Dear Baldwin County Voters, Most citizens know corruption is rampant in our community. Our local councils, the County Commission and certain judgeships, are represented by dubious individuals. We appear concerned about our schools and the threat of crime. However, we ignore and have come to accept, political corruption at every level. In reality, political corruption costs us more in taxpayer dollars lost than all property crimes combined. We have become so apathetic and careless that the only time we speak of corruption to our neighbors is over a drink, in the gym, or watching the kid's soccer game. As long as this continues, the political corruption will continue; and our quality of life will continue to suffer. We cannot relinquish our constitutional right to vote people in and out of office. Because of hyper-partisanship, there is little crossover voting. However, more independents are challenging incumbents than ever before. We first and foremost must prevent incumbents from running uncontested for re-election.
Connie Baggett's article November 20, 2010 titled, "Senator's Company Awarded $639,000 while he supervised grants for boom work," exposed for the first time to the public the crime committed by Pittman and Kant. The official contractor of record recorded in Clanton, Alabama with the Alabama Emergency Management Office, lists Oil Recovery of Mobile as the contractor of record for the execution of the Fairhope Boom Grant. News Coverage Timeline The following news articles outline the nature of this crime:
Dear City Council and concerned citizens: The city of Fairhope is in application for BP Restore Act funds. In doing so the Mayor and City Council are liberally using the names of Senator Shelby, Senator Jeff Sessions and Congressmen Bradley Byrne, as well as saying they have White House support, whatever that means. This application based on a paid-for "Study," the nebulous "Fly Creek Watershed Restoration Project" developed by Thompson Engineering, is at-best a cut-and-paste document. It is the cornerstone for Restore Act funds and a vehicle to settle a long-standing law suit against the city of Fairhope.
Dear Sirs: After the Gulf Oil Spill in 2010, monies in grant form were distributed throughout the affected cities in Baldwin County. Governor Bob Riley and the Alabama Emergency Management Association were in charge of overseeing the disbursement of these funds to aid the disaffected. The full accountability of these funds was assured by the promise of multiple audits to determine how the monies were actually spent. However, no audits related to the execution of these grants have been performed. No local or state agency has acted on this promise of accountability.
Mayor Tim Kant and city council members secretly traded away millions in taxpayer cash to settle a disastrous land lawsuit. Uncovered settlement papers show officials drained utility reserves and submitted fake environmental studies to grab BP grant money. Read our complete breakdown to discover how local leadership sold out Fairhope taxpayers behind closed doors.
Governor Bentley and Senator Pittman sneaked massive changes into education legislation to strip money from public schools. Behind-the-scenes legislative drafts reveal an eight-page bill suddenly ballooned into a twenty-eight-page windfall for political insiders. How much longer will citizens tolerate blatant theft disguised as educational reform?
Senator Trip Pittman forged official mayoral documents to cover up his active role in a massive grant fraud scheme. Official correspondence shows Pittman manufactured letters using Mayor Kant’s signature to deceive federal investigators. We detail how their desperate cover-up completely fell apart under federal scrutiny.
Fairhope officials fabricated an environmental grant request to bail out a favored developer at taxpayer expense. Internal testing files show red clay destroyed Fly Creek, yet the city hid the developer’s guilt to obtain BP money. Our latest report highlights the blatant deception driving this twenty-two million dollar cash grab.
Mayor Tim Kant quietly pushed through a multi-million-dollar land buyout that forced taxpayers to cover legal blunders. Meeting minutes reveal an unprinted agenda item authorized secret negotiations while hiding three million dollars in attorney fees. See how city hall spun an expensive legal surrender as a win for the public.
House Speaker Mike Hubbard and state political bosses funneled millions in public contracts to private corporate allies. Grand jury subpoenas and financial records demonstrate how state power brokers operated an untouchable pay-to-play ring. The Ripp Report breaks down the ultimate fall of Montgomery’s most notorious political machine.
