Improving Education & Supporting School Choice
I am a product of Alabama public schools. I’ve put seven children through schools of all types - public, private, and homeschooling – and I have supported two local charter schools. It’s easy to say you're an advocate for school choice when you have never had a child in the system, but I’ve lived every aspect of it. To allow Alabama to continue to finish at the back of the pack in school rankings is absolutely not acceptable and I will not stand for it. As your Governor, I will make education one of my biggest priorities. I will work to fund children, not schools. Our children deserve the best, regardless of their zip code. It should not matter where you live. Our children deserve that.
I fully support the expansion of school choice. Our state and its leaders have failed our students for too long and they continue to kick the can down the road, delaying the Literacy Act, allowing schools to close, and tolerating failing schools year after year.
We need to listen to our teachers and parents, not the education bureaucracy. We must focus on giving teachers the support they need to thrive in their profession so our children can thrive in their classrooms. We need to attract and retain the best talent. Our universities aren’t graduating as many teachers as they have in the past, and our schools are experiencing turnover at high rates. We need to stop pushing back the Literacy Act, and make sure students are offered every possible opportunity to succeed in grade-level reading, math and writing skills.
Our parents are not domestic terrorists. Calling them that just because they’re expressing their concerns about what their children are being taught is just plain wrong. The lockdowns and closed schools caused by the COVID pandemic showed parents across the state what their children were being taught, and they didn’t like it. Common Core and Critical Race Theory, regardless of how they're labeled, have no place in Alabama schools, and I’ll fight to get them out and keep them out of our educational system.
Education must be a top priority, and when I am elected Governor, it will be.
CRT/Diversity, Inclusion, Equity in Education and State Offices:
I will do better than a ban. The current Critical Race Theory ban does not include consequences. My administration will monitor this attempt at social engineering and stop the rewriting of our precious American history—the good and the bad. It has no place in Alabama schools.
Taxes
I’m a mathematician, not a politician. I can’t wait to roll up my sleeves and dig into this budget to put money back into the pockets of Alabamians. I will never participate in the kind of backroom deals that were the precursor to the Gas Tax increase that has been devastating to Alabama families.
As an outsider I do not understand the “padding pockets policies” that happen in Montgomery, but I do understand numbers. The first thing we should do is freeze the gas tax, get rid of as many occupational licensing taxes as we can, and finally end the tax on groceries.
Montgomery insiders have had years to do this. Now, it is past time to get them done.
COVID Response: Mandates/School closures:
There is no more important job as your Governor than to protect our children from COVID mandates and school closures. Good schools nurture the whole child. That is impossible to do when their faces are hidden behind masks, families are chased out due to their COVID vaccination status, and schools are closed or moved to online learning.
Moms and Dads depend on schools being open for in-person learning. Successful schools are more than just places our children learn their age and grade level. It is at school that our children learn important social and life skills; social skills that will help them navigate their future friendships, their future workplaces and be better members of their community. These skills cannot be learned over zoom or behind masks.
It is in schools that our children develop interest in electives and extracurriculars that will follow them for life. Activities as simple as playing on the playground, sports, music, art and dance are important to the mental wellbeing of our children. We cannot take those things away.
On top of that, there are many children that do not have reliable, if any, internet access to be able to complete at-home schooling. We are failing families at a time when they need us the most.
As a parent who has put seven children through Alabama schools, I believe our kids belong in the classroom. As Governor, I will make sure that they are.
Improving Election Security
During the last election cycle, Alabama saw many COVID-related, last-minute changes to our election system including no-excuse absentee voting and early voting. Members of the Alabama legislature, as well as election administrators, allowed the integrity of our elections to be questioned. As Governor, I will oppose allowing outside groups to come into our state to fund any election operations. Mark Zuckerberg and his liberal friends will not be allowed to influence the way elections are conducted in Alabama. I will work with the Secretary of State, Attorney General and Legislature to see that the integrity of our voting systems, whether in person or by mail, is assured.
Constitutional Carry & 2nd Amendment
Our Nation’s Founders recognized our right to bear arms with the only license we need: the U.S. Constitution. I fully support Constitutional Carry and Alabama citizens’ Right-to-Carry. Upholding our Constitutional rights is one of my highest priorities. The 2nd Amendment is a fundamental American right, and as your Governor, I will always fight for your right to bear arms.
Immigration & Amnesty
Our border crisis is a national emergency. I fully support continuing President Trump’s immigration policy by building the wall at the nation's southern border. Our lax border security and disastrous policies under the Biden Administration are responsible for drug and human trafficking at record levels, putting countless American lives at risk. The ever increasing amount of illegal drugs pouring into our country is reprehensible. The Fentanyl crisis in Alabama and across other states must be grappled with immediately. Too many of our fellow Alabamians are impacted and, as a family who has been forever changed because of illegal drugs, I will roll up my sleeves and do everything in my power to stem this drug tide. We must stand strong on the border and address the immigration crisis, and as Governor I will work hard to protect Alabamians from Washington’s failures on this issue and bring the full weight of Alabama’s influence on Congress to fix this mess.
Honesty in Government
Honest government is good government, and good government is honest government. In my view, a government which governs least, governs best. We should be able to point to our leaders and tell our children to look up to them as examples of honesty, success, and dignity. However, can we say that to our children when:
- Alabama ranks 4th for corruption?
- All three branches of government have had their leaders either convicted or replaced since 2015?
- Three of the last six Governors have left office due to corruption or moral turpitude?
- Corruption has ranged from local government to even higher education in Alabama?
When I am Governor:
- I will strengthen campaign finance laws.
- I will pass legislation that every single penny spent in a campaign be broken down and reported publicly.
- I will let legislators legislate. No more backroom deals or threatening their time in the legislature. You elected them, and you hold them accountable at the ballot box.
- I will deliver to the people of Alabama an online report of who I met with, for how long, when and where. Unless directed by the Department of Public Safety to do differently, the Governor’s schedule will be easily accessible online for the previous day.
No Tolls on the I-10 Bridge
I oppose any toll on the I-10 Mobile Bay Bridge and Bayway project. The people spoke up when the first proposal for this toll bridge was floated, and Montgomery listened. It should be a dead issue, and Montgomery should respect the people’s opinion.
This toll would hurt working families in south Alabama and all across the nation. I-10 is an integral part of the Interstate Highway system, and building a new bridge benefits everyone in the nation. It’s the very definition of a public works project, and the funds for this needed project should not come from the pockets of Alabama drivers. I can’t think of a project that’s a better use of federal dollars than one used by the whole country for defense and commerce along the Gulf Coast.