7 Things: Hastily-called January 6 committee will not include Brooks, Alabama’s abortion law will be enforced and more …

7. State representative calls coin toss tie-breaker insulting 

• After it was announced that the State Senate District 27 race between State Senator Tom Whatley (R-Auburn) and Auburn City Councilman Jay Hovey was called a tie and a coin-toss tiebreaker would be considered, State Representative Ed Oliver (R-Dadeville) called the decision insulting.

• Oliver stated, “I hate to see it reduced to a coin toss. It’s an insult to the Senate. It’s an insult to my voters.” He added about ALGOP chair John Wahl and the steering committee not making a decision on the race, “My personal view is they just didn’t want to make a decision.”

6. Don’t call Ivey “Gov. MeMaw” from the bench

• Mobile County Circuit Judge James T. Patterson has been suspended for comments that he made about Governor Kay Ivey in court, allegedly calling her “Gov. MeMaw.” Patterson received his suspension after an investigation was conducted by the Judicial Inquiry Commission.

• Patterson has also been accused of using profanity in court and made a “stupid, stupid joke” about everyone’s ability to speak English after seeing a juror of Asian descent. Patterson apologized to Ivey for his comments, saying it “was a poor attempt at humor in the midst of this COVID-19 mess.” Due to the repeated, inappropriate conduct displayed by Patterson, he could now be removed from his position.

5. Over 1 million voters have gone red

• Despite Democrat efforts to maintain the majority throughout the midterm election, over 1 million voters in the United States have altered their party affiliation to become registered Republicans.

• A report released by the Associated Press said that about 630,000 voters have also switched parties to Democrats. It’s expected that Republicans could make gains in the midterm election.

4. Palmer pushing to require proof of citizenship to vote

• In a move to protect elections, U.S. Representative Gary Palmer (R-Hoover) introduced legislation that would require individuals to produce proof of citizenship when registering to vote. The legislation, “Citizen Ballot Protection Act,” would amend the National Voter Registration Act.

• Palmer outlined, “Restoring faith in the ability to conduct free and fair elections in this country begins with cleaning up voter rolls and requiring proof of citizenship to prevent illegally cast ballots from swaying elections. Americans deserve to know their elections are secure. It is common sense that states should be able to require proof of citizenship to ensure only citizens are voting in their elections.”

3. Alabama will enforce its abortion ban

• Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall emphasized his stance on the state enforcing the abortion ban after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade. Marshall said that the state made abortion “a Class A offense, which is the most significant offense we have in our state, and we’re prepared to enforce the law, and I know law enforcement will do the same.”

• Marshall further explained that they needed to “give guidance to local law enforcement and prosecutors about what is the current state of the law.” He added, “[W]e need to make sure that we’re giving guidance as to how broadly law enforcement is responsible for enforcing this and the theories that prosecutors can use to make sure that the law itself is being prosecuted.”

2. You’re allowed to pray at sports games; SCOTUS ruling impact could be wide-ranging

• The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled in favor of Washington high school football coach Joe Kennedy, who held prayers after each game in the middle of the field. Jefferson County is currently reviewing its absurd decisions on this matter over the last year because of the ruling.

• The court’s vote was 6-3, with Justice Neil Gorsuch writing that “a government entity sought to punish an individual for engaging in a brief, quiet, personal religious observance doubly protected by the Free Exercise and Free Speech Clause of the First Amendment.” Gorsuch added, “[T]he only meaningful justification the government offered for its reprisal rested on a mistaken view that it had a duty to ferret out and suppress. Religious observances even as it allows comparable secular speech. The Constitution neither mandates nor tolerates that kind of discrimination.”

1. Mo Brooks will not be testifying today, maybe never

• Many questions were asked about who the then-unknown testimony will come from at the hastily-called January 6 committee hearing scheduled for today, but we do know it will not be U.S. Representative Mo Brooks (R-Huntsville). The committee finally released the name of the person appearing before the committee after hours of speculation, and that person is Cassidy Hutchinson, an aide to former White House chief of staff Mark Meadows. The 1 p.m. EST hearing may not be the blockbuster they suggested it would be.

• Brooks made it clear that he would be willing to testify if the committee would meet his requirements which included the hearing being in public and the members of Congress doing the questioning themselves. When asked by AL.com whether the committee had been in contact with him about his demand, Brooks replied, “[O]f course not.”