Good morning! Here’s your Daily News for July 9, 2018.
1. Who will Trump pick?
Here we go
- President Trump is set to announce his nominee for the Supreme Court at 8:00 Central tonight.
- Who will it be? Not Judge Smails, sadly.
- Trump yesterday referenced how any of the “four people” would do a great job. Which four are they?
- Probably: Brett Kavanaugh, Raymond Kethledge, Amy Coney Barrett and Thomas Hardiman – each appeals court judges in different circuits.
Of note
- Hardiman served with Trump’s sister on the 3rd Circuit, and the president was said to be giving him a second look in the final days.
- Kethledge is emerging as the choice of many originalist/libertarian leaning conservatives. That includes Quin Hillyer, who wrote about it for the Examiner.
- Barrett is the choice of many social conservatives for her stated views on abortion law. But, that may also work against her considering moderate votes are needed to confirm.
- Kavanaugh was the early favorite and seen as the establishment choice, for better or worse.
Read more
2. There’s this election.
- Time for Alabama voters to wake up and smell the coffee.
- We have an election in eight days, and hardly anyone seems to be paying attention.
- I’ve heard from several campaigns that their biggest challenge is overcoming voter apathy toward this runoff election.
- I wrote about that a little in my column this week, plus some basic state-of-play commentary with one week to go. Read that HERE.
Ainsworth cries foul
- Lt. Governor candidate Will Ainsworth isn’t happy about the latest ad opponent Twinkle Cavanaugh is running against him.
- The ad brings up Ainsworth’s arrest record, which amounts to getting caught stealing tiger statues while at Auburn and a boating citation.
- Ainsworth says the ad is “false, misleading and malicious,” making a college prank seem like high crimes.
- Read Will Whatley’s story on it, which features the ad and Ainsworth’s explanations.
3. Tragedy in Wetumpka.
- An Elmore County man murdered his wife and one of his four daughters, then set their house on fire before killing himself.
- It appears the man, Bob Orsi, attempted to kill the whole family, which includes a 13-year old daughter and 12 year-old triplet daughters. The 13 year old escaped unharmed, while the other two triplets were shot but survived and are now in the hospital. one of the triplets was shot and killed.
- The wife, Charlene Orsi, reportedly filed for divorce a little over a week ago.
- Read more about this harrowing story from WSFA”s Jenn Oravet and Samantha Day.
4. Canary departs Business Council.
- Billy Canary, CEO of the Business Council of Alabama, announced his departure Friday from the state’s premiere business advocacy organization after 15 years at the helm.
- Canary is taking a position as senior fellow at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.
- The groups are closely intertwined as BCA is the Alabama state affiliate for the U.S. Chamber.
- Canary’s exit comes after a handful of high-profile companies, including Alabama Power, Blue Cross and Blue Shield, and Regions Bank, withdrew their BCA memberships and publicly aired their disagreements with the organization’s leadership.
- BCA is one of the most active and influential political groups in the state. The organization pools the resources of the business community to contribute toward pro-business candidates in election years, then lobbies for pro-business policies in the Legislature.
- The CEO position is a plum job in Alabama politics. Canary’s Chief of Staff and VP for Governmental Affairs Mark Colson will assume the duties while a search goes forward.
- Read more HERE.
5. News Briefs.
Economy still gangbusters
- Jobs are up: the U.S. economy added more than 213,000 jobs last month. And more people are re-entering the workforce.
- The trade deficit is down: the difference between what America sells and what it buys in foreign markets fell 6.6 percent to $43.1 billion. That’s the smallest imbalance in almost two years.
- All the growth underscores President Trump’s risky gamble with tariffs.
Shelby back from Russia; Trump heads to Europe
- Sen. Richard Shelby is back from Russia, where he led a congressional delegation last week.
- “The United States does not want, nor does it need, to resume a Cold War posture with Russia, and our delegation trip was a small step towards trying to ensure that does not happen,” Shelby said upon his return.
- Democrats were critical of the trip claiming it can be used for propaganda. I don’t know if this is propaganda, but clearly they think Shelby is a pretty big deal.
- President Trump is headed for northeast Europe on Tuesday. He’ll meet with Vladamir Putin in Finland, before meeting with NATO allied heads of state. He wants to get NATO countries to pay more for global security.
Certified teachers to earn more
- Teachers who become Board Certified are slated to earn $5,000 more in salary this coming school year.
- That’s thanks to funding the legislature set aside to encourage teachers to pursue the Board Certified distinction.
- There are also scholarships available to help those interested pay for the application process.
- Read Trisha Powell Crain’s story in AL.com.
Headlines.
ALABAMA DAILY NEWS – Ainsworth calls arrest accusations ‘false, misleading and malicious.’
ALABAMA DAILY NEWS – Todd Stacy: Home stretch: primary runoffs near finish line.
ALABAMA DAILY NEWS – A ‘Supreme’ show: Trump savors big reveal for court pick.
ALABAMA DAILY NEWS – Off to Europe: Trump to meet worried NATO heads, then Putin
ALABAMA DAILY NEWS – Trump’s economic gamble: Solid jobs gains vs. risky trade war
ALABAMA DAILY NEWS – Canary departs Business Council, takes U.S. Chamber post
ALABAMA DAILY NEWS – US adds a solid 230,000 jobs; unemployment up to 4 pct.
ALABAMA DAILY NEWS – US trade deficit drops to $43.1 billion in May
DECATUR DAILY – Lawrence residents want more black school employees.
DECATUR DAILY – Winners and losers emerge in tariff wars.
DECATUR DAILY – The First Amendment is our best weapon.
DECATUR DAILY – Athens State trustees chair: Goal is to have new president employed in August 2019.
FLORENCE TIMES DAILY – Stutts, Lolley in runoff for state Senate.
TUSCALOOSA NEWS – Reward rises to $20K for info leading to stolen Moundville artifacts.
TUSCALOOSA NEWS – Alabama volunteer groups among those stranded amid Haiti unrest.
TUSCALOOSA NEWS – Columnist Tommy Stevenson: With court vote coming up, eyes will be on Jones.
ANNISTON STAR – Private school locked out of state funding.
ANNISTON STAR – A soul that doesn’t grieve.
DOTHAN EAGLE – Stigmatization will curb texting while driving.
CULLMAN TIMES – Local lawmakers cautious over new tariffs.
YELLOWHAMMER NEWS – Alabama Sec of State John Merrill offers ‘home visit’ for those seeking photo ID to vote — ‘Just call my cell’.
AL.COM – Richard Shelby on Russia visit: We don’t need to return to Cold War.
AL.COM – At least 46 Alabama students disciplined for making threats since Parkland.
AL.COM – Alabama sees spike in foster children of drug-addicted parents.
AL.COM – Athens man charged with making terrorist threat after attempting to pull gun inside church.
AL.COM – Columnist Roy Johnson: Let’s honor Helen Shores Lee as the ‘champion of justice’ she was.
AL.COM – Reckonomics: Alabama by the numbers.
AL.COM – Doug Jones open to voting ‘yes’ for Trump’s Supreme Court choice.
AL.COM – Columnist Dana Hall McCain: Social Justice Warrior and other insults.
AL.COM – Plans for aging stadium collide with Alabama law protecting Confederate monuments.
AL.COM – Board certified teachers to earn $5,000 more in Alabama’s struggling schools.
WASHINGTON POST – Pompeo pushes back against North Korea’s ‘gangster-like’ criticism.
WASHINGTON POST – Trump administration takes another major swipe at the Affordable Care Act.
NEW YORK TIMES – From Fighting Injustice to Facing Death Row: The Bizarre Case of Pastor Glasgow
WASHINGTON POST – Religious liberty becomes a main focus for conservatives in Supreme Court nomination.
NEW YORK TIMES – What to Expect in the Supreme Court Confirmation Battle
NEW YORK TIMES – Republicans and Democrats Face Leadership Struggles as House Returns
NEW YORK TIMES – Trump ‘Very Close’ to Supreme Court Decision, but May Wait Till Final Hours
NEW YORK TIMES – Columnist Maureen Dowd: For Whom the Trump Trolls
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