1. AlaDem fight goes to court

• We knew it was coming. This fight over the leadership of the Alabama Democratic Party was bound to end up in court.
• Now it has.
• Alabama Democratic Party Chair Nancy Worley and others filed a lawsuit Wednesday seeking to stop a faction of the party’s governing committee from meeting this weekend to elect new leaders. The lawsuit contends the scheduled Saturday meeting, where the reform group intends to elect a new chair, is unauthorized and is being held “illegally.”
• “Plaintiffs contend that any officers and at-large members purportedly elected on Nov. 2, 2019, will have been improperly elected and may not serve,” the lawsuit states.
• Montgomery Circuit Judge Greg Griffin has scheduled a Thursday morning hearing on the request to block the meeting.
• Read more from Kim Chandler HERE.

 

2. SNAP changes could affect access to free lunches

• Proposed changes to tighten eligibility for the federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program will affect children’s access to free meals at school, including in Alabama.
• The Trump administration earlier this year announced a proposal to change eligibility requirements for SNAP, commonly referred to as food stamps. Federal officials said the change would end automatic eligibility for those who were already receiving federal and state assistance.
• Nationally, that will mean about 982,000 students would no longer directly qualify for free school meals. In Alabama, that’s estimated to be as many as 16,000.
• Further complicating matters, schools with more than 40% free lunch students qualify for a program that allows the school to offer all students free lunch. So, having fewer students automatically eligible could impact some of those 460 schools in Alabama as well.
• Many of those children will still qualify for free lunch, or may have to pay a reduced cost, but their families will have to apply for the financial assistance.
• This is something to watch.
• Read more from ADN’s Mary Sell HERE, and read to the bottom for the Roanoke story.

 

 

3. State scores sink for Math & Reading

• In case you hadn’t heard, Alabama’s scores on the most recent National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) weren’t great.
• The assessment, known as the Nation’s Report Card, tests fourth and eighth grade students. For Alabama, both cohorts graded last in the country in math this time.
• It wasn’t much better in Reading. In that subject, Alabama fourth graders dropped from 40th to 49th, and eight graders dropped from 47th to 49th.
• Trisha Crain has more on the NAEP scores and what they mean HERE.
• State Rep. Terri Collins, who chairs the Education Policy Committee in the House, says a recently-passed law tightening academic accountability could help students progress in both subjects.
• The Alabama Literacy Act was modeled off a Mississippi law passed years ago. And it turns out Mississippi is improving in both Math and Reading.
• Read that full story from ADN’s Caroline Beck HERE.

 

4. Dismukes bows out of Congressional race

• State Rep. Will Dismukes is withdrawing from the race for Congress in Alabama’s 2nd District.
• In a statement released Wednesday, Dismukes said he could not raise the funds necessary to compete and did not want the race to be a distraction from his family and work responsibilities.
• In last quarter’s campaign finance reports, Dismukes reported the least amount of money raised at $14,693. He also spent $7,033, and ended with $7,659 cash on hand. To put it in perspective, Dothan businessman Jeff Coleman led the pack with $468,001 raised and $500,000 self-loaned, ending the quarter with almost $1 million cash on hand.
• Beyond fundraising, another factor that could have influenced Dismukes was the upstart candidacy of Jessica Taylor. The fellow Prattvillian had an impressive campaign announcement earlier this month that saw a video go viral in conservative circles, earning her national media coverage, including on Fox News Channel.
• Read more HERE.

 

5. Shelby says he’d back Sessions if he runs

• U.S. Sen. Richard Shelby told reporters Wednesday that he’d back his longtime former colleague Jeff Sessions should he decide to run for his old seat in the U.S. Senate.
• “If he runs, I will,” Shelby told reporters, according to Roll Call’s Jennifer Shutt. “He’s always endorsed me. He’s my friend.”
• Several other candidates have already qualified for the race and are already running hard, including former Auburn football coach Tommy Tuberville, Congressman Bradley Byrne, former Chief Justice Roy Moore, Secretary of State John Merrill, and State Rep. Arnold Mooney. None of the candidates have said they would bow out of the race should Sessions enter it.
• Tuberville said that Sessions “had his chance to stand and defend the president and he failed.” Byrne told the Washington Post that “the president is very angry with Jeff. I think the president will be very vocal against him… For Jeff’s sake, I don’t want that. But I think that’s the reality of what he’s facing.”
• Shelby, though, seemed more optimistic about Sessions’ chances.
• “He’d be a formidable candidate. I think he’d be the man to beat and should win the race, but he has to win it and it’s up to the people ultimately to decide.”
• Full story w/ video from Sinclair HERE.

 

Headlines.

 

 

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