power signed a contract with Matrix LLC in which it agreed to pay the political consulting firm $124,000 per month for their services, including “external relations” with controversial groups like the Alabama Education Association.

On Sunday, Birmingham police detected gunfire around Third Avenue Southwest in the Titusville community and arrived at the scene to find a 17-year student at Jackson Olin High School dead in the parking lot of an apartment complex.

Recently, U.S. Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-Auburn) came under fire from Democrats, such as Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) for his hold on general and flag officer nominations on the Senate floor in response to U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin’s policy that uses taxpayer money to fund abortions.

The Birmingham Southern Board of Trustees is still trying to figure out what to do in the face of lackluster legislative support surrounding the financially embattled private college’s requested $37.5 million bailout.

A former professor at Troy University is accusing the college of targeting him for criticizing the Retirement System of Alabama (RSA).

The Business Council of Alabama announced its new four-year “Renew Alabama” plan last week, promising to continue lobbying the state legislature to keep offering payments and tax credits to select private businesses.

South Alabama’s U.S. Army base Fort Rucker, named after Confederate officer Edmund Rucker, is undergoing a name change that will become official in April.

Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall joined 17 other state attorneys general to warn the Senate about a federal court nominee who he says is a “far-left extremist” who is connected to left-wing activist groups like the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) and the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU).

After a year of crisis at the Birmingham Water Works, two state legislators representing part of the Birmingham area are trying to alter the qualifications for serving on the Birmingham Water Works Board (BWWB) and make the utility regional. That means the Alabama Gov. would gain the authority to appoint three of its members.

The Birmingham City Council is divided in its support for a Birmingham Southern College bailout, even as Gov. Kay Ivey, state legislators and a Jefferson County commissioner have already expressed disinterest in forking up money for the private school. 

The Birmingham Police Department ramped up security measures last week for a major sporting event and reported zero tournament-related crimes despite the city's ongoing crime epidemic.

President Joe Biden issued his first-ever veto on Monday to reject a bill that would have reversed a rule instituted by his own administration that allowed money managers to use environmental, social and governance (ESG) factors when making retirement investments on a client’s behalf. 

U.S. Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-Auburn) co-sponsored a bill that might encourage Americans to enter a trade career instead of pursuing careers requiring degrees from four-year universities.

A Women’s Studies class at the University of Alabama (UA) that charged students $95 in the fall for a textbook with links to otherwise freely available material dedicated a large portion of its reading assignments to teach students that gender is subjective and not a matter of biological fact.

The GOP Oversight Committee released subpoenaed financial records that show multiple members of the Biden family received a total of over $1 million potentially tied to a business associate who was doing business with a Chinese energy company.

The Alabama House of Representatives approved a resolution this week to officially recognize St. Patrick’s Day and individuals of Irish heritage in Alabama. 

Auburn University released its second annual United Nations (UN) “Sustainable Development Goals” (SDGs) report for 2019 to 2020, praising its faculty for researching and teaching topics involving critical race theory (CRT), feminist theory and environmental activism. 

Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey joined Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and 17 other states to oppose President Joe Biden’s efforts to keep environmental, social and governance investing in employee pension plans.

Twenty-three leaders in the conservative movement signed onto a letter in support of U.S. Sen. Tommy Tuberville’s (R-Auburn) push to reverse a Department of Defense (DOD) policy that uses taxpayer dollars to help service members get abortions.

Alabama is one of the only states to charge a sales tax on “essential” foods like milk and eggs, but as food prices soar due to inflation, one state senator has drafted a bill to lift the tax burden.

While speaking to the Business Council of Alabama on Tuesday morning, Speaker of the Alabama House of Representatives Nathaniel Ledbetter (R-Rainsville) gave his support to expanding economic incentive programs for select businesses in the state.

U.S. Rep. Gary Palmer (R-Hoover) is officially running for a sixth term and stressing that the term limits pledge he signed in 2014 is to support legislation to limit terms to six years but not necessarily to limit himself.

An Alabama economist weighed in on last week’s Silicon Valley and Signature Bank Collapse, explaining that the central banking system is the “leading problem” of the country’s financial situation and warning that President Joe Biden’s assurance of the banking system’s safety “could backfire.”

Only 13 states have promised more taxpayer money for public higher education than Alabama so far for this fiscal year. 

A Birmingham-based company that was once praised by Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey received a “high risk” score from an organization that rates companies based on their hostility to particular viewpoints.

Alabama Commission on Higher Education executive director Jim Purcell defended diversity, equity and inclusion programs on Friday, criticizing a GOP-backed resolution to eliminate these programs in public institutions and a bill that would prohibit "divisive concepts" from being endorsed by higher education professionals. 

The U.S. House voted on Friday to require the Biden administration to declassify information pertaining to the connection between the Wuhan Institute of Virology (WIV) in China and the origins of the COVID-19 pandemic.