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Our Opinion
We recommend Bob Riley's reelection as governor. The Republican incumbent has done a good job. The state's economy is flourishing, unemployment is at an all-time low, our image has improved around the country-around the world even-and there has been no hint of scandal. The governor maybe shouldn't get credit for everything positive but he deserves good marks for a lot of the good that has happened. We do not dislike Lt. Gov. Lucy Baxley. She has been a good state leader for years, but with Riley doing a good job and things going so well, we don't need to make any changes this year.
Folsom for lieutenant governor Jim Folsom is our pick for lieutenant governor. Folsom, the Democrat, worked well with the State Senate when he was lieutenant governor previously. He also did a good job in the short period he was governor after Gov. Guy Hunt was removed from office. Alabama's automobile manufacturing industry successes started when he was governor with the landing of Mercedes at Vance. Republican Luther Strange is an effective lobbyist but seems a bit too beholden to the GOP and big business to suit our taste.
Cobb for chief justice If you want someone with judicial experience and a good judicial temperament, vote for Judge Sue Bell Cobb, the Democratic candidate, for chief justice of the Alabama Supreme Court. Judge Cobb is from Conecuh County. She started out as a district judge there 25 years ago. She's been an appellate judge on the Court of Criminal Appeals for 11 years. Incumbent Republican Drayton Nabers was appointed to the position when Roy Moore was removed from office. He was an executive with a Birmingham insurance company for over two decades. He has never been a judge and has not publicly practiced law in years.
State court picks Three of the eight associate justice seats on the Alabama Supreme Court are on the ballot. For Place 1, we will vote for the incumbent, Republican Tom Woodall. For Place 2, we favor the Democrat, Albert L. "Al" Johnson, mostly because of his stand for limiting political action committee (PAC) spending on judicial races and his support of the bipartisan election of judges. For Place 3, we support the return of John H. England Jr., a Democrat, to the high court. England has over 11 years experience as a circuit judge and a supreme court justice and practiced civil and criminal law for 19 years before that. Three seats on the Alabama Court of Civil Appeals are on the ballot. For Place 1, we favor Democrat Ray Vaughan. For Place 2, the incumbent, Republican Craig Pittman is the best pick. The Democrat, Jim McFerrin, will get our vote for the Place 3 seat. For the Court of Criminal Appeals, we will vote for Aubrey Ford Jr. in Place 1, Claude E. Patton in Place 2 and Sam Welch in Place 3. Welch is from neighboring Monroe County and has been a solid circuit judge for years there.
Tyson for attorney general The attorney general for the State of Alabama needs to be a good prosecutor. The Democratic candidate, John Tyson, the district attorney for Mobile County, the second largest judicial circuit in the state, has a solid record prosecuting cases. He's also offered some interesting programs to help children and families. Perhaps that is reflective of the years he served on the state school board. The incumbent, Republican Troy King, has done a good job in some areas-toughening child sex offender laws and championing an updated open meetings law are two that come to mind. But he doesn't have the experience in the judicial arena that Tyson does and that is why we recommend a vote for the Democrat.
Chapman for secretary of state Nancy Worley has been a disappointment and a disaster as secretary of state. Right off the bat after taking office in 2003, the Democrat made headlines by insisting on a larger vehicle for herself at a cost of $7,800 more to taxpayers. That may have been a little thing. Her biggest failures have been in implementing federal voting provisions. One of the major duties of the office is to deal with election issues and voter registration. Time after time she has failed to meet what should be routine deadlines for the implementation of new voting procedures. Most recently she missed the deadline for starting a statewide voter registration program and Gov. Riley was given the task. She has been unable or unwilling to work with voter registrars in the counties and also has trouble working with people in her own office. State Auditor Beth Chapman, the Republican, is seeking the office and deserves it. She has done a competent job as auditor, performing property audits efficiently and in a timely manner. She may not have garnered a lot of headlines in four years but that, maybe, is to her credit when compared to Worley! Vote for Beth Chapman.
Ivey for state treasurer State Treasurer Kay Ivey has done a good job and the deserves a second term. The Wilcox County native has a stellar record of performance in state government having worked in various offices during Gov. Fob James' administration in the 1980s, as reading clerk for the Alabama House of Representatives, and for the Alabama Commission on Higher Education for 13 years before being elected treasurer in 2002. She was in banking before all of this and that career gave her experience to help better manage the state's money as treasurer. She has also worked to improve the state's college savings plan and to make the unclaimed property law more efficient. Kay Ivey, the Republican, is a dedicated public servant and deserves a second term.
Sparks for ag commissioner The commissioner of agriculture and industries may not be high on many Alabamian's radar screens but farmers and timbermen in rural Alabama know its importance. Much of what they produce goes to markets outside of Alabama, even outside of the United States. Ron Sparks, the incumbent Democrat, knows this and appreciates it. He sees the need for his office to promote Alabama's products to a global market. He has successfully expanded trade with Cuba, despite the barriers of a misguided national policy on the matter. The Port of Mobile is only two days by ship from Cuba-less than a shipment to some areas of our own country. We need to pursue this market-and Cubans desperately need the products we can offer. Sparks has promoted an animal identification program to help keep track of cattle and other livestock entering the food supply chain. The recent threats of mad cow and other diseases as well as the potential for terrorism necessitate such a program. The Republican, Albert Lipscomb, a former legislator and current Baldwin County commissioner, doesn't share many of these global views. We don't need an introverted-looking ag commissioner. Keep Ron Sparks on the job.
Parker and Rice for PSC The Alabama Public Service Commission probably has one of the most direct, immediate affects on Alabamians' pocketbooks as any agency of state government. It regulates public utilities, including the rates they charge. Two of the three PSC seats are up for election this year. For Place 1, we recommend John Rice, the Republican, over incumbent Democrat Jan Cook. For Place 2, we favor Democrat Susan Parker over Republican Perry Hooper Jr. Cook has been in office a long time and always is reelected by big margins despite a proven record of poor work habits. She also is beholden to the very utilities that she is supposed to regulate, according to campaign disclosure forms. Susan Parker is a former state auditor who did a good job in that post. Both she and Rice promise to represent the needs of consumers but to recognize that the utilities must operate sound businesses too.
Keahey for state representative Marc Keahey, the Democrat, can best represent our area in the Alabama House of Representatives. Keahey is a young family man of good intelligence who understands the needs of District 65-portions of Choctaw and Clarke counties and all of Washington County. The incumbent, Nick Williams, was elected in a fluke special election last year that saw the vote split three ways because of an effective write-in campaign by Wayne Lathan. Williams became the first Republican to represent this area in the Legislature. However, in the three-way race he polled only 38 percent of a dismal 26 percent turnout in the district. Williams has not been an effective legislator. He has focused too much on far right-sometimes radical-agendas, often to the detriment of local needs, such as economic development efforts and community needs. He is not in touch with the House Democratic leadership and often even appears to be out of step with the mainstream Republican thinking in the House. Marc Keahey has a genuine desire to work with everyone in the district and with fellow legislators of both parties for the betterment of Alabama and of our part of the state.
Lindsey for state senate Four years ago we thought Thomasville Mayor Sheldon Day the best candidate to represent District 22 in the State Senate and we endorsed him over incumbent Pat Lindsey. We had no quarrels with Lindsey; we just thought Day would be a good senator. Day lost, however, and now Sen. Lindsey is seeking a fourth consecutive term (he served two previously, in the 1960s-70s). We think the Butler Democrat is more in tune to the district-especially our portion of the district, its people and its needs than his opponent, John McMillan, a good man, but who only recently returned to his native Baldwin County after years of living in Montgomery to run as a Republican to try and give that political party a leg up in the senate. We will vote for Lindsey's reelection.
Bonner for congressman Jo Bonner is a remarkable congressman. He puts on no airs, has no pretensions and is genuinely interested in representing the First Congressional District and its constituents. Perhaps because he worked in Washington, D.C. for so long for the previous congressman, Sonny Callahan, Bonner is not enthralled by the D.C. scene. In fact, he will tell you that his home is in Mobile, where his wife and two children live, and his office is in Washington. He comes home almost every weekend. He not only lives in the district, he connects with it. He holds town meetings throughout the district regularly and makes other public events too. His record of service to his constituents is unmatched by many congressmen. To illustrate: The U.S. Veterans Administration was reportedly surprised one day when he showed up in person to check on a constituent's request. The vets bureaucrat said the agency had never had a congressman to visit personally on the behalf of a veteran. Congressman Bonner does a great job for the district. We do not always like some of the Republican's strict adherences to the Bush administration or the GOP House leadership's policies but because of his unfailing devotion to his district and its needs, we will vote for his reelection.
About the amendments Amendment 1 would allow the City of Prichard to establish a special Alabama Foreign Trade Investment Zone in an effort to boost the city's economy. It will not affect any other parts of Alabama but because of a quirk in our 1901 constitution, it must be voted on statewide. Leave it blank and let Prichard decide the issue. Amendment 2 would require all 131 school districts in the state to collect a minimum of 10 mills of property taxes for their schools. Clarke County's system and Thomasville's city system already collect that much or more. The current law allows that much "or their equivalent" in other taxes, such as sales taxes. But other taxes are not as stable and reliable as property taxes and have caused problems for some systems. Some may view this as local issues that the affected localities should decide. But because Alabama's education system impacts all of us-favorably or unfavorably, we are for doing whatever needs to be done to improve education statewide and to require local support for local systems. Vote "Yes." Amendment 3 would let Macon County make changes to its elected Board of Education. Again, blame the antiquated constitution. Why is the rest of Alabama even called on to consider this? We need constitutional reform! Let Macon County decide their local issues. **** These endorsements are merely suggestions. Everyone has the right to vote as they see fit but we do urge you to study the candidates and the issues and cast an informed ballot. Don't decide based on the misleading TV ads or direct mail pieces that flood your mailbox! We also have not endorsed local candidates. We probably should, but we believe the voters know these people as well as we do. But please vote on qualifications and not personalities! The main thing is, go vote Tuesday, Nov. 7.
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