“Our record-breaking streak is continuing in May, and we hope that it continues throughout the rest of the year,” Gov. Kay Ivey said in the statement. “Yet again, we’ve dropped our unemployment rate and each month we are getting closer and closer to our pre-pandemic record low unemployment rate of 2.6%. Our economy is adding jobs, and earlier barriers to joining the workforce have been significantly reduced. In fact, there are more job postings than there are people counted as unemployed! Alabama is, once again, open for business.”

Data showed that wage and salary employment grew last month by 4,700.

“Monthly gains were seen in the leisure and hospitality sector (+5,000), the trade, transportation, and utilities sector (+2,500), and the education and health services sector (+1,200), among others. Over the year, wage and salary employment increased 123,000, with gains in the leisure and hospitality sector (+37,100), the professional and business services sector (+23,000), and the manufacturing sector (+22,900), among others,” the release said.

Average weekly earnings for the private sector rose to a new record high of $974.12, up $66.91 over the year, according to the Department of Labor.

“As we continue to see improvement in nearly all sectors of the economy, we’re also seeing record high wages in Alabama,” Washington added. “Once again, our average weekly wages are at new record high, representing an almost $67 per week over-the-year increase. Both the leisure and hospitality and manufacturing sectors are showing record high wages as well, with significant yearly increases. The economy is responding as we expected to labor force fluctuations brought about by the pandemic.”

Broken down by county, Shelby County led the way with a rate of 1.8%, followed by Blount, Marshall, Franklin and DeKalb Counties.

Wilcox County topped the highest in the state with an unemployment rate of 8.8%.

When broken down by municipalities, Alabaster had the lowest rate at 1.7%. Selma had the state’s highest, coming in at 7.0%, followed by Prichard at 6.5% and Bessemer at 5.2%.

@Jeff_Poor is a graduate of Auburn University and the University of South Alabama, the editor of Breitbart TV, a columnist for Mobile’s Lagniappe Weekly, and host of Mobile’s “The Jeff Poor Show” from 9 a.m.-12 p.m. on FM Talk 106.5.

“This year, the budget proposal signals to the world that this administration is not committed to investing in readiness, training, state of the art equipment, and technological overmatch,” Shelby stated. “With military investments in China and Russia continuing to outpace U.S. investments, I find it hard to believe that the requirements outlined by General Dunford just four years ago are no longer instructive.”

This critical assessment from Alabama’s senior senator comes less than a month after the highest-ranking U.S. military officer described the nation’s relations with China and Russia as “fraying.”

In an address to graduates of the United States Air Force Academy, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Mark Milley said, “Right now we are in a great power competition with China and Russia. And we need to keep it at competition and avoid great power conflict.”

Milley and Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin appeared before the Senate Appropriations Committee on Thursday.

Shelby addressed both officials in his remarks, stating, “The world is a complex and dangerous place and I know that you both understand the magnitude of the challenges we face from our near peer adversaries who seek to undermine the United States’ position as a world leader and dominant military power. China and Russia are formidable adversaries and China, as you have acknowledged Secretary Austin, is proving to be a true pacing threat. China seeks hegemony – militarily, technologically, economically, and geopolitically – and is making unprecedented investments to see that to fruition.”

“Meanwhile, Russia is nearing the end of a massive military modernization program that saw its defense spending increase 30 percent in real dollars over the last 10 years,” he added.

Shelby concluded that he could not support an effective cut in defense spending in 2022.

Tim Howe is an owner of Yellowhammer Multimedia

The list of gaffes attributable to his mental acuity seems to be piling up for the 46th president.

During the G7 Summit in England recently, he asked British Prime Minister Boris Johnson to introduce the South African president.

EMBARRASSING: World leaders erupt in laugher as Biden forgets that UK PM Boris Johnson already introduced the president of South Africa during a G7 meeting.

pic.twitter.com/qvCfDNtlTP

— Kambree (@KamVTV) June 13, 2021

RELATED: Biden lashes out at media member and Alabama native Kaitlan Collins over Putin — ‘You’re in the wrong business’

Fox News contributor Tammy Bruce has questioned whether Biden’s cognitive state is a national security liability.

This is horrible. At some point his cognitive disfunction has to be considered a natl security threat if only because of the confidence it must give our enemies “President confuses Syria with Libya three times”
pic.twitter.com/R7is0yl2MR

— Tammy Bruce (@HeyTammyBruce) June 13, 2021

Biden has received criticism in the early stages of his administration for calling on only a predetermined list of reporters during press conferences. The most recent instance of this occurred while Biden was in Geneva, Switzerland, for a summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

BIDEN: “I’ll take your questions and as usual, folks, they gave me a list of the people I’m going to call on” pic.twitter.com/RdAks1RIdp

— Daily Caller (@DailyCaller) June 16, 2021

Carl and the other letter signers pushed for transparency with any medical assessments being made, as well.

“We encourage you to follow the example set by President Trump by undergoing a cognitive test as soon as possible and immediately making the results available for the American people,” they concluded.

Tim Howe is an owner of Yellowhammer Multimedia

“[I]t’s funny you bring that up because at one point in the past, there was actually a resolution passed by the state party, I believe, that was saying Republican candidates should not take money from the AEA because of their influence and the concern they would have over direct policy,” he stated. “So, of course, that’s a concern. That type of influence from anybody pushing to regulate themselves is never — you don’t want a group regulating themselves. That’s not good for policy.”

While there was a resolution in place that pertained to AEA campaign contributions to Republican candidates, Wahl said it was not an outright ban but a “strong recommendation” not to accept their money.

“I need to go back and look at the resolution in-depth,” Wahl said. “But I believe it was a resolution, so it’s not a direct ban. There’s no teeth to it. But it was a very strong recommendation to candidates — that it is not a good idea to take that money.”

“[T]here were jokes about how the AEA controlled the state and had a vast amount of control over policy and what would happen with the Governor’s office, the state legislature,” he explained. “So much of that has gotten better since Republicans have taken control. But you’re right — we’re seeing a resurgence, at least of their involvement. Hopefully not their influence.”

@Jeff_Poor is a graduate of Auburn University and the University of South Alabama, the editor of Breitbart TV, a columnist for Mobile’s Lagniappe Weekly, and host of Mobile’s “The Jeff Poor Show” from 9 a.m.-12 p.m. on FM Talk 106.5.

After announcing in front of 3,000 people during the first week in June that he would seek reelection, Ainsworth has now picked up the endorsement of the Alabama Forestry Association in addition to that of Tuberville.

Ainsworth welcomed the support from Alabama’s newest U.S. Senator.

“I am proud to have Senator Tuberville’s endorsement as I seek a second term as lieutenant governor to continue building a 21st century Alabama in which our people can earn a good living at a high-paying job and raise their families in safe, strong communities,” he remarked. “I’m focused on taking our Christian conservative values to Montgomery every day, ensuring we preserve and better the Alabama we all know and love for future generations to enjoy.”

Ainsworth’s first term has been marked by his heavy involvement in the state’s economic issues.

He has overseen the Alabama Small Business Commission, a panel tasked with recommending policies and legislation benefiting small businesses operating across the state.

During last year’s COVID-19 crisis, Ainsworth formed an emergency task force within the commission to focus on the reopening of Alabama’s economy. Most of the task force’s plan was implemented by the state during the reopening process.

Ainsworth has also served as chairman of the Aerospace States Association, a national group whose mission is to support and promote the interests of the aerospace industry in Alabama and across the nation.

Ainsworth has outlined that his focus moving forward would be to preserve Alabama values while improving opportunities for future generations.

“The main reason I’m running is for my kids, your kids, your grandkids’ future,” he stated. “It is a huge time commitment, but I want to say this: I want our kids, your kids, everybody in here to always be proud to call Alabama home. I don’t want our kids to have to move to Atlanta or Nashville or Austin or another state. I want them to be able to live right here in Alabama and have the same opportunities as any kids in the world. We’re going to do that.”

Tim Howe is an owner of Yellowhammer Multimedia

Specializing in full-scale overhauls, Audubon is planning significant upgrades throughout Cadence at Bluff Park. The changes will be evident for those passing through and around the community, with updated exteriors on all buildings, fresh landscaping, a conversion of the tennis courts into a grilling area and dog park, the installation of a new playground, the transformation of the pool to a splash park for kids, and improvements to the parking lot and streets within the complex.

The same level of attention will be paid to interior upgrades, with Class-A finishes planned for every unit. Additionally, the leasing office and fitness center will be renovated and a new amenity building will be constructed.

“We know these are ambitious plans, but it was important to us to show existing and future residents we are committed to making Cadence at Bluff Park one of the premier multifamily communities in Birmingham,” added Cunningham.

The $14.7 million capital improvement program will begin immediately and is expected to be completed within the next two years.

Audubon is an Atlanta-based firm specializing in the acquisition and management of multifamily properties throughout the Southeastern region of the United States. With a senior staff that has collectively acquired, managed and renovated more than 50,000 apartment units, Audubon has a wide range of experience and expertise in repositioning multifamily assets. For more information, please visit http://www.acmapts.com.

Brooks first sounded off on attacks from specific media outlets in Alabama, AL.com and Alabama Political Reporter. However, he said those attacks were positive for him and his campaign.

“I think that AL.com, the Alabama Reporter, all those groups that want to attack me — that’s one of the best endorsements a Republican candidate can get,” he said, “because that should signify to every Republican voter that this is the person who the fake news media is most concerned about, the kind of person who will actually do what they say they will while they’re campaigning. So, some people get kind of perturbed about all the lies, distortion at AL.com or some of these other smaller website blogs launch against me on a regular basis. But I take them as compliments, and I hope that Republican primary voters will, too.”

Later in the segment, Brooks responded to comments Britt given in a statement responding to the announcement of his Club for Growth PAC endorsement.

In that announcement, Brooks referred to Britt as a “professional lobbyist,” to which Britt said Brooks was engaging in “Mo’ lies.”

Brooks called that response from Britt a “fifth-grade tactic” and suggested her previous association with the BCA called into question her conservative values.

“[I] want to emphasize something,” Brooks said. “Katie Britt, on the one hand, tries to act like she’s all nicey-nicey. But on the other hand, she accuses her opponent of being a liar with zero specifics that can be rebutted and zero supporting evidence. As you noted in my comment, she just calls me a liar, but she does not disagree with any that I said. So, it’s kind of a fifth-grade tactic where you just start throwing names at other people, and when you do that, you’ve already lost the argument. And she’s lost the argument. She is a registered lobbyist. She’s a registered lobbyist for the Business Council of Alabama whose number one agenda item has been to import cheap foreign labor. She’s for these taxes, and we haven’t even gotten into the moral values issues that she, as president of the BCA, has caused the BCA to take positions on that are directly contrary to what most Alabama Christian voters would be able to stomach.”

@Jeff_Poor is a graduate of Auburn University and the University of South Alabama, the editor of Breitbart TV, a columnist for Mobile’s Lagniappe Weekly, and host of Mobile’s “The Jeff Poor Show” from 9 a.m.-12 p.m. on FM Talk 106.5.

“Manufacture Alabama is endorsing Governor Ivey for re-election due to her commitment to our state, her deep understanding of industry’s needs and her unwavering support for our manufacturers across Alabama,” he said in a statement. “Governor Ivey has long been a friend to our association and a passionate advocate for the manufacturing industry.  She has always been committed to make Alabama an even better place to live and conduct business and leads with a common-sense approach. Her tireless leadership has brought positive outcomes to our manufacturers and we couldn’t be prouder to give her our full endorsement.”

Ivey applauded endorsement and reiterated Alabama’s manufacturing sector was one of her priorities.

“The manufacturing industry is a critical sector of our state’s growing economy, and it is a particularly proud moment for our campaign to have earned the support of its leaders,” Ivey said in a statement. “It has been our mission over these last four years to cultivate a thriving business climate not just by Alabama standards, but to set the bar across all fifty states. We reached that goal – even amidst exceptionally uncertain and trying times – thanks to our working partnership with industry leaders like those at Manufacture Alabama. We know there is more work to be done to ensure that Alabama’s best is still yet to come.”

@Jeff_Poor is a graduate of Auburn University and the University of South Alabama, the editor of Breitbart TV, a columnist for Mobile’s Lagniappe Weekly, and host of Mobile’s “The Jeff Poor Show” from 9 a.m.-12 p.m. on FM Talk 106.5.

COLLINS: Why are you so confident he’ll change his behavior, Mr. President?

BIDEN: Yeah, I’m not confident he’ll change his behavior. What the hell? What do you do all the time? When did I say I was confident?

COLLINS: You said in the next six months you would be able to determine that.

BIDEN: What I said, what I said was, let’s get it straight. What I said what will change their behavior is the rest of the world reacts to them and diminishes their standing in the world. I’m not confident of anything, I’m just stating the facts.

COLLINS: But given his past behavior has not changed, and in that press conference after sitting down with you for several hours, he denied any involvement in cyberattacks, he downplayed human rights abuses, he even refused to say Alexei Navalny’s name, so how does that account to a constructive meeting as president, President Putin framed it?

BIDEN: If you don’t understand that, you’re in the wrong business.

Interactions between Biden and his administration could thus far be classified more easily as cordial rather than challenging in nature, so the exchange between Collins and Biden today was noteworthy.

The exchange instantly sparked discussion on social media.

“If you don’t understand that,” Biden tells a reporter pushing him to explain how it was a constructive meeting with Putin if he still denies human rights abuses and cyber attacks, “you’re in the wrong business.”
pic.twitter.com/M4QmK7hKYd

— Philip Melanchthon Wegmann (@PhilipWegmann) June 16, 2021

In the days leading up to the summit, Time magazine received criticism for its heroic portrayal of Biden on its cover. That portrayal has been contrasted with its depiction of former President Donald Trump under similar circumstances.

Joe Concha, media columnist for The Hill, remarked that the two magazine covers revealed something significant about the media’s approach to the two administrations.

“If I’m teaching a class in media bias, I’m putting this at the top of the syllabus,” said Concha during an appearance on Fox News. “This is all you need to know about not even bias but it’s activism.”

Watch Concha’s full reaction here:

Collins, a Prattville native and member of Yellowhammer’s D.C. Power and Influence list, was promoted to her current role for the network earlier this year.

Tim Howe is an owner of Yellowhammer Multimedia

According to a release from Brooks’ congressional office, Seklecki was alleged to have illegally entered Brooks’ home and to have “accosted” his wife, Martha Brooks.

A day later, Brooks released his home surveillance video showing Seklecki interacting with Martha Brooks and entering Brooks’ home without “knowledge or permission.”

“On June 6th a process server illegally entered our home,” Martha Brooks said in a statement. “I have worked with Huntsville City Police and the Madison County District Attorney’s office and sworn out a warrant for his arrest on the charge of 1^st Degree Criminal Trespass. Mo and I take our security very seriously, as do all families.  My hope is that my actions today will cause the process server to think twice before illegally invading the sanctity of someone else’s home and put those who would threaten our security on notice that we will pursue illegal actions to the fullest extent of the law.”

Mo Brooks, also a candidate for U.S. Senate in Alabama, dismissed the lawsuit in the statement and insisted he was available for process service.

“Congressman Eric Swalwell lied in his politically motivated, meritless lawsuit against President Donald Trump and me when he falsely claimed I incited the January 6^th Capitol violence,” Mo Brooks said. “Swalwell’s attorneys lied again when they strutted in front of the news media like peacocks in heat and falsely accused me of avoiding Swalwell’s lawsuit service when the fact is they could have served me roughly a hundred times before, during or after both Swalwell and I voted together on the House floor, or served me by U.S. Mail to my home address. In fact, when they finally got serious about serving me with the lawsuit, they served me not once, not twice, but three times, all within one week!  So much for avoiding service or being difficult to find!”

Brooks also criticized the media for “maliciously accepting Swalwell’s narrative.”

“CNN and the Fake News Media compounded the Swalwell team lies by maliciously accepting Swalwell’s narrative without explaining that the law that puts the burden on the plaintiff to serve lawsuit papers (not the other way around), and without giving my printed rebuttals fair and balanced air time and article space.  Swalwell’s team lied again then they denied their teammate illegally trespassed into my home.  Well, the home security video, the Huntsville Police Department, the Madison County District Attorney’s office, a warrant magistrate and an arrest warrant all say differently.”

“I ask Eric Swalwell to do the honorable thing and turn his teammate into Alabama authorities so that justice may be served and he can face the consequences of his criminal actions,” he continued.

Brooks added, “My wife, Martha, was scared to death when she discovered a stranger in our home hovering over her like a hawk!  Fortunately, the fright soon turned into anger and Martha chased Swalwell’s teammate out of our house like a stray, scalded dog.  You don’t mess with Martha!  I am proud as can be to have her as my wife!”

@Jeff_Poor is a graduate of Auburn University and the University of South Alabama, the editor of Breitbart TV, a columnist for Mobile’s Lagniappe Weekly, and host of Mobile’s “The Jeff Poor Show” from 9 a.m.-12 p.m. on FM Talk 106.5.

“I think it is definitely important in the pending case that we have against the Department of Justice,” he said. “If we’re able to present to the judge that there is a plan in place to be able to deal with facility construction — it really is for two separate reasons. One of which is that we can share with the judge relating to the challenge about our ability to provide constitutionally grounded mental health care to the inmate population, that we have the facilities and the infrastructure in place to be able to do that. And then secondly, one of the allegations in the complaint has to do with concerns about inmate-on-inmate violence.”

Marshall continued, “If you look at the current facilities that we have in place, I think the argument can be made that we have a disproportionate amount of dormitory-style housing that would facilitate the opportunity for inmate — and remember we have a prison population that is 80% violent, that 42% of those that are there for murder, capital murder, rape, robbery — so we have a clear violent population in our prisons. But if we had the ability structurally to be able to segregate individuals in a more appropriate way, then we do additional measures for us to be able to push back against an argument that our facilities are not appropriate to keep individuals safe. So, I think it’s an important part of our strategy to be able to talk about to be able to hire sufficient staff, to be able to do the things we need to do.”

“And then beyond that, we’re able to show the judge factually that the evidence is there that Alabama met its responsibilities under the Constitution with regard to how it is we handle our corrections system,” he added

@Jeff_Poor is a graduate of Auburn University and the University of South Alabama, the editor of Breitbart TV, a columnist for Mobile’s Lagniappe Weekly, and host of Mobile’s “The Jeff Poor Show” from 9 a.m.-12 p.m. on FM Talk 106.5.

“Obviously, I’m the only outsider, and I’m not beholden to anyone when I walk into D.C., whereas you have a 40-year career politician and then hand-picked establishment candidate. And that is very distinctive from an outsider that can walk in and not owe any PACs, any friends, anyone in D.C. a thing but only vote how Alabamians want me to vote.”

Co-host Brian Kilmeade asked Blanchard if Britt’s Capitol Hill experience intimidated her, which Blanchard dismissed.

“No,” Blanchard replied. “It does not because what my agenda is focused on the MAGA movement and what President Trump had achieved, and she is with establishment.”

@Jeff_Poor is a graduate of Auburn University and the University of South Alabama, the editor of Breitbart TV, a columnist for Mobile’s Lagniappe Weekly, and host of Mobile’s “The Jeff Poor Show” from 9 a.m.-12 p.m. on FM Talk 106.5.

Pringle did not mince his words during a recent appearance on “The Jeff Poor Show” in Mobile.

“This is just indoctrination — the woke culture indoctrination of our children,” Pringle said. “That’s all it is and it needs to be stopped in its tracks.”

Williams pointed to Alabama’s ability to overcome racial problems in the past as providing the state with a better perspective.

“To be sure Alabama has had its issues with racial injustice,” he noted. “That is a part of our history. But our history is also replete with a legacy of value, success, achievement and the very roots of the civil rights movement. No state has come further than Alabama.”

Pringle indicated that CRT will become an issue many other states will have to confront.

“People are waking up all around the nation to how bad this stuff is,” he remarked. “I mean, this is woke cancel culture gone completely amuck. They want to completely disregard our 14th and 15th Amendment rights, the Voting Rights Act, the Civil Rights Act.”

“I believe we have to build the wall,” she said. “I think we have to build it, complete it and secure that border. I believe we have to reinstitute the remain in Mexico policy. I think we have to show strength to even deter people from coming to the border. I think we have to cut off any of the participation in any welfare programs. Obviously, that just encourages people to come over. I mean, if you look at a typical day on the border, what you’re hearing is they get about 39, 40 wanted criminals that come through the ports of entry. And they’re getting about 3,600 pounds of drugs every single day at the border.”

Britt added, “If you look at that — and I’m talking to sheriffs and law enforcement officers around this state — they are seeing a spike in crime and a spike in drugs. And it is a direct result of the weakness the Biden administration is showing at the border. We have to continue strength there. Obviously, no amnesty, ever. We are going to have to make sure we fix this because it is changing the fabric of our nation. And we cannot stand for it.”

@Jeff_Poor is a graduate of Auburn University and the University of South Alabama, the editor of Breitbart TV, a columnist for Mobile’s Lagniappe Weekly, and host of Mobile’s “The Jeff Poor Show” from 9 a.m.-12 p.m. on FM Talk 106.5.

“I think it’s fairly probable, and the reason that I think it is, is several different components to it,” he said. “One of the components that people keep forgetting is if we went to these private properties, you have utility infrastructure that is not there. So you’re talking about a year, 18 months, sometimes longer in some cases, especially when you’re dealing with wastewater to get those up. If you go to the existing state-owned properties, you already have that infrastructure there. So, in fact, you may actually have a shorter timeline in that regard. And to me — my background is in engineering, civil engineering, site engineering, that kind of thing — and I see no reason we can’t take the existing county state GIS information, including aerial photos, topography, overlay the prototype plan the [Alabama Department of Corrections] has and we [Hoar Program Managament] and others to come up with that, and overlay all that. And then, put that out to bid along with the HPM specs we’ve already paid for and have the final design as part of that bid package.”

“In my career, the very first water tank job I did in the mid-1990s — we did it that way, and we still do them that way,” Chambliss added. “So, I see no reason we can’t do that and expedite it. And, in addition, we would do one on the civil site and get that moving very quickly, and then the other on the building infrastructure. There’s no reason to know where every light switch goes for us to start clearing and grading and doing storm work. So, we can get moving pretty fast if we follow that type of process.”

@Jeff_Poor is a graduate of Auburn University and the University of South Alabama, the editor of Breitbart TV, a columnist for Mobile’s Lagniappe Weekly, and host of Mobile’s “The Jeff Poor Show” from 9 a.m.-12 p.m. on FM Talk 106.5.

From June to December 2021, the city of Birmingham will celebrate 150 years of progress with how we’re #BuiltToLast! https://t.co/pnUhk8vfY8

— Randall Woodfin (@randallwoodfin) June 14, 2021

Among the thoughts Woodfin offered in a video released by the city was a vision for Birmingham’s future.

Partial transcript as follows:

Like the steel we were built on, we were built to last. Our future is in the world class of healthcare, education, technology and innovation, creating better ways to live, work and play. I see Birmingham as a home for small and large businesses, becoming a model for an inclusive and resilient economy. I see more opportunities for our homegrown talent, young, bright business owners and graduates remaining here, in their hometown, working to push us to the next level.

The city is holding an “I Love Birmingham Because…” letter writing campaign inviting anyone to submit reasons why they love Birmingham. Letters will be held in preservation by the Birmingham Public Library Archives.

As part of “Milestone Monday,” the city will showcase on social media any milestones that residents or Birmingham-based businesses are celebrating in 2021 and what the milestone means to them.

In addition, the city will post historic entries about Birmingham as “Did You Know?” posts on social media on Thursdays in 2021.

Although the city officially received its charter from the state legislature on December 19, 1871, which is regarded as Birmingham’s official birthday, the city began to take form in June of that year when the Elyton Company began selling lots in the area.

Watch the entire video titled, “Celebrating Birmingham’s 150th — Built to Last”:

Tim Howe is an owner of Yellowhammer Multimedia

“In Alabama’s U.S. Senate race, the Establishment, Never Trump, cheap foreign labor, debt junkie, tax and spend wings of the Republican Party are ALL coalescing their big-time money on professional lobbyist Katie Britt. Club for Growth’s endorsement and help is a much-needed counterweight to special interests who see the federal government as nothing more than a trough to feed at.”

“I am honored and thankful for Club for Growth’s endorsement,” he added. “Their endorsement is yet another third-party confirmation that Mo Brooks is THE fearless fighting conservative America needs in the U.S. Senate.”

Brooks held up the endorsement alongside his endorsement from former President Donald Trump given earlier this year.

“The importance of Club for Growth’s endorsement cannot be overstated. Club for Growth’s endorsement is a clarion call to conservatives in Alabama and all across America to support Mo Brooks for Senate. That is HUGE! Let me add one very important note. NO Republican candidate in history has ever lost a Republican primary when BOTH President Trump and the Club for Growth have endorsed. I am confident GOP voters will not break that that streak in Alabama.”

Yellowhammer News reached out to the Britt campaign to comment on the Club for Growth endorsement and response to Brooks’ jab.

“Bless his heart, there he goes again with Mo’ lies,” Britt said in a statement from the campaign. “As a first-time candidate, I’m not surprised that the Washington, D.C. super PACs have decided to back my opponent, who’s been in office since 1982. I have made it clear that I’m going to put Alabama First – and out-of-state special interests have obviously gotten the message. We’re working relentlessly every day to speak directly to the people of our great state about how I’ll be the Senator FOR Alabama, not just a senator from Alabama. We’re excited about the momentum that is building less than a week in, and we look forward to this grassroots movement taking us to victory in 2022.”

“I will proudly support Alabama’s agriculture industry, strengthen our military bases and defense community, and fight tirelessly for good-paying jobs for hard-working Alabamians – and never apologize for it,” she added. “If that means I get attacked by the Swamp, so be it. I’ll continue to focus on bettering the lives of all Alabamians.”

@Jeff_Poor is a graduate of Auburn University and the University of South Alabama, the editor of Breitbart TV, a columnist for Mobile’s Lagniappe Weekly, and host of Mobile’s “The Jeff Poor Show” from 9 a.m.-12 p.m. on FM Talk 106.5.

Included among the list of projects receiving funding are the widening and resurfacing of Edwards Lake Road in Trussville, resurfacing of a portion of Joe Mallisham Parkway in Tuscaloosa and the resurfacing of Powell Road in Autauga County. Jefferson and Etowah Counties each received funding for two separate projects from this set of awards.

Construction is required to begin within one year of receiving the money from the state.

Earlier this year, the state approved $4.39 million for 21 local projects under the program after awarding a total of $10.2 million for local projects in 2020.

Another round of local projects is expected later this year, according to the governor’s office.

RELATED: Construction begins on historic Port of Mobile upgrades

Tim Howe is an owner of Yellowhammer Multimedia

Being a one-stop shop has paid dividends for Williams Fire, which has been in almost constant growth mode since Williams’ father, Jeff, started the company in 1987. Over the years, Williams Fire has carried out five expansions at its Ashland site.

Williams, who bought the company from his father in 2019, is in the midst of a $1 million project that will add a new 18,000-square-foot service facility and repurpose the firm’s original 13,000-square-foot building in Clay County.

Williams Fire began construction on the new, 18,000-square-foot service facility late last year, with completion set for August 2021. Williams said the project will allow him to hire between six and 10 new employees, adding to the 32 staffers now on the company’s payroll.

“Williams Fire Apparatus is the definition of a Made in Rural Alabama enterprise,” said Lamar Dewberry, executive director of the Clay County Economic Development Council. “This business helps ensure first responders in many communities have the ability to protect their citizens, and this is accomplished right here in rural Clay County, Alabama.

“Matt’s company is a great asset to our local community as it continues to grow,” he added.

Williams said the ongoing project will streamline the company’s operations and position it for future growth.

“The new building will be a full-time repair and service facility. Then our current building will transition into fabrication only. We build lots of parts for fire trucks – everything from shelving, bracketry, things to hold chainsaws and other equipment. We do a lot of fabrication,” he said.

FAMILY JOURNEY

Williams knows the family business backwards and forwards, having been involved in the operation since he was a youngster. The family journey began when his father left Quality Manufacturing in Talladega, where he had been building fire trucks, to start his own business in Ashland.

After its start in 1987, Williams Fire built its own brand of fire trucks until around 2003, when the Gulf War made it difficult to obtain parts such as chassis and transmissions. The company’s focus shifted to servicing and selling other brands of fire trucks.

Jeff Williams retired from the fire truck business in 2019, when son Matt took over.

Today, Williams Fire sells and services five brands of fire trucks and emergency vehicles: Sutphen, SVI Trucks, Southeast Apparatus, Ferrara Fire Apparatus and PL Custom Ambulance. Its territory covers Alabama, Georgia and South Carolina.

Besides Birmingham Fire & Rescue Service and DeKalb County Fire Rescue Department, other large customers include Gwinnett County Fire Rescue Services and Savannah Fire Rescue in Georgia, and Hoover Fire Department in Alabama. The company also counts many smaller fire departments as customers, as well as full-time volunteer departments that buy a new fire truck every 25 or 30 years.

A growing part of Williams Fire’s business is mounting equipment on fire trucks, and the new service facility will allow the company to expand that activity. Since 2016, the company has averaged 35 to 40 new apparatus installations per year, and it services hundreds more annually.

“Customers come up with their own version of what they want on an apparatus at times, and their ideas have to be cultivated into an actual vehicle,” Williams said. “There are some really smart people in this industry so working through a project with these people makes the experience very interesting and tough all at the same time.”

An interesting job Williams Fire is now working on is a tractor drawn aerial, or tiller, for DeKalb County in the Atlanta metro area.

“This rig is set to finish in the fall, and we are really excited to see this project completed. A tractor drawn aerial is one where there is a driver for the truck (tractor) and a driver for the trailer as well. Very fun project,” Williams said.

Brenda Tuck, rural development manager for the Alabama Department of Commerce, said Williams Fire’s growth plans are good news for Ashland, a city of around 2,000 residents in east central Alabama.

“We are so proud of Williams Fire Apparatus and Clay County,” Tuck said. “Being able to identify Williams Fire as one of our numerous high-impact expansion projects in rural Alabama really shines a light on the advantages present in our rural communities.”

(Courtesy of Made in Alabama)

Zeta struck the coast of Louisiana in late October as a Category 2 hurricane and then roared through Alabama, knocking out service to nearly one-third of Alabama Power customers, from the Gulf Coast to east Alabama. The impact of the storm was similar to what the company experienced during Hurricane Katrina in 2005 and the April 27, 2011, tornadoes.

More than 5,000 lineworkers and support personnel from 19 states and Canada joined Alabama Power crews to help restore service amid difficult conditions.

Months later, in mid-February, it was Alabama Power crews who mobilized to help others after Winter Storm Viola brought frigid temperatures, snow and ice from the Southwest to the Northeast. The storm hit Texas especially hard.

After the company confirmed that Alabama Power customers were in good shape, more than 300 Alabama Power lineworkers and support personnel traveled to east Texas to assist Oncor in restoring power to its customers. In the first two days alone, Alabama Power personnel strung more than 300 spans of wire and replaced 22 poles and 25 transformers.

Investor-owned utilities in the U.S. typically help each other when major disasters strike under longstanding mutual assistance agreements.

“Many EEI member companies experienced historic storms and other significant weather-related events in recent months that left customers without power,” Kuhn said. “Mutual assistance is a hallmark of our industry and is critical to ensuring a safe and efficient restoration.

“Crews worked around the clock and often in the most dangerous of conditions to assess damage and to restore power safely and as quickly as possible. They did all of this during a global pandemic,” Kuhn said.

“We are proud to be recognized for our storm response efforts and commitment to serving our customers,” said Corey Sweeney, Alabama Power Storm Center Operations manager. “Our employees take great pride in helping others and doing their job safely.”

EEI’s U.S. utilities provide electricity to more than 220 million people in all 50 states and the District of Columbia. EEI also has among its members more than ​65 international electric companies, with operations in more than 90 countries.

(Courtesy of Alabama NewsCenter)

“We used to say there were two things certain in life — death and taxes,” he said. “I think there are three things certain in Alabama — death, taxes and state inmates backed up in county jails. I worked for the counties for 33 years, and that’s an area I have to admit I haven’t done a very productive job. It’s a horrible problem. I think we’ve talked about it on our visits before during the COVID issues. But I don’t see things improving very much. Even now, I think all of us travel around and see things getting back to normal in so many, many ways, but we still have about 3,500 state inmates. There’s a lot of talk about building mega-prisons, and I’ve started saying the state has already got a mega-prison, and it’s called the county jails because we’re holding about as many inmates as the state would plan to put in one of those facilities.”

Brasfield pointed to a law set to take effect early next year that would force the ADOC to accept inmates from county jails sentenced to a state facility.

“[A]t some point, somebody in leadership at the Department of Corrections has to say these are our inmates and taking these inmates is a priority,” he stated. “The legislature passed a bill for us that takes effect January 1. When that new law takes effect, Jeff, the law will say that after the 30th day, the sheriff shall transfer custody to the state of Alabama. About 25 sheriffs had a call this week. They are counting the days down to January 1.”

@Jeff_Poor is a graduate of Auburn University and the University of South Alabama, the editor of Breitbart TV, a columnist for Mobile’s Lagniappe Weekly, and host of Mobile’s “The Jeff Poor Show” from 9 a.m.-12 p.m. on FM Talk 106.5.

“There’s no question — we’re going to need new prisons,” he said. “We have to keep bad people in prison. First and foremost, we have to keep the public safe. That needs to be where we start out with from the very beginning. The number one premise has to be to keep the bad folks incarcerated and keep the good folks safe.  With that being said, any other type of reform measures needs to reflect just that. We need to make sure that the bad people are kept behind bars, and the good people are kept safe.”

“I think definitely the Republicans in the State Senate have that mindset and would only support legislation that would reflect that,” Scofield added.

The Marshall County lawmaker also said he thought a special session of the legislature called by Ivey would be an appropriate venue for tackling the issue.

@Jeff_Poor is a graduate of Auburn University and the University of South Alabama, the editor of Breitbart TV, a columnist for Mobile’s Lagniappe Weekly, and host of Mobile’s “The Jeff Poor Show” from 9 a.m.-12 p.m. on FM Talk 106.5.

In March, the Missile Defense Agency awarded a total of $7.6 billion in contracts to Lockheed Martin and Northrop Grumman to develop technology for the program. The stated purpose of the award is to replace aging ground-based interceptors and strengthen the nation’s first layer of defense against intercontinental ballistic missiles aimed at the United States.

Northrop Grumman will team with Raytheon Technologies on the project, while Lockheed Martin will work with its partner Aerojet Rocketdyne, a company it announced in December it was acquiring.

Also on the list was the U.S. Army’s Patriot Advanced Capability-3 (PAC-3) Missile system. The Boeing Company’s Huntsville-based Missile and Weapon Systems division was awarded nearly $1 billion earlier this year to develop a next-generation technology.

“The United States military’s ability to deter and defend against missile and rocket attacks by our adversaries is one of its most critical missions. Our military services and combatant commands work around the clock every day to track and defend against potential threats to the United States, our allies, and U.S. forces located throughout the world,” wrote the letter signers.

In a release from his office, Brooks emphasized the need for the additional funding.

“America’s national security hinges on our ability to defend against missile and rocket attacks from our adversaries,” he said. “My House Armed Services Committee colleagues and I were extremely disappointed to see President Joe Biden’s $8.9 billion budget request for Fiscal Year 2022 fall short of the $10.5 billion enacted in Fiscal Year 2021. If we don’t robustly support missile defense programs, America will be less prepared to defend itself against attack and rogue nations might attempt to exploit missile defense weaknesses. America must never allow our adversaries to mistakenly believe they can defeat us. We must adequately fund our nation’s most effective and vital deterrents.”

Tim Howe is an owner of Yellowhammer Multimedia

Housel began to write essays about those mornings, posting them to Facebook. He’s now compiled more than 100 of those pieces into a new book, “From the Backbooth at Chappy’s: Stories of the South: Football, Politics, Religion, and More.” It’s officially released next week at a series of book signings at Chappy’s in the Auburn area from 10 a.m.-2 p.m. each day: Tuesday in Auburn, Wednesday in Montgomery and Thursday in Prattville.

“Consider this Housel unleashed,” the author says. “Most of the stuff I’ve written in my life has been about Auburn on an Auburn platform. Even after I retired, I was a representative of Auburn, even though I wasn’t working there. This is not an Auburn book. It’s about football, politics, religion and more.”

“From the Backbooth at Chappy’s,” with a foreword by Auburn graduate and acclaimed journalist Rheta Grimsley Johnson, evolved as Housel’s morning gatherings at Chappy’s evolved, though he began writing the essays fairly early in the process.

“When something is in your mind, in your heart, in your head, if you’re a writer, it just has to come out, and it just comes through your fingers,” Housel says. “Turns out people like to read it, so I got the Facebook page. I shared thoughts and essays and that kind of thing. It was not a planned thing.”

When COVID-19 came along, Housel decided to listen to a few folks who told him his musings would make a good book.

“I had been thinking a lot about it, and it was time to do it,” Housel says.

Housel has written six other books. Most have to do with Auburn sports history, but one, “From the Desk of David Housel,” is similar to “From the Backbooth at Chappy’s.”

“That one was primarily sports, but it had some other things in it,” Housel says. “This one is about the other stuff, but it has some sports in it.”

Though the three topics in his book’s title – football, politics and religion  – are often the subjects people are warned not to bring up if they want to keep the peace, Housel and his friends don’t shy away from any of them. Housel especially gravitates toward religious topics.

“I like the ones that I hope make people think,” he says of his essays. “The good Lord gave us a mind, and we’re supposed to use it. Too few people who call themselves Christians do what the Lord said and use their minds. … Faith has got to be built not on challenging God but questioning God. I think God likes that, because it shows we’re engaged and that we care.”

Now that the pandemic is ending, the Backbooth at Chappy’s events are slowly but surely returning to normal. On Mondays, Housel eats two eggs scrambled, lean bacon and a helium biscuit; on Tuesdays maybe a parfait with granola; on Wednesdays, it’s blueberry pancakes, and Fridays a waffle.

What remains constant is the conversation. And the writing.

“I’m still writing the Backbooth, and since the first of the year, I’ve written a couple I think are book-worthy,” Housel says. “I started out doing maybe one a week, but I’m old enough that I don’t have to meet a self-imposed deadline. When the spirit moves me, I write.”

(Courtesy of Alabama NewsCenter)