Presented by AlabamaWorks!

 

 

1. For prison problems, past is prologue.

• Severe crowding, extreme violence, insufficient mental health care and a lack of overall resources. That’s the Alabama prison system as we find it today, but also as it was in the 1970s before it was taken over by the federal government for 13 years.
• Spanning three governors, that takeover ended in 1989. Thirty years later, state officials are grappling with the same problems while trying to avoid another federal intervention.
• Practically all of the problems listed in federal District Judge Frank Johnson’s order in 1976 can be seen in the Department of Justice investigation report from April of this year.
• “You could take the year 2019, and substitute it for the year 1989 and it would be the same story,” Sen. Cam Ward, R-Alabaster, who is a member of the Governor’s Study Group on Criminal Justice Policy, told Alabama Daily News. He’s been a lead lawmaker on prison issues for the last several years.
• This morning, ADN’s Caroline Beck has an in-depth report on the history of Alabama’s prison system – in particular the federal takeover of the 70s and 80s – and how it compares with the troubles the system is facing today.
• The issues at play, the different personalities involved, things that have changed and the lessons learned – all of it plays into what will likely be the biggest issue heading into the 2020 legislative session.
• Her full story is worth your time this morning.

 

2. Jessica Taylor announces run for Congress in AL-2.

• Prattville attorney and businesswoman Jessica Taylor announced her candidacy for Congress in Alabama’s 2nd District Monday, saying she wants to form a conservative “squad” to take on liberal Democrats led by Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-NY.
• In a campaign video, Taylor highlighted her rural Alabama roots, business career, and family with former State Sen. Bryan Taylor. But it’s her love of playing on the high school basketball team that Taylor connects to using teamwork to support President Donald Trump.
• “I’m sick of arrogant socialists like AOC, who’ve never even run a lemonade stand, trying to tell us how to live in Alabama and that more government is the answer,” she says in the video.
• “I have zero interest in being a professional politician, but conservatives like us need a squad of our own — and I’ll build it.”
• Taylor joins a Republican field that includes Dothan businessman Jeff Coleman, former Attorney General Troy King, former Enterprise State Rep. Barry Moore, and current Prattville State Rep. Will Dismukes.
• Read more and see the video HERE.

 

A message from AlabamaWorks!

 

 

 

 

3. Record low unemployment – again.

• Word broke too late for the email Friday, but it’s worth mentioning that Alabama’s unemployment rate is at another record low.
• State unemployment was 3.0% for September, down a tenth of a percent from August and a full half percent lower than the national average of 3.5%.
• Average private earnings also increased in September by nearly $12 to $862.
• Alabama’s economy has gained 55,900 jobs since January, according to the Department of Labor.
• The state unemployment number represents about 67,000 unemployed people compared to 2.2 million with jobs.
• Gov. Kay Ivey celebrated the news, but also said the state would continue job recruiting and workforce development efforts.
• Full story HERE.

 

4. Mulvaney might want to stop talking.

• White House Acting Chief of Staff Mick Mulvaney had quite a week.
• First, Mulvaney stirred up a tempest from the White House briefing room podium on Thursday by acknowledging that the administration had held up aid to Ukraine in part to prod that country to investigate Democrats and the 2016 elections. After meeting with White House lawyers and communications staff, Mulvaney issued a statement walking back his remarks.
• Next, Mulvaney aggressively defended President Donald Trump’s decision to hold the G7 international summit at his Miami resort. But after Trump heard some pushback from GOP lawmakers weary of defending unforced errors, Trump reversed his decision, leaving his top aide in the lurch again.
• For Mulvaney, the Thursday press conference was an opportunity to prove himself as an effective defender of the president during a crucial time as Democrats try to ramp up their impeachment inquiry.
• Instead, he offered fresh fodder to Trump critics and unnecessarily stirred up the Ukraine controversy with glib commentary.
• The news conference on Thursday left aides in the West Wing dumbfounded at the former South Carolina congressman’s performance and some quarters of Trump’s orbit — the Justice Department and Trump’s personal attorney, among them — dissociating themselves from his account.
• The president himself, already angry that Republicans were not defending him on Syria and Doral, was also displeased that Mulvaney only made the headlines worse.
• Read that full story HERE.
• Meanwhile, on the political front, Trump and the Republican National Committee have raised more than $300 million this year for the reelection effort, which amounts to more than any other sitting president in history at this point in the campaign.
• Democrats are growing increasingly alarmed by the spending gap between the two side and the implications for the general election.
• Read that full story from Politico HERE.

 

5. AP Top 25.

• Ohio State edged past Clemson to No. 3 in The Associated Press college football poll and Wisconsin dropped to 13th after being upset ahead of its showdown with the Buckeyes.
• Alabama remained No. 1 on Sunday in the AP Top 25 presented by Regions Bank, receiving 24 first-place votes. No. 2 LSU held its place and received 16 first-place votes.
• A total of five SEC teams are now ranked in the top ten, including Florida at No. 7, Auburn at No. 9 and Georgia at No. 10. Interestingly, no other SEC teams are even in the Top 25.
• See the full AP Top 25 including the storylines HERE.
• Meanwhile, Alabama quarterback Tua Tagovailoa has had a procedure for a high ankle sprain and will miss Saturday’s game against Arkansas.
• Crimson Tide coach Nick Saban says Tagovailoa had what’s known as a “tightrope” procedure on his right ankle Sunday.
• Saban predicted “a full and speedy recovery” for Tagovailoa.

 

 

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