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Daily News Digest – July 10, 2018

Good morning! Good news: all the Thai boys have been safely rescued from the cave. Here’s your Daily News for Tuesday, July 10, 2018.

1. It’s Kavanaugh.

Last night, President Trump nominated Brett Kavanaugh to the Supreme Court.

If confirmed, Kavanaugh could solidify a conservative tilt on the high court for decades.

Who’s Kavanuagh?

  • He’s a Bushie. He worked as legal counsel in the George W. Bush White House and participated in many of the conservative legal battles of the 1990s-2000s.
  • He’s a Yalie. He went to Yale for undergrad and law school.
  • He’s on the DC Circuit. One of the surest paths to a Supreme Court nomination is service on the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals. Chief Justice John Roberts, and Associate Justices Clarence Thomas and Ruth Bader Ginsburg are also alumni of the D.C. Circuit.

Will he be confirmed?

  • Yeah, probably.
  • Liberals are fiercely opposing Kavanaugh, just as they would any Trump nominee. Hyperbolic claims that people will “literally die” because of this have already started.
  • This won’t be decided by conservatives or liberals, though. It will be moderates.
  • It basically comes down to three factors: 1- will Murkowski and Collins go along with the GOP; 2- Will McCain be in DC to cast a vote given his convalescence; and 3- Will red state Dems (Jones, Manchin, Heitkamp, Donnelly) support the nomination.
  • Read more: Where Kavanaugh might fit on the Supreme Court.

2. King accuses Marshall of taking PAC transfers.

  • Troy King filed a complaint Monday against opponent Attorney General Steve Marshall claiming the donations he is getting from the Republican Attorneys General Association (RAGA) aren’t ethical.
  • A lawyer for RAGA called the complaint a “desperate ploy of a flailing campaign.”
  • King is making the case that because RAGA takes money from other PACs and donates it to candidates, it amounts to a PAC-to-PAC transfer, which Alabama banned in 2010.
  • But RAGA is a federal PAC, not a state one. If what they’re doing is wrong, a lot of other federal PACs would be in the wrong.
  • Ethics Commission Tom Albritton had this to say:

“Our commission has not formally determined the substantive issues here, but practitioners and the secretary of state’s office have said that it does not violate any laws.”

  • So, this probably isn’t going anywhere. My guess is it is mostly meant to grab a headline, which, you’re welcome.
  • Read the full story HERE.

A message from Troy University

  • When one of their own began his battle against Hodgkin’s disease, the members of TROY’s FarmHouse Fraternity chapter resolved that they would not rest until a cure was found for the blood-borne cancer.
  • Learn more about their amazing work and how it helps make the TROY family so special HERE.

3. Ad rundown. 

  • The July 17 primary runoff election hasn’t produced nearly the volume of campaign ads that we saw leading up to the June 5 primary.
  • Still, the big races have major ad buys with hard-hitting spots, so it’s worth a look at who is running what.
  • I put together a rundown of all the ads I could find for statewide candidates, including some that weren’t exactly on YouTube.
  • There’s Lieutenant Governor, Attorney General, Congress, Supreme Court, Court of Criminal Appeals, and Court of Civil Appeals.
  • Check them all out HERE.
  • Is there an ad running that I don’t have here? Email it to me at [email protected].

4. Trial continues. 

  • The Oliver Robinson bribery trial continues this week at the federal courthouse in Birmingham.
  • The way this trial seems to touch so many people is even making AL.com writers uncomfortable.
  • One interesting exchange from yesterday came when Vernon Barnett, who formerly worked as counsel for the Alabama Department of Environmental Management (ADEM), testified that ADEM Director Lance LeFleur was “very angry” when Gov. Robert Bentley and outside lawyers wanted him to be more aggressive in opposing the expansion of the superfund site.

From Ivana Hrynkiw’s courtroom report:

An advisor to the former Alabama Department of Environmental Management director said Monday that when the department received a letter from then-Gov. Robert Bentley asking them to oppose the Birmingham Superfund site listing, the director was furious.

Read the full story HERE.

5. Canfield makes case against tariffs.

  • Alabama Secretary of Commerce Greg Canfield went on Fox Business yesterday to explain how and why President Trump’s tariffs could have an adverse effect on Alabama, particularly our auto industry.
  • Here’s an excerpt from “Varney and Company”:

“We end up exporting about $10.9 billion worth of value in vehicles to 88 countries across the globe. So we’re concerned that a tariff war, or even if we want to call it a tariff skirmish, potentially can cause disruptions in terms of the supply chain.”

Watch Canfield’s full interview HERE.

Headlines.

ALABAMA DAILY NEWS – UPDATED: Primary runoff ad rundown. 

ALABAMA DAILY NEWS – King files ethics complaint against Marshall

ALABAMA DAILY NEWS – GOP senator warns against trusting Putin ‘mafia’

ALABAMA DAILY NEWS –  US consumer borrowing up $24 billion in May

ALABAMA DAILY NEWS –  Trump’s tariffs: what they are and how they will work

ALABAMA DAILY NEWS – Trump enjoys ‘suspense’ ahead of Supreme Court announcement

WSFA – Former CAVHCS neurologist speaks out after he says he was fired for refusing orders to manipulate patient records

MONTGOMERY ADVERTISER – The girls are strong: Surviving sisters in murder-suicide recovering as new details emerge

MONTGOMERY ADVERTISER – A park in squalor and the bishop who wants more for the neighborhood.

MONTGOMERY ADVERTISER – Two years after sentencing, Hubbard appeal still pending in state court.

DOTHAN EAGLE – Alabama Republican officials applaud Brett Kavanaugh Supreme Court nomination.

DOTHAN EAGLE – 5,700 reasons to polish up your résumés.

TUSCALOOSA NEWS – County schools seeing a rise in health issues.

GADSDEN TIMES – What should be done about students’ ‘terrorist threats?’

YELLOWHAMMER NEWS – OUCH: Alabama ranked one of the worst states in the country to start a business.

FOX BUSINESS – Trump tariffs threaten Alabama’s auto industry.

ALABAMA POLITICAL REPORTER – Columnist Josh Moon:  Are Republicans and Democrats all the same?

AL.COM – DUI penalties rise today in Alabama, interlock required on second offense.

AL.COM – Doug Jones vows ‘independent review’ of Brett Kavanaugh.

AL.COM – Bradley Byrne to Doug Jones: ‘Do the right thing’ and ‘support’ Trump’s court pick.

AL.COM – Poorest zip code in Alabama.

AL.COM – DC BLOX announces $785 million Birmingham data center.

AL.COM – Bribery trial: Witness says ADEM director yelled at Balch lawyer, Drummond VP.

AL.COM – Troy King files ethics complaint over AG Steve Marshall contributions.

AL.COM – UAH President Robert Altenkirch announces retirement.

AL.COM – Federal judge: All parties in Gardendale case must read book on race by NFL tight end.

AL.COM – Columnist Kyle Whitmire:  This Alabama corruption trial is haunted.

AL.COM – Shipt could hire 881 as part of Birmingham expansion.

AL.COM – What does Boeing-Embraer deal mean for Alabama?

AL.COM – Contributor Jim Byard:  An easy fix for Alabama’s infrastructure and economic development needs.

WASHINGTON POST – Brett Kavanaugh is nominated by Trump to succeed Supreme Court Justice Anthony M. Kennedy.

WASHINGTON POST – A more conservative Supreme Court could step, not lurch, to the right.

WASHINGTON POST – More than 50 separated children to be reunited with parents Tuesday.

NEW YORK TIMES – Why Was a Citizenship Question Put on the Census? ‘Bad Faith,’ a Judge Suggests

NEW YORK TIMES – GOP Senator Warns Against Trusting Putin ‘Mafia’

Front pages (Images link to newspaper websites, which you should visit and patronize)

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