The U.S. Supreme Court is expected to hear arguments today in an Alabama redistricting case that could further weaken the Voting Rights Act. Here’s a preview. montgomeryadvertiser.com/story/news/pol… #alpolitics Black activists had fought Alabama’s Jim Crow voting restrictions for more than 20 years when the Voting Rights Act was signed in August 1965. At the time, about 112K Black Alabamians were registered to vote. By April 1966, the number had doubled to 228K. montgomeryadvertiser.com/in-depth/news/…

Right now the Senate is considering a bill dealing with the scope of practice by optometrists. This derailed Tuesday's calendar because it wasn't on it. Among other items, it would allow optometrists to perform some eyeball injections (which they're currently not allowed to do). Yeah, I didn't expect to be thinking about eyeball injections today, either. #alpolitics

The public hearing on the Alabama lottery/gambling bill is underway, and it appears everyone who signed up is an opponent, though their reasons for opposing the gambling legislation vary from speaker to speaker. #alpolitics Joe Godfrey from ALCAP, speaking now, is opposed to gambling generally. But there are representatives from the Greene County bingo parlors (not GreeneTrack) saying this bill would pick winners and losers. (The bill would likely shut those parlors down.) #alpolitics

The Senate has a proposed calendar that includes a bill from Sen. Gerald Allen, R-Tuscaloosa, making it a crime for state officers to help enforce federal gun laws. It includes this language. #alpolitics I'm toggling between the House (which is taking up the education budget package) and the Senate. Sen. Jim McClendon, R-Springville, has been talking prior to the motion to adopt the calendar, but I'm not clear why. #alpolitics

A thread of articles on an exceptionally contentious day in the Alabama Legislature.

The chamber first approved a bill banning transgender youth from playing sports of the sex with which they identify. bit.ly/3tzvyyT (1) #alpolitics Then the House passed a bill that would require physicians to provide health care to children born during an abortion, known as "born alive" bills. Opponents noted laws against infanticide already exist. bit.ly/38XUokh #alpolitics (2)

The Alabama House of Representatives is now taking up the bill to ban curbside voting, writing existing policy of the Secretary of State into state law. This will be a thread for the discussion. #alpolitics Sponsor Wes Allen, R-Troy, is out after testing positive for COVID-19. Rep. Matt Simpson, R-Daphne, is handling the bill. #alpolitics

The Alabama House of Representatives is now taking up a bill from Rep. Allen Treadaway, R-Morris, that would create a new crime of assaulting a first responder, change riot definitions and penalize municipalities that try to abolish police departments. This will be a thread. Treadaway, a retired assistant Birmingham Police chief, says there is "an organized effort in this country" regarding protest. Notes that the bill was altered in the House Judiciary Committee. #alpolitics

Alabama House is now taking up a bill from Rep. Ginny Shaver, R-Leesburg, known as a born alive bill. This will be the thread. #alpolitics Shaver says the bill would require a doctor to take reasonable care to save a child's life if the child was born during an abortion. Rep. Laura Hall, D-Huntsville, is asking for examples. #alpolitics

The Alabama House is about to begin debating HB 391, which would prevent transgender youth from playing sports of the gender with which they identify. This will be the thread. #alpolitics Rep. Scott Stadthagen, R-Hartselle, the bill's sponsor says "it is unfair for biological males to compete against females in biological sports." #alpolitics

Alabama House is underway. Rep. John Rogers, D-Birmingham, says the controversial calendar is from "h-e-double two sticks" and "a stab at our heart." House Speaker Mac McCutcheon, R-Monrovia: "It's not about stabbing anybody in the heart." #alpolitics Rogers: "Don't put us in a predicament where we have to fight for our lives. Let me remind you: when you fight us, you fight ourselves." #alpolitics

Alabama Senate Tourism Committee is underway, with two lottery bills on the agenda. This will be a thread for the discussion. Gotta be in it to win it. #alpolitics The reason Alabama is one of a handful of states without a lottery? The politics of (and adjacent to) a lottery have the complexity of string theory. montgomeryadvertiser.com/story/news/202…

The Alabama House Constitution, Campaigns and Elections committee meeting is underway. It's in the House chamber, and we just had an odd situation over the livestream where we could hear a sidebar conversation better than the actual committee proceedings. #alpolitics House chamber carries over a bill on absentee voting. Now we're on the bill to move the primaries and runoffs next year. But bill's sponsor is now saying there could be a conflict with mayoral elections. #alpolitics

The time had come for him to set out on his journey westward. Yes, the newspapers were right: snow was general all over Ireland. It was falling on every part of the dark central plain, on the treeless hills, falling softly upon the Bog of Allen and, farther westward, softly falling into the dark mutinous Shannon waves.

Per Q from Rep. Christopher England, D-Tuscaloosa: "We've got these solutions that are looking for problems ... I wish we could be proactive about criminal justice reform. I wish we could be proactive about Medicaid expansion." #alpolitics England: "Had Donald Trump won the election, I'm sure we wouldn't be having these conversations." Asks if Blackshear's constituents are crossing the line to vote in Georgia. Blackshear: "I hope not." #alpolitics

Public hearing on HB 1, the measure to ban therapies for transgender minors, is about to begin. Rep. Jim Hill, R-Moody, the committee chair, says there are four people here speak in favor and four against. #alpolitics Hill says there will not be a vote on the bill today. #alpolitics

The legislation limiting COVID-19 liability is now before the House Judiciary Committee. This passed the Senate last week and is one of the priority bills legislative leaders wanted to pass before the end of this week. #alpolitics Rep. Merika Coleman, D-Pleasant Grove, is asking Rep. David Faulkner, R-Mountain Brook (handling the bill in the House) some questions about how the law would apply in different situations. One is if an organization falsely claimed to have a machine to cure COVID. #alpolitics

We're on the gambling bill. Place your bets. #alpolitics First up in a public hearing is Robert McGhee, vice chair of the Poarch Band of Creek Indians. He's asking for some flexibility for casino operators to choose the terms of their license (in other words, longer license means bigger payment to state over a longer period).

Here at Auburn for a US Senate forum organized by the College Democrats & College Republicans. Doug Jones is here; Tommy Tuberville’s campaign said he had a conflict. Maybe 65 to 70 people here. #alpolitics #ALSEN Everyone here is wearing masks and had to fill out a form about symptoms prior to entry. #alpolitics #ALSEN

Conference call with Gov. Ivey and Dr. Harris. No statewide shelter-in-place order for now she says. "We are not California. We are not New York. We are not even Louisiana." Says she is trying to balance economy & public health. 2 questions about ventilators. Dr. Scott Harris (the State Public Health Officer) says they're trying to track down sources wherever they can. Ivey says "we are relying on public and private partnerships to fulfill our needs."

Looks like we're getting underway at the Alabama Democratic Party meeting. I'll try to keep all my tweets on the meeting in this thread. #alpolitics Obligatory reminder about this bylaw fight from southern political expert Dr. Manhattan. #alpolitics