For Tuscaloosa Mayor Walt Maddox to have a realistic shot at becoming Alabama’s next governor, two improbable events will have to occur. First, his Republican opponent incumbent Gov. Kay Ivey will have to face a scandal proportionate to the scandals Roy Moore encountered during his years in the political arena, including the allegations of having inappropriate relationships with minors, which plagued his 2017 U.S. Senate special election.
Second, Maddox will have to portray himself as a moderate Democrat with conservative leanings.
Maddox describes himself as pro-life, which helps. However, he won’t take a position on President Trump’s Supreme Court nominee, which hurts.
Another misfire by Maddox to brand himself as a moderate Democrat to Alabamians was to court the endorsement of Mom’s Demand Action, a Michael Bloomberg led anti-gun rights organization, and then pretend it is a pro-Second Amendment organization:
“Moms Demand Action, like Walt, supports the second amendment,” Maddox spokesman Chip Hill said, according to a report. “Walt was proud to receive their gun-sense candidate designation.”
In reality, Maddox’s view on Second Amendment issues is quite different. The Tuscaloosa mayor has extreme views on gun rights, which he laid out in his response to a National Rifle Association questionnaire earlier this year:
“[L]et me make my position clear. I will never favor taking any existing constitutional right away from any American unless we, as a people, come to the conclusion that restraint of some rights helps ensure the pursuit of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness by all.”
That response was deception on steroids. He says he will never take away your Second Amendment right unless we come to the conclusion it is for a good reason. That means in his judgment it is not a right.
If Maddox had any sense, he would think twice before taking the endorsement of an organization that is best known for smearing Republican legislators and claiming it exists to fight the National Rifle Association.
This contradiction by Maddox accentuates Democrats’ problems for the 2018 elections. They can’t be honest or the vast majority of the Alabama electorate won’t consider them as a viable option.
@TheDaleJackson is a contributing writer to Yellowhammer News and hosts a conservative talk show from 7-11 am weekdays on WVNN
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