Alabama Political Corruption Exposed

Dear Fairhopians and Alabama citizens,

I apologize for being so quiet lately. I have not forgotten you. It is just that I have been busy researching public corruption in Alabama. It is an exhausting task. Alabama is much worse off than I ever imagined.

Since I began my own investigations into the BP Boom Scandal involving Mayor Tim Kant and Senator Lee “Trip” Pittman, following the November 10, 2010, Mobile Press-Register article by Connie Bagget, who is no longer with the newspaper, I have learned a great deal about how politics in the State of Alabama works against the very people it pledges to serve.

I want to remind everyone that the federal case involving Mayor Kant and Mr. Pittman is pending, and that it is under the direction of special prosecutor Matt Hart, who heads the Special Prosecutions Division, White Collar Crime and Political Corruption of the Alabama State Attorney General’s Office. Mr. Hart, you may recall, was instrumental in successfully prosecuting the operators of the fraudulent Alabama Community College scandal. Former state senator Bradley Byrne, who worked with Hart on that case, recently said of Hart, “He (Hart) would indict his grandmother if he felt he had to.”

Many of you likely live in a world that is devoid of political thought. You probably think that because your elected official is a “good man” and a “Christian” and a “Republican,” that he has your best interests at heart. You are likely more concerned with keeping up with the Jones’ than you are the happenings in Montgomery, or your own back yard. A controlled media that refuses to report any real political news, especially any event that would harm the beloved machine, is another huge debilitating factor. Al.com’s publisher, Ricky Matthews, is a pawn of the machine.

I refer to the machine as a coalition of state political players. The Republicans control the State House, the Senate, the Attorney General and the Governor’s mansion. They have absolute power. And we all know what that breeds.

The Alabama Republican Party machine is breaking apart. Key players are under federal investigation. A brave group of bloggers at alreporter.com, Rickystokes.com and Legal Schnauzer are starting to report what’s really going on in Montgomery. Since al.com has been derelict in their duty in Mobile and Birmingham, let me enlighten you:

Mike Hubbard, the Alabama Speaker of the House, is the subject of three federal grand jury investigations into a questionable $13 million education software contract he steered to a company in Florida. Hubbard is reportedly the mastermind of what has been called the “Republican Revolution” in Alabama, or the “storming of the state house.” He also has been accused of shady dealings with Auburn University regarding their lucrative sports media contracts, and he also reportedly forced republican legislators to use money he funneled to them to purchase campaign materials from a company he owned. Matt Hart is the lead investigator on the Hubbard case.

Alabama Attorney General Luther Strange recently announced that he has recused himself from the case, meaning he is not involved in the investigation.

Did you know Alabama Attorney General Luther Strange, a guy who so often claims the moral high ground to bolster his political positions, has been accused of having a long running affair with his former campaign manager? Luther has denied it, but if this is so, does this not compromise the state’s top prosecutorial figure? How can Big Luther preside over an office when his integrity is questioned? And then there is the issue of Indian gambling money going to his campaign. Where is the Ethics Commission? Where is the explanation?

While this has not been in the mainstream news, you can read about it extensively on the Internet blogs I mentioned. Again, the mainstream news, particularly al.com, is bought and paid for by the machine. You must look elsewhere to find out what is really going on in state politics. The sad thing is when you find out you realize you probably didn’t want to know.

Did you know that former Alabama Governor Bob Riley, two days before he left the Governor’s office for Governor Bentley to take over, steered $37.2 million of BP money to Brett-Robinson in Gulf Shores to finish that monumental eyesore? Did you know that a few weeks later Bob Riley registered as a lobbyist for Brett-Robinson? Under Bob Riley, the state authorized millions of dollars of payments for BP disaster related expenses—about $65 million to be exact. None has been accounted for.

Did you know that Governor Robert Bentley is the President of the Interstate Oil and Gas Compact Commission, a pro-oil lobbying group? It is not a coincidence that Mobile’s drinking water will be jeopardized by the tar sands pipeline running through the heart of its supply. Also, isn’t it ironic that Governor Bentley’s $85 million no-bid state park project is coming to him through oil resources, while he is suing the very company he is representing on the OGCC?

The Alabama republicans that make up the machine are scrambling. Hubbard is under investigation, along possibly with Governor Riley. Kant and Pittman are under the microscope of Matt Hart. They have been for several months. Even more unsettling is the fact that Big Luther Strange—the machine’s de facto protection from prosecution in the State Attorney General’s Office—has been neutered as a result of alleged philandering. It certainly appears that Matt Hart has all the powers of the humbled Alabama Attorney General, and more, given he is working closely with the feds. Let’s hope he nails the crooks.

Here in Baldwin County, which is a focal point for the machine for many reasons, we are witnessing a congressional race. Congressman Jo Bonner has resigned. The machine has tabbed a 31-year old, unmarried no-name to take his place as their go-to guy. The machine candidate is a supposed Washington insider and Mobile native. His supporters all gain financially by his election. Don’t be a fool for the machine.

What I find most interesting and equally telling is the fact that Mayor Kant and Senator Pittman are not running for this open congressional seat, Mr. Pittman especially. Both men had always indicated that they wanted to be congressman for the first district one day. The fact that neither pulled the trigger for this rare open seat opportunity leads me to reason that they were deemed “unelectable” by the machine bosses, and instead they had to find another mule. This however, has not prevented the Mayor of Fairhope from abusing additional BP funds and Senator Pittman has used his position to gain any municipal or county contract that he can.

Bradley Byrne, a former state senator and president of the Alabama Community College System he cleaned up, is the likely heir apparent. Byrne, who is a resident of nearby Montrose, is what I would call a moderate, middle-of-the-road conservative. He is exactly what the Eastern Shore needs and the rest of the first district needs. He is easily the most qualified and credible. In my opinion he is the only candidate that can hit the ground running once elected. Also, Dean Young absolutely scares the shit out of me.

One other concern is long-standing. It has been rumored for years that all elections in Baldwin County are controlled by the machine. Bob Riley won an election over Don Siegelman only after a late eleventh-hour vote recount from Baldwin County gave him the slight advantage he needed to win statewide. Municipal elections results in Fairhope have always been questionable, as Mayor Kant’s relatives are the officials in charge of running the election.

And if all of this misery weren’t enough, we have Governor Bentley standing in the way of Medicaid. This is $1.5 billion a year for three years, $4.5 billion for the State of Alabama, affecting over 300,000 people, half of them children and could produce 15,000-plus new jobs. If we took the Medicaid money on the table and we had a legal statewide lottery, that politicians absolutely could not touch and went directly to education, we could resolve many of our struggling state’s problems.

Our two senators, Shelby and Sessions, have become multi-millionaires at our expense, faithfully towing the Republican line on every issue, never compromising, never offering a solution, just negativity. This is costing us—republicans and democrats, all of us.

On a positive note, transparency and accountability took a huge step forward in Fairhope when council president Jack Burrell introduced and passed a resolution to videotape all city council proceedings. He and the council also handled the Kevin Black tattoo issue well—without the help of the mayor. Kevin just began his second year at the new downtown location.

If this isn’t enough, check out the previously referenced blogsites for the Rob Riley story and the recent Tuscaloosa School Board Story.

Our car tags should read: Alabama the Hypocrite State.

Paul Ripp