Good morning!

Here’s your Daily News for Monday, January 31.

1. Inside Alabama Politics

• Sifting through the long list of qualified candidates up and down the ballot;
• Some last minute surprises on qualifying day;
• Implications from monster court ruling on redistricting;
• Dust up over Auburn trustee appointment leads to lion tweet;
• What will the Durant story fallout be?
• Potpourri

2. Some small towns forego ARPA funds

• The American Rescue Plan Act sent more than $2 billion to the state of Alabama and hundreds of millions directly to counties and cities based on their population sizes.
• But some of the state’s tiniest municipalities have declined the federal COVID-19 relief funding. According to the Alabama Department of Finance, which is in charge of doling out the money from the U.S. Treasury to most municipalities, 18 towns declined the funds, ranging from a few thousand dollars to about $147,000. Another five didn’t respond to the department, forfeiting their allocations.
• “What we’ve heard from those smaller municipalities was when the original rules came out for use — broadband, drinking water, wastewater infrastructure — those communities did not have anything within those three spaces that they could use the money for,” said Greg Cochran, executive director of the Alabama League of Municipalities. “And they were concerned that there wouldn’t be other opportunities to utilize the funds. So they decided to forfeit them.”
• Read more from Mary Sell HERE.

3. Judge to hear suit over Confederate memorial in Tuskegee

• A Macon County judge is scheduled to consider arguments this week in a legal fight over a Confederate monument that has stood for 116 years in mostly black Tuskegee.
• Circuit Judge Steven Perryman has set a hearing for Thursday in a lawsuit filed on behalf of Macon County and some residents against the local and state chapters of the United Daughters of the Confederacy, which erected scores of rebel monuments across the South in the early 1900s.
• The lawsuit, filed by civil rights attorney Fred Gray, argues that Macon County wrongfully gave a square to the Confederate group for the statue and a segregated, whites-only park in 1906. A decision in favor of the county could lead to removal of the monument, which features a statue of a Confederate soldier and has been the subject of on-and-off protests for decades.
• But the United Daughters of the Confederacy contends it owns the 2-acre square legally, and the land is open to everyone. An attorney for the group said members want the monument to remain and have asked the judge to throw out the county’s lawsuit, which was filed last year.
• Read more HERE.

4. Trump dangles prospect of pardons for Jan. 6 defendants

• Former President Donald Trump is dangling the prospect of pardons for supporters who participated in the deadly Jan. 6 storming of the U.S. Capitol if he returns to the White House.
• “If I run and if I win, we will treat those people from January 6th fairly,” Trump said Saturday night during a rally in Conroe, Texas. “And if it requires pardons, we will give them pardons because they are being treated so unfairly.”
• The offer represents an attempt by Trump to further minimize the most significant attack on the seat of government since the War of 1812. Participants smashed through windows, assaulted police officers and sent lawmakers and congressional staff fleeing for their lives while trying to halt the peaceful transition of power and the certification of rival Joe Biden’s victory.
• More than 700 people have been arrested and charged with federal crimes in connection with the riot, marking the largest investigation in the Justice Department’s history. The tally includes more than 150 people charged with assaulting police officers, more than 50 charged with conspiracy, and charges of seditious conspiracy against the founder and leader of the far-right Oath Keepers militia group, and 10 other members or associates.
• More than 100 police officers were injured, some critically, after Trump supporters stormed the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, following a “Stop the Steal” rally by Trump near the White House in which he falsely claimed Biden had won election through massive voter fraud.
• Some analysis: this may seem on its face to be unwise politically, but here’s what it does: every other Republican candidate will now have to speak to the issue of pardoning January 6’ers, which will put most in an uncomfortable place since they want to appeal to the Trump base.
• Read more HERE.

5. Austin says Putin now has full range of options in Ukraine

• Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said Friday the buildup of Russian forces along Ukraine’s border has reached the point where President Vladimir Putin now has a complete range of military options, including actions short of a full-scale invasion.
• “While we don’t believe that President Putin has made a final decision to use these forces against Ukraine, he clearly now has the capability,” Austin told a Pentagon news conference.
• In Moscow, the Kremlin said Putin told French President Emmanuel Macron that the West has failed to take Russian security concerns into account, and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov told a radio interviewer that Russia doesn’t want war but sees no room for compromise on its demands.
• “We remain focused on Russian disinformation, including the potential creation of pretext for further invasion or strikes on Donbas,” said Austin. “This is straight out of the Russian playbook. They’re not fooling us.”
• Read more HERE.

A message from the

Alabama Port Authority

• The Alabama Port Authority has unveiled its new website and a harmonious family of new brandmarks aimed at highlighting the capabilities and connectivity at one of the nation’s largest deep-water seaports.

• We are embarking on telling the story of the Port of Mobile to a wide audience – locally and statewide, but also nationally and internationally.

• Learn more HERE.

Headlines

ALABAMA DAILY NEWS – Inside Alabama Politics – January 31, 2022

ALABAMA DAILY NEWS – Some of Alabama’s smallest municipalities pass on ARPA funds

ALABAMA DAILY NEWS – Judge to hear suit over Confederate memorial in Tuskegee

ALABAMA DAILY NEWS – Trump dangles prospect of pardons for Jan. 6 defendants

ALABAMA DAILY NEWS – Austin says Putin now has full range of options in Ukraine

ALABAMA DAILY NEWS – Marsh bringing ‘mother of all school choice bills’

ALABAMA DAILY NEWS – Alabama appeals to Supreme Court in redistricting fight

ALABAMA DAILY NEWS – Roy Moore’s wife says accusations have upended their life

ALABAMA DAILY NEWS – Intermodal shipping facility planned near Montgomery

AL.COM – Where are the Alabama Democrats? 2022 election shaping up as ‘grim’ reality for party

AL.COM – Lindsey Graham on Trump potentially pardoning Jan. 6 rioters: ‘I think it’s inappropriate’

AL.COM – Jo Bonner: A Q&A with the University of South Alabama’s new president

AL.COM – An Ocean in My Bones:’ Africatown drama taking shape

Montgomery Advertiser – Man charged in overnight shooting of Elmore County Sheriff’s deputy

Montgomery Advertiser – South Korean interns working with Pike Road Schools

Decatur Daily – Making a Difference: Moulton teen brings attention to drug crisis

Decatur Daily – Eastwood students collect 530 boxes of cereal for CCC

Decatur Daily – Sewer used as tool for Decatur growth, but many residents on septic

Times Daily – Lifelong friendships were milestone of championship season

Times Daily – Artist displays work from ‘Past 30 Years’

Times Daily – NW Ala. Cooperative District, TVA begin reservation infrastructure discussions

Anniston Star – Oxford’s Chief Sparks released from hospital

Anniston Star – Grand opening marks debut of Hobson City Grocery

Anniston Star – Founder of Heritage Festival organizes 42nd celebration

WBRC Fox 6 Birmingham – Community Action Agency of Northeast Alabama continuing Jefferson County LIHEAP grants; accepting new applications

WBRC Fox 6 Birmingham – Alabama considering alcohol sales at Coleman Coliseum

WBRC Fox 6 Birmingham – Police identify Hoover homicide victim, suspect is in custody

Tuscaloosa News – Fiddle Fest will bring top bluegrass musicians to Tuscaloosa

YellowHammer News – Katie Britt: Claim Trump Alabama federal court judicial appointees ‘liberal, activists’ is ‘simply Mo Brooks’ latest half-cocked episode’

YellowHammer News – State Sen. Givhan questions ‘indiscriminate’ ARPA funds for rural hospitals, multimillion allocations for Chelsea, Troy sewer systems

YellowHammer News – Senate Majority Ldr Scofield downplays immediate congressional redistricting effort — ‘We’re going to let the court process play out’

Gadsden Times – Low-income heating assistance available, applications can be submitted starting Tuesday

Gadsden Times – Coming soon: Five things on Gadsden City Council’s to-do list

Gadsden Times – PET OF THE WEEK: Chipmunk likes attention, seeks home

Dothan Eagle – Growth slows at end of 2021 in 19 countries that use euro

Dothan Eagle – UK government says Prime Minister Boris Johnson has received report from investigation into lockdown-breaching parties.

Dothan Eagle – Eriksen set for playing return after signing for Brentford

Opelika-Auburn News – Boris Johnson tries to change subject from ‘partygate’ woes

WSFA Montgomery – National Train Your Dog Month stresses teaching good manners, socialization

WSFA Montgomery – UPDATE: Arrest has been made in early morning Daleville shooting

WSFA Montgomery – Man charged after officer-involved shooting in Elmore County

WAFF Huntsville – Sheriff’s office make cheeky post looking for alleged speeder

WAFF Huntsville – Multi-agency police chase leads to the arrest of two

WAFF Huntsville – Take an art tour of Huntsville homes

WKRG Mobile – TRAFFIC ALERT: Truck stuck in Bankhead Tunnel, all lanes blocked

WKRG Mobile – Couple stranded in Mexico for 1 month return to U.S.

WKRG Mobile – Federal prosecutors reach plea agreement with two of the men charged in Ahmaud Arbery’s murder

WTVY Dothan – Dothan woman charged with killing unborn child

WTVY Dothan – One person critically injured after shooting Daleville

WTVY Dothan – Annual homeless count conducted in Dothan

WASHINGTON POST – Rents are up 40 percent in some cities, forcing millions to find another place to live

WASHINGTON POST – Ukraine’s Zelensky’s message is don’t panic. That’s making the West antsy.

WASHINGTON POST – Trump’s Texas trip illustrates his upsides and downsides for Republicans and their midterm hopes

NEW YORK TIMES – Covid Live Updates: U.S. Governors Say It’s Time to Learn to Live With the Virus as Omicron Recedes

NEW YORK TIMES – To-Go Drinks Had Plenty of Fans in New York. Just Not the Right Ones.

NEW YORK TIMES – Live Updates: Russia and U.S. to Face Off at U.N. as Ukraine Standoff Continues

WALL STREET JOURNAL – Stock Futures Waver on Final Day of Tumultuous Month

WALL STREET JOURNAL – Joe Rogan Apologizes, Spotify Publishes Content Policy in Response to Neil Young Outcry

WALL STREET JOURNAL – Elliott and Vista Near Deal to Buy Citrix Systems

Front Pages (images link to newspaper websites, which you should visit and patronize)