From ou statehouse Studio in Montgomery.

I'm Todd Stacy, welcome to Capitol Journal.

Leading the news this week is continued reaction to the horrific shooting that took place last Saturday in downtown Montgomery.

The capital city is still reeling over the mass shooting at a downtown block party that took place after the Tuskegee Morehouse rivalry game at Cramton Bowl and the Alabama Stat homecoming game on its campus.

Two people were killed in the shooting.

43 year old Shalonda William and 17 year old Jeremiah Morris.

12 others were injured in the attack.

Randy Scott has been following the investigation and has more on that story.

You know, we had thousands of people in Montgomery, over this weekend, at multiple events, enjoying themselves.

All of that changed in an instant.

A handful of reckless individuals, changed things not only for the victims, but for themselves and for this community.

A skirmish breaks out.

Shots are fired.

Nearly a dozen people are wounded, but two people lose their lives.

The investigation by the Montgomery Police Department reveal those victims to be 17 year old Jeremiah Morris and 43 year old Shalonda Williams.

I think that's important that the city show its true strength and resilience during times like this, when you have times of adversity, and we're seeing that, whether it's informal, or formal, outreach from s many people, in this community.

In a press conference, Mayo Stephen Reed is joined by Police Chief Jim Gray boy and members of the city council to bring people u to speed on the investigation.

We wer proud that we had the coverage, that we have with officers within 50ft, of this incident and the way that they responded, the men and women of Montgomery Police Department, are to be commended, for not only what they did thi spring in action at that moment, but what they have done, since then, just through gumshoe police work.

And I'll say this now to the criminals involved in this, all of us are coming for you.

We will not rest.

We will not relent until we get you.

We are coming.

In the aftermath of the tragi shooting in downtown Montgomery.

Many have asked the question, who will take the lead in the investigation?

Would it be state leader who have members from a gunman who live here serving for the legislature?

Or will it be the governor' administration taking the point?

Or could it be someone from out of state taking the lead in this case?

Chie Griebel says thanks to a network of law enforcement agencies, the investigation is yielding a lot of information and tips.

Standing with us is the Montgomery County Sheriff's Office, the Montgomery District Attorney's office, the monk, the Alabama Attorney General's office, the U.S.

Attorney's Office, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the U.S.

Marshals Service, the Alabam Law Enforcement Agency, Alabama Fusion Center, and Central Alabama Crime Stoppers.

City leaders say the investigation is a methodical process, one they will take carefu steps to get everything right.

Now, I know from all of th evidence and all of the factors that I've seen that we are every hour, one hour closer to holding the perpetrators accountable.

We remain committed to seeing this investigation through with accuracy and integrity, because the families of our victims and our community deserve nothing less.

As investigator continue to collect information, some say it's also time to mak changes in Montgomery as well.

Items such as curfews.

We started a curfew downtown that we need to look at.

So we're looking at a citywide curfew.

That' something that's being discussed because we know that nature is a lot of young people that's out doing a lot of these crime that's going on in the city.

So we're looking at anyon to hold parents accountable to.

That' part of the problem that we have is accountability for your household.

Every piece of information helps move this investigation forward.

This is an investigation where we do anticipate multiple individuals who are persons of interest and more than likely will be facing charges.

In Montgomery, Randy Scott capital Journal.

And we have an update that is breaking just this afternoon.

Montgomery polic have made an arrest in this mass shooting case.

The suspect is a juvenile, s his name is not being released.

But Montgomery police say he is being charged with one count of capital murder, nine counts of first degree assault and three counts of second degree assault.

Again, you just heard the chief say multiple arrests are expected in this case.

The shooting is not just an issue for Montgomery, but also for the state.

Many state leaders expressed shock and disappointment this week as information about the incident came across the wire.

Governor Kay Ivey called the incident unacceptable and vowed state resources to help the city of Montgomery shore up its police force.

That does not mean a deployment of the National Guard.

Ivey said.

First and foremost, we are so incredibly sad with the lives that were lost and we pray for their families, but at the same time, it was just unacceptable and we are working with varied and for the cit and the county law enforcement.

And now we have our Max unit engaged.

It's the metro Area Crime Suppression Unit.

So we are working to find solutions and we will keep focused on finding solutions.

No, we're not going to send National Guard folks to Alabama at this time.

All options on the table.

But we don't use our max unit.

So Secretary of, Leo Hal Taylor has been asked to expand the patrol area.

The Capitol Police turned the downtown areas.

This crime cannot be condoned.

And we've got to continue to protect that safety.

Citizens of Alabama.

Ivey there was referring to the Metro Are Crime Suppression Unit, or Max, a task force set u more than a year ago to leverage state, county and federal law enforcement resources to help bolster police presence here in the capital city.

But that unit is focused on reducing violent crime through investigation and arrests, not crowd control.

This week, the Alabama law enforcement agency, at Ivy's direction said it would be beefing up patrol efforts downtown.

Their statement said, quote, effective immediately, Alea will be expanding the patrol footprint of its capital patrol uni to include key downtown areas.

Additionally, state troopers from Alias Highway Patrol Division will increase visibility and enforcement in and around Montgomery, with the goal of deterring criminal activit and dangerous driving behaviors while supporting public safet in a high visibility capacity.

In addition to the efforts of the Metro Area Crime Suppression Unit.

These actions reflect our commitment to support our local law enforcement partners and ensure a safe environment for residents and visitors alike.

We will continue to coordinate closely with Montgomery City and County law enforcement leadership to align efforts, enhance response capabilities, and ensure a strong united front against criminal activity, end quote.

And joining me here in studio to talk about this issue is Randy Scott.

Randy, thank you for your reporting on this issue.

You done follow this investigation all week long.

How are members of the community responding to this horrific accident or horrific incident?

Rather.

Well, people are still very much in shock after hearing the news and seeing the coverage from us and other news stations downtown, because you don't expect to see that in downtown Montgomery or in any downtown area.

But we live in a time where unfortunately, things like this have happened more.

And so people, like I said, a shell shock shocked period.

And it's taken them probably a few days to understand the depth of what happened the magnitude of what happened.

In short, like we said, unfortunately two people have lost their lives.

And as of last report, last hearing are still five people fighting for their lives as we speak, and I think another 7 or 8 who were injured but not severely injured as the five.

So hopefully they will get better.

I think everyone is praying for them, but I think the shock is something that has still been sitting with people because of course when they heard about it and saw what had happened, many people said, okay, I can't go downtown anymore.

This is just getting too off hand.

But I believe from la enforcement and from city, state and local leaders, they want to tell people, hey, we're going to do something to help take care, make you feel secure.

Now, Tamela Demery just such a tragedy and just, you know, you want to, just not believe it.

Because this was a planned event, right?

This kind of block party thin after the big Cramton bowl game.

And I mean, there's a lot of folks in town and, you know, a good event, a great event really for the city got marred an is is scaring a lot of people.

You know I did notice this wee there was some tension between the the mayor and the governor specifically.

Maybe that was al just a kind of a Twitter thing, but there seemed to be some tension earlier in the week.

Blame being tossed around, you know, about what police presence was there and and who was involved.

But, Mary and Governor Ivey ended up meeting later this week.

So by your observation, are they going to be able to work together and kind of, you know, move forward better than that, maybe play the blame game?

Well, I believe they can.

And quite frankly, they're going to have to because the people of this state are looking at them being leaders, both locally here in the city of Montgomery and throughout the whole state, as being the governor.

There was a lot of, I believe, talking, but some miscommunications about what happened, because a lot of people were saying that, well, there were no police officers nearby.

In fact, there were police officers right beside the shooting that there were so many people in and around that area, they were trying to get Ahold of what the problem was, what was going on.

But police were there.

Listen, as mayor Reed said, list of 50ft away from the shooting, that's how close they were.

And it's been coming up that they wanted to make sure that people knew that they were there and they were on site.

But the problem was you had so many people, you had a huge volume of people in that area at that time.

And I wonder if because I kno it was kind of after the party, I wonder if they even anticipated just how many people were going to be around and and look, that's fair to ask questions about that.

You know, how many police presence why weren't there troopers.

You know, we knew trooper at football games all the time.

Why not?

You know, events like this.

Before I let you go, you know, we as we've talked about this, the reason we're talking about it on Capitol Journal is it's not just a Montgomery thing.

This is the capital city.

It impacts the whole state.

And I saw lawmakers this wee reacting, saying, you know, that they were shocked.

They were disappointed because they stay right down there, whether it's at the Renaissanc or Embassy Suites or, you know, all those hotels, a lot of the stay down there during session.

And so I know that can be scary thing.

Do you anticipate any kind of legislation this upcoming session that might try to address things like this?

Well, I know for sure.

Speaker of the House and they saying you, Ledbetter, had made a comment during the session about making sure that there was a beefed up security presence downtown with all the things that were going on in not only Alabama, but throughout this country.

So they want to make sure is beefed up.

I will say this.

We know that Alea has been having troopers in downtown proper going for a few years now.

Now, I' not sure if that means they're going to bring more troopers.

It sounds like it.

Yeah, it sounds like it.

But troopers are here and they do have a footprint.

And they do patrol and they are very visible.

You can't not help but to see them.

Yeah.

You see the Smokey the Bandit or Smokey the Bear, hat.

And that's.

That means business.

Yes it does.

And they are serious about doing their job.

So, add them to the quotient, and you still have to add other officials from Alea and officers from the leader around to do their job as well, to end the police and the sheriff's deputies.

Yeah, it takes them all.

Well, Randy, thank you for your reporting on this story.

You're welcome.

This week, the Alabama Department of Veterans Affair celebrated its 80th anniversary.

The department was founded in 1945 as Worl War Two was coming to a close.

State leaders, department staff and local veterans gathered for a special birthday celebration here in the capital city.

Alma followed that up with the plans that serve almost 30 year olds unwavering dedication.

For 80 years, and without question, it's now in service officers on the backbone of its final mission.

Each of the men, women and children all took all the help, all received and carried on with it and respect they deserve.

One thing that hasn't changed in 80 years is our core mission.

Our core mission is to ensure our veterans and families get that, get their benefits and services from both the state and federal government.

So we continue to do that today with our veteran service officers out through throughout the state and our counties.

They are our primary workforce, and that's primarily what they do.

Of course we also have our veterans homes.

We have the Jet and the scholarship program, as well as, cemetery down a Spanish fort out there.

Yeah.

Big plans for the future.

We plan on increasing a number of veteran service officers out in the state to help our veterans.

So wherever that need is, we'r going to put our veteran service officers and their accredited.

And they offer a free service.

Next, we're going to build a secon state Veterans Memorial Cemetery in north Alabama.

We're in negotiation with some property right now.

And we're so excited.

That's something that has been long time needed up there in the Huntsville area.

And we're excited about the prospect of a brand new state Veterans Memorial Cemetery in the Huntsville are that needed it for a long time.

And lastly, we are partnering with Thomas to Towers.

We're going to be a partner with them, as they build their homeless veterans village in Birmingham, Alabama.

What's your message to them as far as what you can provide to meet them?

Well, initially I would that I'd have them go to the VA, the federal website Vega, but also our website VA alabama.gov to see all the benefits that are available to them.

We have so many benefits, not only the GI dependents scholarship program and the cemetery, but other opportunities for them.

Turning now to Washington, where the government remains shut down as the Senate remains at an impasse over a stopgap funding bill.

Democrats and Republicans are dug in to their position with seemingly no end in sight.

Alex Angle reports from Capitol Hill on the funding lapse and what Alabam Alabama's delegation is saying on day eight.

Welcome to day nine.

Empty hallways, quiet tourist attractions in a closed house chambe have become the norm at the U.S.

Capitol as the government shutdown continues in its second week.

The motion is not agreed to.

The Senate is stuck in a loop of failed votes to advance dueling Republican and Democratic short term spending measures, so it looks like we'll have the same result.

No changes.

Alabama Senators Tommy Tuberville and Katie Britt, along with al but one of their GOP colleagues, continue to support the seven week spending bill.

But not enough Democrats have crossed line to reach the 60 vote threshold.

Chuck Schumer and his part seem to forget that they're here working for the American people.

Democrats are demanding an extension of the Affordable Care Act tax credits.

The subsidies are set to expire at the end of the year, which could raise premiums for Alabamians.

We urge our Republican colleagues t join us in a serious negotiation to reopen the government and extend ACA premiums.

House members have been in their districts for most of the shutdown.

The chamber has not voted since September 19th.

Congressman Robert Aderholt says for the House, it's currently a wait and see game.

Right now, there's no nothing that's on the table that we have to vote for.

And so we're just sort of in a holding pattern waiting on the Senate.

Aderholt says the shutdown is also stalling progress on the 12 full year spending bills, and his thinking on the expiring tax credits is twofold.

These subsidies wer put in place because of Covid.

Obviously, we're not dealing with Covid right now.

On the other hand, though I realize that our health care cost are very difficult for families.

And, so I need to make sure that those subsidies would not be going to someone that that's here illegally.

Undocumented immigrants are not eligible for coverage through the ACA marketplace, according to health care.gov.

The pressure on lawmakers is expected to only intensify next week as service members miss their first paychecks during the shutdown.

The Senate returns to Washington on Tuesday to resume work, but the House currentl has no plans to be back in D.C.

at this time.

Reporting on Capitol Hill, Alex Angle, Capitol Journal.

Thank you Alex.

We'll be right back with this week's guests.

Stay with us.

You can watch past episodes of Capital Journal online any time at Alabama Public Television's website.

aptv.. org.

Click on the online video tab on the main page.

You can also connect with Capital Journal and link to past episodes on Capital Journal's Facebook page.

Rosa Parks is one of the most enduring symbols of the American civil rights era of the mid-twentieth century.

She was active in the Montgomery chapter of the NAACP, serving as its field secretary.

Although she was not the first black woman in Montgomery to be arrested for doing so.

Her 1955 arrest for violating the segregation ordinance by refusing to give up her bus seat to a white man, triggered a 382 day boycott of Montgomery city busses and prompted a challenge o the ordinances constitutionality in federal court.

In December 1956, after the US Supreme Court affirmed a district court ruling against segregation, parks took a symbolic victory ride near the front of a city bus.

Parks continued to work for civil rights causes throughout her life, and was awarded the nation's highest honors for her role in the movement.

My son's name is Nathan.

Nathan is a welder.

He enjoys it.

Loves it.

So my plan is that he would graduate from private high schoo and go on to Auburn University, which is where everyon on his dad's side of the family goes to college.

It was very obvious now tha I have the ability to step back.

He does much better hands on learning.

Nathan had taken a tour at a local career technical school and was very interested in the welding program.

My initial reactio about a career technical school was probably the farthest from the truth.

You know, I was projecting my thoughts onto him and my expectations onto him, and it really took a lot of mom maturity to step back and just step up and be there for him.

After high school, Nathan found a welding job very quickly.

I would say within three weeks of graduation, he was working for a local contractor.

I remember having a conversation with my own mother and she said, is there really any money in welding?

What exactly do welders do?

So as an 18 year old, he's making $47 an hour, right?

So I thought I was raising a CEO.

And as it turned out, I was raising a welder.

Who knew?

Nathan knew?

You're watching Alabama Public Television celebrating 70 years of service to Alabama.

Welcome back to Capitol Journal.

Joining me next is U.S.

Congressman Barry Moore, who's a candidate for the United States Senate.

Congressman thanks for coming on the show.

Todd, it' great to be with you, as always.

You're in your old stomping grounds here in the state House, right?

Yes, I do.

Yeah, like old times coming to the buildin and this this place and a lot of building won't be around very much longer.

That's what I'm here for.

Look, really appreciate you coming on the show to talk about your candidacy for the U.S.

Senate.

You know, I don't try to do the.

All the candidates just asked.

The very basic question is, you know why are you running for Senate?

And maybe more importantly, why do you want to be a United States senator?

Well, for us, it's a call.

And obviously the Republican Party recruited me in 2006 to run for the state legislature, and I told them no.

And then Barack Obama said, we're no longer a Christian nation.

I thought, we need to engage process.

And so we were asked to run for the state House.

We ran and won, served two terms, and then Trump's team asked us to run for Congress.

And and we served no on our third term in Congress.

And for us, when people call and ask us to serve.

When Koch announced that he was running for governor, I had a lot of conservatives call and say, would you consider getting in the fight for the U.S.

Senate seat?

And so had and I put it serious prayer and felt called to do it.

And so we're walking in obedience, you know, Psalms 119 105 says, our word is a lamp unto our feet.

So that doesn't mean I know the outcome, but I just want to walk in faith.

I wondered, I wa curious if the district changing had any impact on your decision, because you went from representing the second district, you know, your hometown, but up here to Montgomery and all that.

The district changed dramatically to where it's now over and mobile.

You picked up a lot of constituents.

You were successful in that race.

Obviously a challenging race.

But I wondered if that that that district changin so much had anything to do with, you know, wanting to run for Senate.

No, not really for me.

It almost made me more reluctant because I just got to know that area really well.

And so it was the area we were settling into.

And, it turned in from the 57th most conservative to the six most conservative district in the nation.

And I'm a member of House Freedom Caucus.

So to represent that district would have been like a duck and water kind of thing.

But when the coach announced that he was going to run for governor, he and I have very similar records in D.C.

he's a 91 Liberty.

I'm a 92.

We vote a lot alike, and so had a lot of people contact policing agents.

Yeah, made me a little more reluctant actually, because I was happy where I was.

I had I had the Gulf of America, the Wiregrass, the port.

What more could a country boy ask for?

Okay, well, so that goes to a statewide race, right?

You're used to running in congressional districts.

There's got to be a challenge.

What's it been like, running statewid as opposed to just one district?

Extremely challenging because you got 67 counties.

Plus, I still have a job I do in Washington, D.C.

every week.

And so for me, it's a lot of time in an airplane, a lot of time on the road.

And so not home as much.

But you got a lot of area to cover.

And honestly, people pretty well south of Montgomery know me because I've had about every Republican county south of Montgomery and maybe see that some counties that weren't so conservative so for us to name it in Birmingham and Tuscaloosa, Huntsville, Auburn, those are new markets.

So we need to be there.

And that's what we're doing.

Yeah.

Well, what issues are you focusing on.

And this is kind of a two parter because I know that issues come up in the campaign may or may not even come u in Washington, but what issues do you want to really focus on if elected to the United States Senate?

I think more most importantly, we've got to codify what President Trump is doin in his executive orders, because right now, that's just a change of an executive branch and a leader in the executive branch.

And we can undo so much of what we've done.

And so for me, it's to make sure that Trump has an ally in the Senate that will move his agenda and codify those things that are executive orders right now to make them permanent law.

Any concern about some of thos executive orders overstepping?

Because there have been quite a few.

And that's the thing we go from president to president.

One undoes the other.

And so it seems to me like there's there is some has been some concern about executive orders overstepping or going beyond what is supposed to be article two presidential power, constitutionally.

Any concern from you on that?

Nothing I've seen yet.

And again, there are 350 of them that came out pretty quick.

So I think the president's team had done a lot of work prior to the swearing in to make sure that they introduce these, and so we've been codifying a few working through them.

So I've not seen anything yet.

But I like I said, there's 350.

And I think members often pick up unit executive orders to to codify them that they're comfortable with.

And so I've not seen anything yet that we're doing that I'm uncomfortable with.

I wanted to ask you about tariffs because that's one policy that has been controversial.

And it's you know mayb it's not working out quite yet because we've had some economic trouble.

Farmers have faced a tough time with fertilizer feed that, their markets for our products partially because of the tariffs.

Manufacturing is you know, slowing a little bit.

What what do you se in terms of the tariff argument?

Because if elected to the Senate, at least constitutionally, you would have a say in the matter in terms of tariffs.

Have we gone too far on the tariffs?

What would you like to see the president do?

On the tariff issue to help the economy?

So I think what he's doing and I've talked to my shrimpers, I love the tariffs, I've talked to my baristas, I love the tariffs.

And I think what we have to do is negotiate good deals on commodities for the farmers, obviously.

And when you talk about input costs for farmers, where the reference prices that 20 that for years under Joe Biden, that 22% inflation where they don't determine the cost of their end product, but their input costs go up.

And so for us, I think President Trump used Harris's a negotiating tool.

And I think that we Ross Perot said years ago, we're going to see a giant sucking sound if we take our manufacturing offshore.

And that's what happened to sock factories, shirt factories, all these manufacturing jobs left America.

And so I think we've seen trillions of dollars on commitment of investment in foreign country to bypass the tariffs, to ge manufacturing back in the U.S.. So I think we have to let thos things work their way through.

Sure.

There's some uncertainty there, Todd But President Trump told us in a meeting once, he said, and this is just recently, he said, hey, I use tariffs to to stop a war and a nation in a region of the world where the two countries were going to war.

And I told one this was in his first term, I told one if you go to war is 200% tariff.

If you go to war, 200% tariff.

And it brought peace to the region, because those are tools that he negotiates with.

And so sometimes they'll fire a shot across the bow.

But if you look at the deals we've negotiated in the past, Europe's been taking advantage of us.

Obviously, other countries around the globe have.

We need to make sure that our farmers and our producers have a level playing field, and that's part tariffs are part of that process.

You bring some of that manufacturing back here and in some case you just make sure they treat us just like we treat them.

Should the Senate pla a greater role in these tariffs.

Because I mean that's that's the way that what the Constitution prescribes is that the Senate you know, we engage on this.

I know the president is using like emergenc authority and things like that.

But if elected to the Senate, would you want to be more involved in trade and issues like that?

Sure.

I think it's important for all our industries whether they're ag industries, defense industry, whatever that looks like.

I think we certainly want a place at the table.

But I certainly, again, I think we've got a president who's a businessman who knows how to go create deals.

And I think in the long run, I think that we need to see interest rates come down.

There's some things we need to see the bureaucracy do.

But I think President Trump, where we're in the Senate, we can step up and help negotiate those deals and understan and explain industry in Alabama, because as a senator, your primary jobs represent the state where as a House member, you represent the people.

And so certainly Alabama wants to be at the table when we're talking about these deals.

And I think bringing space combat wasn't part of tariffs, but it was part of us working together as a delegation to say, hey, we're best suited for this.

And Alabama wins when we do that.

Well, speaking of that, you know there are different types of lawmakers right.

Especially in the Senate.

There are you know I'm thinkin back to the years of you know, Jeff Sessions and Richard Shelby spent 20 years together in the Senate, very different, in terms of, you know, appropriator versus more budget hot.

What kind of senato do you envision yourself being?

More on the messaging side, more on the down and dirty in the in the weeds kind of side?

What do you envision?

When do you see yourself, the United States Senate?

Well, I like I said, I think Koch and I are very similar.

If you look at our voting records and for me, certainly not two senators or anything alike, you see from states, you saw that with Mitchell and Rand Paul.

I mean, you know, totally different senators, but I think they can complement each other.

And often I think there's certain committees that certain senators do well on.

And for us, certainly when it comes to Homeland security border, I've been on Judiciary Committee in the House.

I've been on ag committee there.

Things that coach does that we serve on similar areas.

And I think that I'll be the guy that is certainly accessible.

I think for us, if you look at the Democracy Awards, our our congressional office was number one workplace environment, Washington, D.C., we come number two in the nation in accessibility.

So we just want to make sure we serve the people we're accessible, but also that we come to the table with a voting record that says, hey, we're a conservative, but we've been able to get bills to law with Joe Biden.

And one of my bills is veterans, for veterans.

And so I've been able to work across the aisle and get some things done.

And so for me, I think as a senator, you just keep being accessible to the people, but you also want a place at the table when it comes time to whether it's tariffs or negotiate, what a defense industry into Alabama, whatever that looks like.

I think, that coach and are very similar in those roles.

Okay.

Well, look, I want to get yo to put your Congress hat back on for a second here, because we've got a lot to talk about in terms of what's going on in DC.

You're here in the state right now because the House is out of session after y'all passed the C.R.

you know, you kind of did your job, I guess you'd say.

And, or waiting on the Senate votes aren't there in the Senate.

So the House is out.

You're waiting on the Senate.

Do you see, based on your communication with the speaker and others, in leadership there, do you see, any end in sight to this government shutdown?

Yeah.

You know, I'm cautiously optimistic that some of the Democrats, they're starting to come our way.

I think that even the media is not covering for them as much as they were MSNBC.

CNN never even called out Hakeem.

And certainly some of the some of the, the, the, the, the faces of the Democratic Party saying, wait a minute.

You know, you're saying this isn't health care for illegals, but in fact, it is.

We passed a clean, clean C.R.

when you explain that that because that that argument has been thrown around quite a bit.

Yeah, yeah.

So we went in and the big beautiful Bill, we said if you're if you're not a U.S.

citizen, you don't need to be drawn Medicaid.

And so the on page 57, Schumer is trying to say you're not require to be a citizen to be and their, their agreement to open up and get the Dems to vote, they want to put those folks right back on.

And so we're like, we're just not willing to do that because they want to do they want $1.5 trillio basically to open the government for six weeks, you know, and, and everything we've done with President Trump and the big beautiful bill, some reconciliation things, they're just wanting to strip all of that out and go back to business as usual.

And this is the CR that the Dems voted for.

I mean, i May they pass this very same CR and IT spending levels at Joe Biden.

His goes back something we're not even happy about.

But we're like we want to do the appropriations process.

And it was bipartisan to go pass this CR so we can work on a process process.

And so that's really ho business needs to be done in DC.

But Schumer is willing to shut down the federal government just to use the American people as leverage.

When he voted for this months ago just to get a Christmas wish list with 1.5 trillion in spending, and then tell us how they're going to spend the money, we're just not willing to do them.

So I get that the Medicaid thing is off the table.

One big, debate point is ACA tax credits, right?

These are expiring at the end of the year.

It's estimated that it's, you know, really going to cost some folks, including here in Alabama, what I've heard the president say and Senate Republicans say is that no negotiation on that a part of the shutdown agreement.

Right.

But he's open to conversations after.

Do you foresee, those ACA credits being, you know, renewed or extende or something to avoid increased health care costs?

Yeah, I don't I don't know yet.

I mean, because like I said, that has nothing to do with this.

They're trying to scare the American people and the the Republicans are shut the government down because they don't want to take care of your your tax credits for health care.

But that's not that's another issue that expires end of the year.

We just want the government open back up and then we'll negotiate.

But we're not allowed to use the American people in shutting down the federal government as leverage to try to get some other policies in place.

Well that's health care for illegals or tax credits for American citizens.

And so that will be another issue at a separate time.

But we can't let them just begin to we're in charge.

We have the majority.

We've done what we're supposed to do.

They need to come to the table.

It's a strain because it's almost like the shoes o the other foot from back in 2013 during the Obamacare shutdown.

Because back then it was Republicans who well Ted Cruz and some others kind of demanding something that was not in those core.

Right.

Defund Obamacare.

And, you know, we saw how that worked out.

Eventually, Republicans had to cave some curious what what might happen.

And I really appreciate Alex's on the ground reporting up there.

And thank you, by the way for being so responsive to her and her reporting.

Always happy to talk with her.

I can she catch me in the tunne all the time on the way to votes and I'll I'll try to update people in Alabama.

That's right.

Well we appreciate that.

And look we're out of time, but good luck on the campaign trail.

We will be following closely.

Thank you to God bless you.

We'll be right back.

Alabama Public Television is your place for quality educational services.

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James Withers started the Sloss Furnace Company in 1880 to take advantage of the mineral wealth of the Jones Valley.

He built Sloss his first blast furnace, the following year.

A second furnace soon followed, and Sloss Furnaces produced 24,000 tons of iro in its first year of operation.

Sloss furnaces was an industr leader in innovation and design.

Its superintendent of construction, James Pickering Davout, led Sloss through a period of modernization in the 1920s that resulted in Sloss becoming the second largest producer of pig iron in the Birmingham district.

A slump in the iro market took shape in the 1950s.

Business began to decline and pig iron was basically obsolete by the 1960s.

Higher pollution standards finally closed the furnaces in 1970.

In 1981, Sloss Furnaces was designated a National Historic Landmark and today hosts events, concerts, and a metal arts program.

The site continues to stand as a testament to Birmingham's industrial past.

My name is Jacoby Taliaferro.

I'm a welder here at Arsenal.

I work on the EPO, the Expeditionary Fast Transport.

It's like a picku truck used to transfer sellers and other equipment.

When I got to this job I met a recruiter at our store.

I met him my 10th grade year.

We went through the summer internship.

It was a six week program entering my 12th grade year.

When I came back during the pre apprentice program, I went to school and I came also around 1 to 5 every day.

They paid me to come learn about what I what I love to do every day.

You had to be on time every day.

You had to show u and be accounted for every day.

After I finished, I had to go through another interview and they actually offered me a job.

I'm happ to be a part of this team now.

I can build a career and be able to live here and take care of the people I love.

When I have a passion for what I love, you know, coming to work every day.

I love working every day and I want to change it for my mental.

Welcome back to Capital Journal.

Joining me next is Doctor Karen Anderson, director of the Office of Math Improvement at the Alabama State Department of Education.

Doctor Anderson thanks for coming on the show.

Thank you so much for having me.

Well, I've been looking forward to thi because I've told you all fair.

I feel like we spent so much time talking about literacy and for good reason.

You know, lots of strides made with the Literacy Act back in 2019.

But numeracy was also put into law.

The Numeracy Act in 2021.

A whole different kind of ball game when it comes to that.

You've been charged with leading this effort of really improving the way instruction is done, implementing this law.

And it's kind of the first o its kind in the whole country.

Is that correct?

It is.

That is absolutely the case.

The Alabama Numeracy Act encompasses so much.

It's instruction.

It's coaching.

It's on the post-secondary level.

There's a whole accountability piece.

There are task forces that help make sure that our schools and our students have the best high quality instructional materials available.

It's a very comprehensive piece of legislation that is now become law.

Right.

And I know it must be a challenge to implement something like this.

It was, you know, just conceptually, I remember when they were debating and passing it, everybody was excited.

But it's it's one thing to pass a law.

It's another thing to actuall be in charge of implementing it.

So what's that process been like?

You've had to build a team your kind of spread out in different regions.

What's it been like to try to implement this?

Yes, yes, yes.

Just so grateful to Doctor Mackey for his vision for math improvement, the law, the way it's the way it's written, just states that there must be support offered to schools across the state.

There are 11 in-service regions that are each heralded by, college or university, and there are 11 of them.

And so I must have at least 11 individuals on the team.

They're called regional coordinators.

And where there's more in need, where there are schools that have greater need, and I'm allowed to increase the staff in that area.

So I have been blesse and fortunate to have a dynamic group of individuals working on this team.

And as we began to implement the law, we really started with studying the law, just really pulling it out looking to see what it entails and then creating initial initial professional learning opportunities.

So I so I went on the road a good bit across the state, just letting, school administrators, district leaders, superintendents know this is what's written in the law.

These are the expectations.

This is how you could be identified for support.

And by the way, every school that has students in grades K through five will be slated to receive an allocatio for a building based math coach.

So it's been really exciting.

It's been a lot of tough work.

But here we are a few years i and we're still moving forward.

I've heard a lot about math coaches.

You just mentioned them.

What does a math coach do?

I'm just trying to think like does that mean coaching teachers?

Does that mean coaching students?

Is that a combination?

What is it?

What is it?

Day in the life of a math coach?

Very interesting.

So the law actually is very explicit about what math coaches do.

There are list of 20 expectations for math coaches, just to be sure that they are coaching and nothing else.

They're not allowed to be administrators.

If the principal is out of the building, they're not allowed to be a technology director or a substitute teacher.

Their job is to completely equip teachers, not to work with students.

I like sports more than most people, and I. I like to think of coaches as as not those that are trying to fix teachers, but they're just trying to help them be the best that they can be.

I cannot think of an elite athlete that does not have a coach, right?

So these teachers are to be coached just to help them get to their next level of performance just to help make them better.

So a coach might be modeling a lesson for a teacher.

A coach might be workin with a small group of teachers, just helping them to plan.

Coach might, Well yeah, I mean, I'm thinking of, you know, he said not working with students, right?

Right.

So teachers, they've gone to college, they've been prepared and everything.

But all of us need updates.

All of us need to to continue that education.

Absolutely, absolutely.

Thank you.

Those coaches might provide some professional learning.

There there are there are 20 very explicit duties and responsibilitie that that coach is to undertake.

And one of those obviously really clearly is to work with the actual principal of the school and the assistant principal to make sure that the the principal, first of all, has a plan and a vision for what they want math improvement to look like in their school, and to share information with the coach as to how to get there.

The coach is not evaluative in any means, are not going to tell on the teacher, and their job is not to go to the principal and say oh, this teacher is not doing X, Y, or Z, but just really to to provide areas of support.

So for example, if we're looking at our school data and we find that the entire third grade of students there are not as proficient as they could be in one particular area, then the coach would pull those individual standards from the course of study.

And let's take them all one by one, and then individually work with teacher in what I call coaching cycles.

So they'll start off by identifying a standard that they would like to work on, and a series of lessons you would use to teach that standard.

And they do a pretest for the students.

Let's see.

Let's jus see where the students are now.

And presumably they're not doing really well because you haven't taught them yet.

So then the coach would sit down and make sure that I, as a teacher really understood the standard and then provide me wit some instructional strategies.

What are some ways that that I could teach this standard?

So for example, I want to be sure that I'm giving clear objectives, that I'm assessing my students and adjusting my instruction.

If they're not understanding that coach again might model or co-teach along with me.

So after all of this support has been given by the coach, then, the teacher would provide instruction and then give a post-test, and then we would see the growth that the students are making as a result of that on on one support with the teacher.

So that's really what a coach might do.

You mentioned colleges and universities.

Obviously that is the training ground for our teachers.

So important talk about their role and the Numeracy Act and your efforts in terms of I mean, there's a new crop of teachers coming out every year from college, right?

Talk about y'all's coordination.

So really excited about that part of the law.

There is a provision, first o all, that the certification exam that teachers take in order to become certified in elementary or collaborative education or early childhood, that that test change so that it incorporates content and pedagogy.

So it's a combination of the content that the teachers would teach, like our regular standards, for example, two and three digit addition or multiplication or fractions.

So that standard along with how to teach those standards in a way that is going to make sense for students.

So all of our 24 colleges and universities are in the process of re reimagining, revamping their undergraduate courses and that that four by 12 course sequence so that the content and the pedagogy is infused throughout.

And once that's finished there will be a different exam that's listed in the law as the foundations of mathematics assessment that all will eventually be responsible for, for taking as part of the certification process that seems so important because all the different colleges and universities, it seems very important that they be on the same page in terms of what teachers need to need in order to be successful in the classroom.

And I'm sure they want that too.

They want to, understand what's needed, the latest strategies to how to teach you got t teach them how to teach, right?

Absolutely.

And they have been wonderful partners.

One of the team members, one of the administrators that works on the team is designated to work directly with all of our post-secondary partners, all of our colleges and universities.

And she has she's been sitting down and working with them one on one as needed to be sure that the the courses and the sequence that they are provide is in alignment with the expectations of the law.

I see what is the latest data show.

I mean, I know it's a law like this.

It takes a long time to really turn the aircraft carrier around, so to speak.

But are we seeing some improvement with the addition of these math coaches and your team's work?

We are we are.

I've spoken t to principals across the state, and they have a real solid grasp on literacy.

They really feel as though on a great path for literacy.

And they're learning that path what that looks like for math.

And they're finding that when they when they're paying attention, when they're intentional with the strategies that are laid out by the law, that that progress is made.

And so there are approximately 840 schools across the state that provide instruction for students in grades K through five.

And the bottom 25% of those schools.

That's the number that the Office of Mathematic Improvement is responsible for.

And let's say 77% of the limited support schools and 88% of the full suppor schools have all made progress.

So that's been really, really exciting.

And progress is identified as students, the percentage of students that are proficient on our state assessment, the Icap has improved from one year to the next.

So in some cases it's smaller improvement, which is to be expected because as we're just getting started, as you say we're trying to turn that ship.

It can take a while, but but we're we're seeing some improvement from, from small gains to really substantial gains for schools that are that are making thos changes and putting structures in place and implementing according to the law.

It's interestin you bring up, the Literacy Act because I was talking with Ryan Hankins of Parkwood the other day, about some of this data, including math.

And we talked, we got around to you know, back in the mid 2000, you know, Alabama was doin pretty well in math and reading.

We seem to take the foot off the gas, you know.

And so we talked about this to talk about the importance.

It's not just the law.

It takes investment.

It takes investment from the state year to year in the education Trust Fund budget.

Talk about the importance that that investment makes and allowing you and your staff to be successful.

Absolutely, absolutely.

We really could not do it without the leadership of doctor McKee, our legislators, who had the vision to bring this law into place.

And are willing to fund this endeavor.

It is it is not it is not inexpensive.

And that the budget is, is is public.

You can, you know, and everyon can see what it what it costs.

But the lion's share o those funds are going directly to schools for the individual allocations for our math coaches, for high quality instructional materials.

And it takes it takes an investment.

And I'm just so glad to be in a state where we're willing to come together as a State Department, as legislators, to partner, to make this happen.

And it's and I cannot tak all the credit for our office.

Again, I'm blessed and fortunate to have a fantastic team of individuals from across the state.

But other sections of the State Department, the Alabama math Science Technology Initiative, amps that they're responsible for training the coaches.

We work with the Office of Student Learning and that office we're working with I because a lot of our schools that need support in math are also needing support and reading.

So we're partnering with the so that a plan for that's that meets one set of expectations, really supports them all.

So it doesn't seem like as a principal, I'm having to do different things for different organizations and streamline a little bit.

Yeah, streamline a little bit.

The Office of School Improvement is doing marvelous work with our schools and the multi-tiered system of support, the section in Instructional Services at the State Department.

They have been wonderful partners.

So there are a number of sections that really we're wrapping our arms around these schools and setting our expectation high, but providing the support that they need to to implement and make the improvement that we're seeing.

And we're really grateful for what I understand it's become a model for other states.

That's kind of fun.

Wheneve Alabama is on the forefront of you know, something like this.

Again first of its kind in the nation, what are your colleagues in other states, what kind of questions they ask about our law and what our efforts are here in the state?

It's very interesting that other states are incorporating parts of the Numeracy Act, and that's why I'm always amazed at how comprehensive it is.

You know, there are some states that as well, how are we getting the coaching piece done?

What does that look like.

And others are looking at the instructional piece or what are those evidence based practices.

What do they look like?

And we're just beginning to have conversations on the post-secondary level.

There's an article that was recently published in the Association for Mathematics Teachers Association.

I'm not going to get that right about today, but they are talking about the different, the differen examples of how they're had to redefine their curriculum so that they're providing the best possible preparation for our newest teachers.

So we're not having as many conversations ye around the post-secondary side, but lots of conversations about instruction, about tiered instruction how to intervene when students are having difficulty or wher they demonstrate a deficiency.

But definitely about the coaching side.

Lots of questions there.

Well, congratulations on your success so far.

I hope you'll keep us updated as we go along because again, this is this is, a relatively new law but we want it to have a long, lif and in want to see more results.

So, Doctor Anderson, thanks again for coming on the show.

Thank you for having me.

We'll be right back.

You can watch past episodes of Capital Journal online any time at Alabama Public Television's website.

aptv.. org.

Click on the online video tab on the main page.

You can also connect with Capital Journal and link to past episodes on Capital Journal's Facebook page.

Ralph Shug Jordan coached the Auburn Tigers for 24 seasons, from 1951 through 1975, with 176 win coached during ladies alma mater to more wins than any other head football coach in Auburn's rich football history.

He's remember the College Football Hall of Fame.

The 1950s were probabl his best decade with the Tigers, winning the national championship in 1957.

I'm Thomas Garcia, wide receiver on Coach Jordans 1972 football team, nicknamed The Amazing.

A major underdo entering the season, we finished with a ten one record, number five in the country, including the infamous Punt Bama punt Iron Bowl victory.

Coach always said that his 197 team was one of his favorites.

Coach Jordan remains one of the most highly respected personalities in the history of Auburn University.

Not only because of his success as a head football coach, but also because of his tireless devotion to the Auburn community.

There is a shortage in the electrical trade and we didn't see the talent coming in.

So we decided that the bes thing to do would train our own.

I'm Stephen Cooper, and I'm an electrical apprentice.

I was an eighth grade, electrical trade, had my attention, went to school every day, learn as much as I can.

And then I had the opportunity to apply for this job.

That's how I ended up here today.

Stephen's a great kid.

Comes in your office first thing.

Smiling, shaking your hand.

We started the apprenticeship program so that we would, be able to train, our own employees rather than hire from outside their earning wage because their actual employee.

That's working in the fields during the daytime and going to class at night.

Stephen's in his second year of apprenticeship.

He's doing great.

He's even serious in the classroom.

He does what it takes in order to learn every aspect of the trade, because I know it will make him back on my feet.

I think this job is important because not everyone has the skills to interpret blueprints and understand the scope.

It's a four year apprenticeship program.

We have class one night a week and preparing to, pass your journey.

So Stephen is paired with a journeyman electrician that he would work with in order to be mentored and trained to be able to perform electrical work.

My mentors are Alan Johnson and Corey Rasmussen.

Say I do serve.

I do it sometimes the wrong way, but they show me the proper way to do it when I hold myself.

It increases the staff loyalty because they feel like you're investing in them.

When someone feels like you're investing in them, they perform better.

The Alabama Office of Apprenticeship will come to your office, walk you through the paperwork, and help you step by step on becoming an apprenticeship program.

That's our show for this week.

Thanks for watching.

We'll be back next week at the same time, right here on Alabama Public Television for our Capital Journal team.

I'm Todd Stacy.

We'll see you next time.