Saturday, the Alabama Republican Executive Committee met in Birmingham for its Executive Committee Meeting. The over 425-member Executive Committee is tasked with setting the policy agenda of Alabama Republican candidates and making sure that the views of grassroots GOP organizers are heard by Alabama’s elected officials.
The Executive Committee addressed several controversial issues.
In the 2021 Alabama Regular Legislative Session, the legislature passed Senate Bill 46 by Sen. Tim Melson (R-Florence), making medical marijuana legal to grow, process, recommend, and possess for a person with a demonstrated medical need. The Republican Executive Committee considered a resolution urging major changes to the medical marijuana law which is set to go into effect late this year.
The GOP Resolutions Committee recommended the resolution, which urged legislators to rewrite the marijuana bill so that medical marijuana could not be recommended for anyone who is:
Pregnant
under 25 years of age
and those older citizens that are susceptible to addiction.
Supporters claimed that the medical facts presented in the resolution were supported by footnotes to research. Opponents dispute that research.
The debate was short-lived, however, as one opponent made a motion that further debate on the controversial resolution be tabled. That tabling resolution passed overwhelmingly 61% to 37%.
The ALGOP Executive Committee did approve a resolution in support of State Sen. Del Marsh’s (R-Anniston) Parent's Choice Act – Senate Bill 140.
Executive Committee members denounced the changes that were made in the bill and amended the resolution to say that they supported it in its introduced form.
Former State Sen. Gerald Dial (R-Lineville) said that the bill left out the homeschoolers and required private schools to submit to Alabama State Department of Education (ALSDE) testing which they would never accept.
Alabama Republican Party Chairman John Wahl told Dial that the amendment was added in committee and was not in the original bill.
State Sen. Sam Givhan (R-Huntsville) claimed that the AEA has urged that the bill be amended in order to kill it.
“This bill is not dead,” said State Rep. Charlotte Meadows (R-Montgomery), who is carrying it for Marsh in the House of Representatives. “Until we level the playing field so that every parent has a choice, and every school has competition we are not going to improve education in this state.
“It will probably not be the original bill, but we are working to get this bill passed. This is just the first step.”
The resolution supporting SB140 passed 89% to 11%.
The Executive Committee approved a resolution urging that Gov. Kay Ivey (R) issue an executive order to schools directing them to stop requiring masks.
Suzelle Josie said, “She has the power to do this. Gov. Ivey, do this today.”
The resolution passed 85% to 15%.
The Executive Committee rejected a bylaws change that would have taken the election of delegates to the 2024 Republican National Convention off of the ballot and given that power to the Committee.
State National Committeeman Paul Reynolds spoke in favor of the bylaws change.
“People are trying to infiltrate the Republican Party,” Reynolds warned. “Their targets are the religious and moral planks in the party platform.”
Former State Rep. Ed Henry (R-Hartselle) spoke against the proposed bylaws change.
“A lot of people have come into the party since the 2016 election,” Henry said, warning that the party would face a backlash if those people were barred from running for convention delegates.
The executive committee voted 57% to 41% in support of the resolution, but that fell far short of the supermajority needed to pass the bylaws change.
The Executive Committee opened up the meeting to new business, but a member of the committee introduced a motion to adjourn the meeting.
The motion to adjourn prior to lunch was organized by Ivey supporters who did not want to allow gubernatorial candidate Dean Young to introduce his floor challenge of Ivey’s candidacy on the grounds that she has not properly defended the display of the Ten Commandments in schools and government buildings.
The motion to adjourn carried on a 53% to 47% vote.
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