To filter funds from controversial or unpopular groups to other PACs and candidates for the purpose of hiding the actual source of a candidate’s campaign campaign money from voters.

I just thought it would be informative for everyone to see that I can form a PAC with that official purpose without raising an eyebrow from anyone at the Secretary of State’s office.

I don’t really expect to get any contributions (unless I decide to use it myself), but I can assure you that any contributions I do receive will go to the most likely candidate for state Senate to defeat any of the 12 Democrats that recently voted to kill the PAC-to-PAC ban. Donors, including other PACs, will obviously have a say in this.

In keeping with the purpose, if any special interests want to use Dan PAC to filter funds to candidates that don’t want to be publicly associated with them, the PAC will be happy to comply as long as (a) it’s legal, which isn’t too difficult, (b) it doesn’t directly conflict with my unofficial purpose of electing a senator who will vote for the ban, and (c) I get to use 15% of the contribution for my unofficial purpose of electing a senator who will vote for the PAC-to-PAC ban.

I feel dirty.

Crossposted at Between The Links

Democrat Ron Sparks announced Tuesday that he will not challenge Sen. Jeff Sessions in 2008.

Sparks, the state agriculture commissioner, said he decided not to run after talking with state Sen. Vivian Figures of Mobile, who is running.

“I believe that the best chance Democrats have to win that seat is if we are unified and avoid a primary battle,” Sparks said in a released statement.

Sparks is the second Democrat to publicly consider a campaign before opting out; U.S. Rep. Artur Davis, D-Birmingham, announced in January he would not run for the Senate next year.

Sessions, a Republican, is seeking a third term.

I honestly do not see what could hurt him from running other then exhausting his financial resources before a run in 2010 for Governor. Let me be the first to congratulate Senator Sessions on being re-elected for his third term in office. Sen. Vivian Figures will not show any major challenge to Sen. Sessions, especially not after the major stand on Immigration Sessions is taking.

H/T Between The Links

Absolutely priceless video.

H/T Loretta Nall and Danny

There are CONFIRMED reports coming in to me right now that Sen. Charles Bishop has physically assaulted Senator Lowell Barron.

I am trying to gather more information on what the fight was about - but the information has been confirmed!!

**UPDATE 3:30**
The reason why this happened?

The Republicans (plus a few democrats) were filibustering at the request of the Governor to hold up the override of the Governor’s line item veto. It has been tense all session and I think both of them kind of smarted off to each other as they left the chamber.

More information coming as it is available.

**Update 3:45**
Danny at Doc’s Political Parlor is reporting that “Bishop and Barron were cursing each other when Bishop “knocked Barron across a desk” and “tried to choke him,” according to a source in the Senate chamber. Security had to break them up.” This report is completely false.

**Update 3:55**
Of course this whole thing is due to the fact that the Governor used his line item veto on the General Budget.

**Update 3:58**
Al.Com now has the story on their website.

MONTGOMERY — State Sen. Charles Bishop hit Sen. Lowell Barron on the floor of the Senate this afternoon.

The Senate was in recess when Bishop, a Republican from Arley, and Barron, a Democrat from Fyffe, started an animated conversation. Bishop suddenly hit Barron in the face, and Barron fell back onto a desk.

Patrick Harris, assistant secretary of the Senate, said he saw Bishop hit Barron and quickly grabbed Bishop and pulled him back.

Bishop in an interview later said Barron called him a s…o…b, so he hit Barron in the face.

“If he calls me that again, it’ll happen again,” Bishop said.

Barron was not immediately available for comment.

**Update 4:15**
I just confirmed that APTV has video of the fight and will be airing the altercation tonight at 10:30 on Capital Journal. I will try and get that video online as soon as it is aired tonight.

**Update 5:55**
WSFA now has video online of the video before APT

**Update 6:30**
Drudge Report now has the Story

**Update 9:45**
Speech from Sen. Bishop’s Explanation (note its not an apology) from Danny

It’s been an interesting afternoon. First thing I did when I left the floor was say I’m not proud of what I did… But when he called me a s.o.b… when you bring my mother into it, she is my mother…

Yes, I’m going to walk out this afternoon… I don’t want my colleagues to vote on this. But when I come back, when I come back, if you call my mother, if you call me a s.o.b…

I told Sen. Hank Sanders over there that I would not have made it if I was black. They would have hung me…

Am I ashamed of it? Yes. Am I going to apologize? No. This should have happened somewhere else.

There are other things going on here that the press does not know about… We have a responsibility not to lie to one another.

I agree with everything I heard. It should not have happened in here.

I’m going home. Y’all have a good day.

I have decided to throw my support fully behind former Senator Fred Thompson. I believe his poise, determination, and beliefs are what the United States needs in a President. Unlike the other candidates, Thompson also gives the Republicans the best opportunity to keep the White House in 2008.

There have been many things on Fred Thompson posted on the Internet. Most notably his YouTube response to Michael Moore. Also on YouTube you will find his reactions to 9/11.

There are two specific peice out there that I have read that influenced my decision greatly. One is a piece written by John Fund in the Wall Street Journal Opinion section. The second is a post made by John Turk, who explains why he is behind Fred Thompson. I encourage you to read both and come be a part of the Fred Thompson Team.

This morning I had the opportunity to participate in a bloggers conference call with Presidential candidate and former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee. He took about 6 questions in the 30 minutes we had with him, and I was fortunate enough to have the first question. Below is my summary on the questions and answers from the former Governor. I know they might not be perfect (for those that listened on the conference call), but it was the best I could.

Question 1 (From Jeff Vreeland @ PoliticsinAlabama.Com): Governor can you expand on your ideas for improving on education in the United States as well as your feelings on the No Child Left Behind Act?

Answer 1: Education is still the primary responsibility of the state. The No Child Left Behind Act is a great idea that empowers states to do better. It allows the state to set the bar and the state is in control. I am in favor of testing and believe we need to improve the teacher’s pay and benefits. We also need to focus on “what teachers are teaching, not just what kids are learning.” I believe that the study of Music will help improve all aspects of test scores.

Question 2 (Did not Grab Name?): How do you plan on bringing Education to the National Debate?

Answer 2: We will continue to talk about education when we are visiting people throughout the United States. Every stop we make people are talking about education, it is just a shame that it is not being discussed on the national debates.

Question 3 (Robert @ Redstate): Sen. McCain stood out on immigration in last nights debate, will this stance ultimately be the fall of McCain? Also, can the bill be fixed?

Answer 3: I do not think it will be the end of McCain as he takes a stand on issues and will move forward on them, not backing down in the least bit. I respect him for this. I agreed with Duncan Hunter’s stance on Border Security. In regards to the fixing the billing, I believe we need to “keep working on the bill” as it is a work in progress.

Question 4 (Brandon @ NewMexicoForHuckabee): Can energy independence be done the way you have proposed in 10 years (this question was very detailed on the makeup of nuclear energy and was way over my head, and for that matter the Governor’s as well)?

Answer 4: We do not need to be dependent on people who are not our friends for energy sources.

Question 5 (Luke Baker @ Christian Conservative): Did the Iraq War cause the turmoil for Republicans in 2006?

Answer 5: Yes it was obvious it was a factor, but other things played into it like Hurrican Katrina, the arrogance and detachment of the Republicans as well.

Question 6 (David @ LoneStarTime): The current healthcare system puts the burden on for-profit hospitals, how can this be corrected?

Answer 6: We need to change the culture of hospitals from disease driven to healthcare driven. I have been a supporter of the FairTax as I believe it will help correct this problem, among others, as it grabs the underground economy.

I was happy to hear the final answer that Gov. Huckabee gave in which he stated he was in support of the FairTax. This support I believe will stir up some support from the very loyal FairTax followers. It should at least land him an interview on the Neal Boortz show.

Overall the conference call was very beneficial and I am looking forward to participating in them (hopefully with other candidates) in the future.

**UPDATE**

• Bluey(Robert I assume) from RedState has posted his write up of his question on this mornings conference call.
• Luke Baker has his post up on Christian Conservative
• Michigan Redneck also has writeup and commentary up on the conference call.

Usually this is question comes up in every legislative session although not as prominently in this mainly because the lack of work in the Senate denied any opportunity for some real debates on judicial elections in Alabama.

Full disclosure here:  I personally support the current method of electing judges in Alabama so while I will try to have a balanced blog here I do have my biased opinion.

The Alabama Bar Association, which I am a member of, is pushing for either non-partisan elections or appointment of appellate judges with the opportunity to vote every six years on whether or not the judge should be retained.  Yes, I am a rare breed, a Republican lawyer in the legislature (currently there are three of us in the House.)

A couple of Democrat lawmakers have introduced bills to change the way we select our appellate judges.  I find this funny because in the past it was always Republicans who introduced these same bills.  Of course Democrats used to control all the appellate judgeships in Alabama and now Republicans have a virtual lock on these seats.  As the old adage goes- it depends on what side of the field you are sitting on as to how fair you think the game is being played.

In a recent report released by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Alabama was ranked 47th in judicial fairness.  Two big issues in this report helped Alabama receive this dubious honor. First, Alabama’s judges were deemed to be some of the least competent in the country.  The second factor was the fairness of Alabama’s juries was called “the worst in the country.” Again, I guess it depends on what side of the field you are sitting on that determines what is fair. While proponents often mention this ranking as evidence of the need for changing how we select judges, it wouldn’t matter how we selected judges because that would have no impact on a jury’s fairness.

Finally, I have heard several arguments that the court is bought and paid for. Both sides spend enormous sums of money “buying” their candidate, is the common statement made. Where was the most expensive Supreme Court race in the country last year? Georgia, which hold non-partisan judicial elections.

This debate has two sides and a lot of ammunition for both.  I hope to hear from some of you on it.

As we sit here debating bills in the House we can watch on our lap top what bills are being debated in the Alabama Senate. They just passed the changes on the February 5th Presidential Primary Election bill that will allow Alabama to actually begin voting early for the February 5th primary. While we still will not stand out on the February 5th election it will allow us to have a slight leg up.

The Senate has also passed the Education Bond Issue and the House is now voting on it to send on the Governor.

A host of other bills are now being sent out of the Senate for final passage. You have to be on your toes during times like this because so many changes are being made right now that if you are not careful you can end up on the wrong side of a bad law.

It is amazing how quickly things are moving now. It kind of reminds me of the kid who knows he has a final exam coming up but refuses to study in the weeks leading up to it. Instead he crams for the exam the night before. Unfortunately we are the same way in the Montgomery.

Our conversation began with me asking the Congressman what he thought are the most important issues facing Alabama. He answered that healthcare and education are our biggest problems. Representative Davis went on to discuss the great growth of jobs in Alabama. He believes we are at a limit on the growth of the automobile industry within Alabama. He feels that we need to look more toward the biotechnology industry and capitalize on UAB’s growth.

I asked Representative Davis if he was in favor of Amendment 1 in next week’s vote. He said he was. I then proceeded to ask him about his feelings on the Alabama legislature and his feelings on the recent stalemate in the Alabama Senate. He stated that he agreed with what Lt. Governor Jim Folsom did in moving the budget through in the fashion in which he did. He felt it would allow movement in the Senate. He did not address the legality of the process that Folsom employed.

We then spoke about the pay raise that the legislature voted for itself at the start of the session, which Representative Davis agreed was a “major mistake” on the part of the legislature. Davis felt that there should have been a voice recorded vote on the pay raise, and while he agreed that there should be a pay raise, he agreed with the overwhelming majority of people who wanted a recorded vote.

This led us into a discussion about “double dipping” in which he stated he had “no problem with anyone working for a State entity and the legislature.” Representative Davis did state that he sees no reason why someone could not recuse themselves from voting on issues that would affect them personally.

The next series of questions I had for Representative Davis regarded his plans for the future. He made it quite clear that he had thought about running against Senator Jeff Sessions, but felt that the amount of time he would have to spend on running the race was much more then he wanted to devote. Representative Davis affirmed his desire to be a key player in the majority party in the House of Representatives. It was important to him to take part in that and he felt that he would not have time for this if he entered into a race against Senator Sessions. Davis did confirm his belief that AG Commissioner Ron Sparks is the best candidate to run against Sessions in 2008.

The conversation then moved to his intentions, which he made quite clear. Depending on what Senator Richard Shelby does in 2010 (i.e. runs for re-election or not), Representative Davis will either run for Governor of Alabama (if Shelby runs for re-election) or run for the US Senate (in the seat Shelby vacates). Representative Davis made it quite clear that while he enjoyed being a United States Representative he was in politics to change things for the better and, while he is making progress within the House, his ability to effect large change is hindered. He feels that a US Senator or a person in an executive position (Governor or President) can make the types of changes he wants to make.

Our conversation came to an end with Representative Davis talking about national issues. He reiterated his feeling that we need to withdrawal from Iraq and focus on what he considers the bigger issues of Iran and South Korea. We discussed the severity of the problems in the Department of Justice; he believes those problems will have no effect on Alabama politics in 2008. Representative Davis reaffirmed his position that a marriage act should be between a male and female. The last point we talked about was his support of Senator and Presidential candidate Barack Obama. He supports Obama whole heartily and quickly dismissed the notion of his being a possible VP candidate. He noted that Obama’s race for the presidency will be one that we look back on and see that it dismisses the notion of race in politics.

While I disagree with some of the things that Representative Davis and I spoke of I was honored he asked for us to meet. I assure that he will be running for Governor in 2010. Senator Shelby will be running once more and with Governor Riley be term limited, Davis will run for Governor.

I applauded his comments on the “major mistake” made by Alabama Democrats in the pay raise they voted for themselves. Looking back, I wish I would have asked him his thoughts on the legality of the budget being moved through by Lt. Governor Folsom.

The last comment I want to make about the interview is this. Representative Davis understands the game of politics better then most that I know, but the one thing he possess that I wish all politicians did was the ability to look past their egos, political affiliation, and personal hate towards others and focus on what is best for the citizens of Alabama.

In previous blogs I have mentioned the possibility of the flood gates opening in the Senate and bills could start passing.  Well I am not sure if it was actually the pressure of being so unproductive or if everyone just got plain tired of fighting but the log jam of bills has now been broken.  Like a dam holding back a lot of water, now that the wall is down a flood of legislative activity is likely to occur tomorrow and next Thursday, the final two days of the session.

I am always a bit of early worker during the session so I like to have my bills passed out of the House early where they usually sit for a while until something happens or not happens. The bad thing about that is you work like the devil to get your bills out of the House early only to have them sometimes sit in the Senate the rest of the session without any action being taken on them. That is very frustrating beyond comprehension. The good news with passing your bills that way is that if the Senate does get past whatever battle is going on then your bills are in a great position for passage if you have all the kinks worked out with it.

Of course with the dam broken and bills being passed left and right another interesting twist comes into play– sometimes you can actually pass TOO MUCH. Often as we get toward the end of the session in the House bills get passed that may not be that good but not a whole lot of effort is put into killing them because “of course it won’t make it through the Senate.” Well now anything is possible and over the next couple of days I imagine lobbyists in Montgomery will be working over time to pass and kill various measures in the Senate.

Without a doubt over the next couple of days there will be some big winners as a result of this session and some big losers. Almost every issue is on the table and has a chance.

One thing I wanted to do was give my readers an opportunity to submit questions that I will present to Representative Davis. Obviously I am not going to be able to get every question answered, but I will hopefully get a majority of them. So please, submit all questions via the comments and I will post Wednesday night exactly which questions I hope to ask.

A few weeks ago, I expressed my displeasure that HB510 requiring state elected officials, their spouses, or their children to post any state employment or contracts on the internet was buried by the Rules Chairman.

When this was brought to the attention of the Chairman of the Special Order Calendar Subcommittee Chairman, Neal Morrison he located the bill and called a special meeting of his subcommittee to get the bill on the calendar. Unfortunately, it was placed on the ten-minute calendar, which meant that any member could stop the bill.

When the bill was called, the BIR vote passed by a margin of 80-1. After BIR vote, Rep. Demetrius Newton went to the microphone and expressed his opposition to HB-510, referring to it as being “absurd”. Obviously, my definition of absurd is different than Rep. Newton’s. I thought Rep. Newton’s resolution to raise legislative pay 62%, indexed to inflation, was absurd. At least he killed my bill in public.

Requiring elected officials to report income obtained from the government they are elected to regulate is a concept whose time has come. In opposing Gov. Riley’s double-dipping ban, I have heard repeatedly, “Let the voters decide”. I agree with that statement, especially if they have the opportunity to make an informed decision.

It will be back.

Quite disappointing as this was a great bill that could have helped restore some trust in Montgomery.

With that said the House is now preparing for the last we can pass bills and still have a chance of the Senate passing them and then it becoming law. While the chances of a bill passed this Tuesday becoming law are about as likely as me winning the lottery there is still a theoretical possibility.

On Tuesday the House will have a 10 minute calendar.  This special order calendar is commonly referred to as the “baseball calendar.” Everyone gets a chance at bat. The way it works is like this, every bill on the calendar has 10 minutes to be passed by the House, if it cannot be passed in 10 minutes then the sponsor must carry the bill and we go to the next bill on the list. These are usually non-controversial bills and offer every members of taking home at least a small victory for the legislative session.

 Every session there is one day set aside for playing baseball in the House and Senate. Since the Senate has finally come together for some action they don’t have time for baseball this session. They will be busy dealing with flood of bills that have built up from the House most of this session.

Currently there are 40 bills on the baseball calendar for Tuesday.