1. No immigration plan vote coming on compromise immigration bill as we careen towards crisis; Trump blows it all up
— The more conservative “Goodlatte bill” failed, the “compromise bill” was delayed until today and now postponed until next week which hands Democrats another victory on immigration.
— Senator Jeff Sessions claimed separations were never their desired outcome, but without a positive ruling by a federal judge to allow longer family detentions the only options will be separations or catch-and-release, Democrats don’t care because they want more illegals.
2. New potential taxes on Internet purchases excites media outlets and politicians in Alabama
— New revenue always makes liberals happy, but the Alabama retail association and Governor Kay Ivey are gushing over this opportunity to allow you to pay more for Internet purchases.
— The framing that this give retailers a level playing field is accurate, but the biggest retailers are already paying the state voluntarily and this new tax will hit smaller retailers and consumers.
3. The face of the “family separation” wasn’t separated from her family at all; her father is mad at the mother
— TIME magazine decided to use a picture of a Yanela Hernandez crying on the cover of their magazine to highlight how awful America is — the whole thing is fake news.
— Denis Hernandez, the father of this kid, said his wife and daughter were never separated, he never got to say goodbye, she was not fleeing violence because she was seeking a “better future,” and she paid a coyote $6,000 dollars to smuggle her.
4. Amtrak sucks; Gov. Kay Ivey agrees
— Anyone that has taken an Amtrak train outside of the Northeast corridor knows that the service leaves a lot to be desired. In Alabama the previous service took two hours and twenty minutes for a trip where a drive took two hours and ten minutes.
— The cost for a return to Amtrak service in Alabama would cost the state almost six million dollars and is not a priority. Her opponent for governor says this means Alabama is on the “wrong track“.
5. The Business Council of Alabama is in trouble
— After a week of BCA hemorrhaging big donor members, the next head of the group has bailed as well, BCA Progress PAC Chairman Mike Kemp was in charge of handling the political donations of the group.
— AL.com’s Cameron Smith argues that this could be good for consumers, mostly arguing that a BCA without massive businesses supporting it can actually argue for a better business climate (lower power rates) and lower health care costs.
6. The First Lady wore a jacket
— You cannot make me care about this, but you can try.
— After the First Lady’s team says there was no message, Trump says it is about the media.
7. Wannabe terrorist is sentenced to prison for plotting to kill cops and soldiers in Huntsville
— A judge sentenced Aziz Ihab Sayyed to 15 years in federal prison for plotting with the Islamic State to plan attacks in the United States.
— He bought bomb components in order to attack police stations and the military installation Redstone Arsenal.
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