Many Alabamians, even some in her own party, have bravely called out Gov. Kay Ivey’s knack for funneling huge sums of taxpayer money to apparently pet projects. The classic case is the controversial West Alabama Corridor Project, a gigantic boondoggle receiving just criticism for its waste of highway construction dollars, ironically funded by the very expensive gasoline tax that Ivey strong-armed legislators into passing, bludgeoning Alabama taxpayers with its burden.
Ivey particularly has a track record of funneling taxpayer money to failed projects involving our state’s military veterans, usually at the behest of her cronies.
In 2020, Ivey personally awarded over $1.9 million to an organization called Priority Soldier, ostensibly to help veterans with increased PTSD issues arising from the Covid pandemic. Unfortunately, she failed to consult with the Alabama Department of Veterans Affairs (ADVA), the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, or those with expertise in dealing with Alabama’s noble veterans. The results were disastrous: Priority Soldier officials were indicted in federal court, later pleading guilty, for apparently transferring the funds to their personal bank accounts, paying themselves exorbitant salaries, and using Ivey’s grant to purchase “luxury sports cars, watches, and diamond jewelry for their own personal benefit.” The organization’s attorney was disbarred for helping perpetuate the fraud.
Lightning struck again when Ivey later announced (in her State of the State address, no less) that she would like to funnel funds (millions of dollars) to Alabama Veteran – another questionable non-profit – for a huge building project in Lincoln, Ala., called Dovetail Landing. Again, she did so without consulting with ADVA or apparently anyone else involved in strategic planning of veterans affairs in Alabama. Once more the results have been disastrous, with a string of reputable Alabama veteran officials leaving the organization in apparent disgust at the mismanagement of affairs involving Dovetail Landing. By late 2025 – after absolutely nothing was done on the well-funded project – a group of state legislators in the area surrounding Lincoln formally called for a return of the money allotted to the Dovetail Landing project, and the land donated for construction sits empty to this day.
Last year also saw the governor’s office, Alabama Power (what they have to do with veterans affairs is beyond me), and legislative members push a classic “solution in search of a problem” by spending at least $5 millionof consumer and taxpayer money to open a nebulous “veterans resource center” in crime-ridden, parking-deficit downtown Montgomery. In several public appearances, the newly-appointed ADVA commissioner has been unable to explain what the mission of this new boondoggle will be, only offering that it will assist veterans in transitioning from military to civilian jobs.
This comes despite the fact that 1) the state already has a well-funded federal program (the DOL-VETS program) to assist veterans with job placement throughout the state; 2) the state’s unemployment rate for veterans is below the (very low) rate for the general population; 3) the ADVA already has 62 free veteran service offices spread across Alabama to assist veterans with transition to civilian life; and 4) numerous effective non-profits already exist around the state (the Still Serving Veterans organization, for example) to similarly assist with career transition for veterans.
What this new “veteran resource center” will not do, tellingly, is meet the demonstrable and critical need for mental health services for Alabama’s veterans. This is not a surprise given that the governing board for this new center is made up of many non-veterans who seemingly have no clue what services are actually needed by Alabama’s veterans. It is also unsurprising that a similar boondoggle, the Veterans Mental Health Steering Committee, has yet to produce a measurable improvement in that field for over a year now and has simply regurgitated studies about veterans mental health that ADVA had been promulgating for years while simultaneously funneling grant money to some of the same organizations that have consistently produced what is arguably the worst mental health system in the country. Window dressing and photo ops for politicians once again.
Let me be brutally honest with the good citizens of this state: I believe Ivey has done more to destroy veteran's affairs than a progressive, purple-haired, trans, furphile, public school teacher. Don’t get me started on her vindictive actions against ADVA and its former commissioner or the stifling of the State Board of Veterans Affairs, all of which I have covered repeatedly in the past.
This is bad governance on a massive scale, and unfortunately, it is Alabama's noble veterans who will suffer from such poor state leadership for years to come. For those veterans, 2027 and a new governor can’t come soon enough.
Troy Carico is a former infantry enlisted soldier (11B) and infantry officer with branch qualifications including counterintelligence (35E) and military intelligence (35D). He served with distinction in the U.S. Army for more than 22 years and is highly decorated and service-connected disabled. He also has prior service as a civilian intelligence officer for the Defense Intelligence Agency Great Skills Program and has served in numerous clandestine assignments throughout the world.
The views and opinions expressed here are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the policy or position of 1819 News. To comment, please send an email with your name and contact information to [email protected].
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