7 Things: Build Back Better busted, Alabama’s U.S. Senators tout NDAA benefits, lawmaker wants to limit time off for good behavior and more …

7. Derek Chauvin is pleading guilty to civil rights charges

• In court on Wednesday, former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin pleaded guilty to violating the civil rights of George Floyd, a federal charge. Chauvin has already been convicted of murder and manslaughter in Floyd’s death.
• The charges of violating Floyd’s civil rights directly relate to his conduct on the scene, when he kneeled on Floyd’s neck while handcuffed. Chauvin also failed to give any medical care to Floyd at the time.

6. Tuberville continues to stay out of Senate race

• U.S. Senator Tommy Tuberville (R-AL) has repeatedly emphasized that he’s not endorsing any candidates in the U.S. Senate race. Tuberville started addressing this after appearing at a fundraiser for candidate Katie Britt in Washington, D.C., but now he’s had to repeat himself.
• Tuberville clarified that he’s met with all of the candidates. He spoke highly of all candidates but added, “I want the people of Alabama to listen, to look, to read about, to watch what’s going on. Don’t pay attention to these ads. It’s who do you want representing you because this is a very important race. We need the right person to come up that’s got the values of the people of Alabama – rural, urban, of all races, everybody.” He advised, “[A]s I told them, ‘Hey, I don’t remember anybody endorsing me.’ I had to go out there and do it on my own. I think that is the best way to do it, and it should be done that way.”

5. Biden went to Kentucky to survey the damage, met with ‘Let’s go Brandon’ chants

• While visiting Mayfield, Kentucky, to survey massive damage caused by tornadoes over the weekend, President Joe Biden was met with the common phrase of “Let’s go, Brandon!” In Kentucky alone, there were at least 74 people who died as a result of the storms.
• Biden announced that the federal government would provide the funding for cleanup work that was needed in the state, saying they’ll cover the cost of “debris removal, the cost of overtime and law enforcement, emergency service personnel and shelter.”

4. Cullman parents still want action over student video

• The Cullman City School Board is still dealing with allegations of racist behavior against a student due to a video that was spread among students at Cullman High School where the student said “white power” and “kill all the n—-rs.” The media’s failure to explain the whole story here is distressing.
• The student was copying a TikTok video and was unaware that he was being filmed. There were parents at the most recent board meeting demanding that the system deal with racism within the schools. Parent Jocelyn Logan said, “This board owes it to all students of Cullman City Schools to make this a safe learning environment for every student, not just the white affluent students. This board needs to start this change with their actions to demand better, but also prove that it isn’t just lip service.”

3.  State Rep. Greer: There should be more restrictions on ‘good time’ sentences

• State Representative Lynn Greer (R-Rogersville) called on the Alabama Legislature to take up his bill that would prevent some prisoners from being released for “good time,” specifically those who are in prison for manslaughter charges. This bill is called the Sergeant Nick Risner Act after the officer who was killed by suspect Brian Lansing Martin.
• Martin has since been charged with capital murder. Martin was previously imprisoned for pleading guilty to manslaughter and only served three years of a 10-year sentence. Greer said, “A lot of times you plea bargain to get manslaughter. A plea bargain usually gets you considerably less years to serve. So I think it’s nothing but fair to say that it won’t count for manslaughter.”

2. Shelby and Tuberville are championing the NDAA

• The National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) was passed on Wednesday in the U.S. Senate in an 89-10 vote, with both U.S. Senators Richard Shelby (R-AL) and Tommy Tuberville (R-AL) voting in favor of the package, which totals $770 billion.
• Shelby said “[T]he promises of this bill are meaningless without enactment of a defense appropriations bill for FY22. It is time for Democrats to get serious and accept our offer to get the appropriations process back on track: return to the Shelby/Leahy framework – drop poison pills, restore legacy riders, and adopt equal increases for defense and non-defense spending.” Tuberville also spoke about how this package will help Alabama, and mentioned Huntsville plays a key part. He advised, “Missile Defense Agency is a key player in securing our nation against threats from China.”

1. Build Back Better binned before Biden brings brethren behind busted behemoth bill

• President Joe Biden, the media and their Democrats spent the better part of 2021 telling the American people they needed to pass the Build Back Better bill before 2022, but it appears that negotiations between U.S. Senator Joe Manchin (D-WV) and Biden are miles apart and perceived as dead. Democrats now want to transition to voting rights, where they don’t have the votes, so expect their message to change from “Republicans hate poor people” to “Republicans don’t want black people to be able to vote.”
• Manchin blew up at reporters who wanted to take him to task for not supporting an expansion of the enhanced monthly child tax credit payments, which he said he supports. Manchin was responding to reporters’ repeated questions when he said,  “This is bulls–t. You are bulls–t! OK? I’m done! I’m done! God Almighty.” Manchin has said repeatedly his concern is inflation, which continues to be a major issue.