For the past several months, rumors have been floated that a damning CBS “60 Minutes” segment about the Bush administration, specifically former White House advisor Karl Rove, and the influencing of the selective prosecution of former Alabama Governor Don Siegelman is on the way.
Back in July, Scott Horton of Harper’s Magazine wrote an article accusing a the Alabama press – specifically the Press-Register and The Birmingham News – of going easy on the Bush administration’s involvement in the Siegelman indictment and conviction. He even referenced Lagniappe’s series summer series on Attorney General Troy King and tried to tie it into Siegelman’s prosecution.
Another vocal critic that has accused the White House of being heavy-handed with this sorted ordeal has been Rep. Artur Davis.
The story resurfaced in a Time magazine article in October, but the latest round occurred when both Davis and Horton appeared on MSNBC’s “Live with Dan Abrams” Dec. 13, 2007.
In case you weren’t one of the 12 people watching nationally that night, Abrams named former Alabama AG William Pryor, now a federal judge, and Sen. Jeff Sessions, who got special treatment for being Republicans versus Siegelman, who is now serving time in a federal detention facility in Oakdale, La.
According to a blog maintained by Tommy Stevenson, an associate editor for The Tuscaloosa News, the “60 Minutes” segment that will tie all these loose ends together could appear in January.
A spokesman for Sessions’ office told Lagniappe “60 Minutes” had not contacted them and they weren’t even certain if it would air.
Lodmell on the Attack … Again
Mobile newcomer and Democratic candidate for the U.S. House of Representatives has sent out a series a press releases and letters to the editor very critical of Rep. Jo Bonner. Unfortunately for Lodmell, the efforts haven’t gotten much attention – except for here, The Atmore Advance and several national blogs, although they probably warrant some attention since Lodmell will likely be Bonner’s opposition in November.
“And who has paid the most for Bonner’s ear in Congress? Who else but big business,” Lodmell wrote in a letter dated Dec. 25, 2007. “And who are the usual suspects that pour dough into Jo’s campaign pockets election cycle after election cycle? There’s the oil and gas industry, agriculture, the utilities, insurance, healthcare and tobacco interests, bankers, the timber and transportation industry, and old reliable defense contractors, just to name a few.”
Ever since formally filing with the Federal Election Committee, Lodmell has gone after Bonner. In October, Lodmell urged the Congressional Franking Committee to investigate Bonner for abusing the House’s mailing privileges.
Lodmell will have a tough mountain to climb because since coming on the scene in 2002, after serving as the press secretary for former Congressman Sonny Callahan, Bonner has defeated his opponents handily – taking no less than 60 percent of the vote in each election.
Shelby takes on both Louisiana senators with flood insurance bill
A flood insurance bill introduced into the Senate last month has upset Louisiana Sens. Mary Landrieu and David Vitter because of a provision that would raise insurance premiums 25 percent on businesses, vacation homes and homes that have been previously been affected by a flood.
Shelby, the ranking Republican on the Senate Banking Committee, and Sen. Chris Dodd (D-Conn.), the chair of that committee, both support this bill Vitter and Landrieu oppose.
The Shelby bill is favored by insurance companies because it isn’t as costly as Landrieu-Vitter legislation that would call for wind coverage and higher coverage limits.
Dodd supports Shelby’s bill because of the insurance companies headquartered in Connecticut, but the enigma is why Shelby would support a bill that is more favorable for insurance companies.
Vitter blocked a floor vote on Shelby’s bill and Shelby countered by halting consideration of a Landrieu-Vitter bill until after the holiday break.
Also…
• Clarification – On Nov. 20 I wrote it was a remarkable feat that former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani was seeing so much success in Alabama considering the criticisms of his position on social issues including abortion and gay marriage. Lagniappe reader and Giuliani supporter Terry Lathan asked for a clarification. “Mayor Giuliani believes marriage is between a man and a woman,” Lathan wrote in an e-mail. “He does not support gay marriage and never has.”
• Emily Mathis, who has served as Sen. Jeff Sessions’ deputy press secretary for several years, has left Sessions’ office to go work at a public relations firm according to Sessions’ Press Secretary Stephen Boyd.
Contact Jeff Poor at jeffreypoor@yahoo.com.
Archives
Beltway Beat
