7. Medical marijuana bill stalls for now in Alabama State Senate
— State Sen. Tim Melson (R-Florence), a physician by trade, has a unique bill that would allow medical marijuana usage in Alabama if other treatment options are ineffective. The bill is not as simple as it seems because the patient would have to go get recommendations from two physicians in order to get access to a prescription. Additionally, random drug testing would be required as well. Another Republican doctor, State Sen. Larry Stutts (R-Tuscumbia) opposes the legislation and questions whether there are actual medical benefits to the idea. He ran out the clock on Wednesday, but there are differing reports about whether the bill has the votes to pass.
6. Alabama House passes fantasy sports gambling bill
— State Rep. Kyle South (R-Fayette) passed a bill in the State House to legalize an additional form of gambling involving daily fantasy sports. The goal is to allow Alabama residents to utilize websites like Fan Duel and Draft Kings to gamble their money on games he says are more about skill than chance like lottery and bingo because you have to select players and set lineups. The impact on the general fund could be anywhere from $1.7 million to $4.1 million. Opponents view this as more gambling. State Rep. Rich Wingo (R-Tuscaloosa) claimed this bill would take Alabama “to a place where God doesn’t exist.” The bill passed the House 74-22.
5. A new bill would criminalize falsely accusing someone of a sexual crime
— A new proposed bill takes on false rapes claims and could make them a Class C felony with a punishment of up to 10 years in jail. If the bill proposed by State Rep. Dickie Drake (R-Leeds) becomes law, the accuser would also have to pay the legal fees of the accused if they are found innocent. The director of the Alabama Coalition Against Rape, Kathleen Connolly, absurdly and embarrassingly says this could deter people from reporting sex crimes for some reason, arguing, “It’s an effort to silence men and women who are coming forward about sexual assault. It’s an effort to make them afraid to come forward.” Drake said it is about making sure the allegation is accurate, explaining, “If they make an accusation, they better make sure it’s true and make them think twice before they make a false accusation.”
4. First, it was The New York Times, and now the 9th Circuit Court agrees with Trump that there is a crisis at the southern border
— In an unlikely decision this week, the 9th Circuit agreed that the Trump administration can require asylum seekers to return to Mexico to await the adjudication of their cases. The three-judge panel found, “DHS is likely to suffer irreparable harm absent a stay because the preliminary injunction takes off the table one of the few congressionally authorized measures available to process the approximately 2,000 migrants who are currently arriving at the nation’s southern border on a daily.” The crisis at the border continues to have real-world impacts because the flood of illegal immigrants cannot be processed. This year, 168,000 illegal aliens have been released already into American communities this fiscal year, with 87% of released families skipping court hearings, being deported in absentia, but the government can’t track them down. The media and their Democrats are slowly acknowledging Trump was right all along on the border. A Washington Post-ABC News poll shows a 17-point jump in the number of Democrats who see a “crisis” at the border.
3. Alabama Democrat says the state needs to pass a lottery bill and she wants “electronic bingo machines” protected
— The attempts to defend illegal behavior that has been going on in this state for years have followed the latest lottery bill from the Senate to the House. State Reps. Pebblin Warren (D-Tuskegee) and A.J. McCampbell (D-Livingston) believe bills protecting the ongoing gambling activity at VictoryLand and GreeneTrack must be included to get the lottery bill the votes it needs. Warren said, “The only way they’re going pass that bill is to get the Democrats on board,” and the only way to get them on board is to allow more gambling. Most expect their measures to go down.
2. The House Judiciary Committee has voted to hold Attorney General William Barr in contempt of Congress with questionable reasoning
— Representative Jerry Nadler (D-NY) subpoenaed AG Barr to provide the fully unredacted Mueller report, but Barr did not comply. The decision to hold Barr in contempt of Congress comes after President Donald Trump used executive privilege to keep the documents from being released. Nadler went on to say that Trump’s actions show that the administration doesn’t view Congress as a equal breach of the government with independent constitutional oversight. Despite Nadler’s claims, the decision to hold Barr in contempt seems to be only because the Mueller report didn’t produce the outcome the Democrats were hoping for. The reality is the charge here is that Barr didn’t release the unredacted report but because the report contains grand jury material, it is a crime to publicly release grand jury information.
1. Alabama House Committee approves “born alive” bill and Senate advances abortion bill with changes
— The bill sponsored by State Rep. Ginny Shaver (R-Centre) would require doctors to provide medical care to babies born alive after an attempted abortion. “There is no such thing as a post-birth abortion. Think about those three words. That’s infanticide,” Shaver explained. On Wednesday, the bill was approved by the House Health Committee and is now eligible for debate and consideration before the full House. Meanwhile, a Senate committee has advanced the House-passed ban on abortion but they changed the bill to add exemptions for rape and incest which many believe increases its chance of passing without Republican objection in the full Alabama Senate. State Rep. Terri Collins (R-Decatur) is not happy about that addition and wants it removed. If this bill passes the Senate the House will get another crack at it.
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