I think Bob Riley has done great

[Syrinx]

I know he's a Republican, and I hate the way he praises Bush.

But I think he has done a good job. I think he's a TRUE Christian.

Please support the governor... until the general election that is, because he IS a republican.

[craigolemiss]

1. Even Haley Barbour was Ok--Until

He got the Rove Talking points memo yesterday

[BamaGirl]

2. He's ok

We could certainly have much worse!

[Firenze777]

3. I agree, he could be worse

But don't be lulled into forgetting the Diebold trickery, and illegal but immediate sealing of the ballots that got him installed in the governor's mansion. All of our votes are as invisible as they ever were.

Also...what about that deal about a year ago where Alabama state legislature Republicans were going to agree to reinstate on voter lists felons who had satisfied all their legal requirements, and Democrats were going to ease their objections to poll site identification....but Riley stepped in and kept the ID requirement and negated the felon reinstatement.

[Blue Dawg]

4. Agree…

…both him and Barbour have been lousy governors but they’re doing well so far and have been both dignified and effective in their response.

The Bush Administration and Blanco made mistakes, and while the Federal Administration seems to still be struggling to deal with this effectively, both they and Blanco have done the honourable thing taken the rap and got down to work… and while the DHLS still needs to get it’s a*ss into a higher gear, they are starting to get the job done.

Landrieu has been excellent and looks like she’s finally getting some rest, haven’t seen her today, she’s been dignified and articulated with passion and conviction what’s happening on the ground and how its affected her people… she’s the only person to come out of this crisis with anything IMHO.

In stark contrast to this are Nagin and Vitter! Nagin could have got more people out of the city, he didn’t, and he could have prepared the defences for the onslaught of Katrina, again he didn’t and now he sits back and blames anyone but himself… I hate to say this about a Democrat, but its no excuse the man is incompetent and his mistakes have cost lives… reprehensible IMHO.

As for Vitter, he’s nowhere to be seen; all that has been heard from him is how his relationship with Bush is helping the state he is the only person to be as crass and insensitive as to try to make partisan points from a tragedy, and to think this man followed a true southern legend like John Breaux, he’s not even fit to tie Breaux’s shoe laces!

[southpaw]

5. Riley is a likeable guy...

I supported ammendment 1 and was amazed that a republican would even allow a vote on such a progressive tax plan.

From all I know, Riley's response to Katrina has been appropriate and timely.

Still, the guy is a Bush-lover who spent a decent part of the 1990's living in the rectum of Newt Gingrich. I can't wait to vote his millionaire ass out of office!

[StopRoy]

6. Yeah, Riley is alright.

He did try to pass a tax increase more daring than most of our people would have attempted. It was really a very good plan. His own party knocked each other over to race to the polls and shoot him down.

I agree that Riley is real about his Christianity. He is very different from his opponent, Roy Moore.

At StopRoy.com, I'm encouraging Alabama Democrats to attend the Republican primary and vote for Riley. Let's make sure it's Bob Riley we're voting against in the general election, and not Roy Moore. This way, if we lose, it won't be nearly as bad.

[Syrinx]

14. most folks taxes would have actually gone down

It was a massive failure of public relations that doomed the plan.

[jody]

7. Riley is a polished politician without a clue on how to govern a state.

He's done absolutely nothing of substance for Alabama.

[StopRoy]

8. True, but he tried.

He's done nothing of substance because his own base shot down Amendment 1, which could have been his legacy (and a pretty good one).

[jody]

9. We disagree. Amendment 1 was void of specifics on how additional

money would be spent so that education was improved.

Many, many people asked for specifics and Riley did not respond.

Given that as a useful measure of his ability to govern, he flunked.

[AUYellowDog]

10. That's what I'm having trouble with

I can't come up with a reason to absolutely loathe him as I do the national leadership. Amendment 1 was incredible. I guess voter fraud is kind of a big deal though, but he hasn't been that terrible of a leader.

Brandon

[quaoar]

11. Riley has succumbed to Siegelman Syndrome

Siegelman proposed a lottery to fund education. The voters shot it down and he never came back with another plan. Just dropped the whole thing.

Riley proposed his own tax increase package for schools. it, too, was shot down and Riley has yet to come back with another proposal.

The trend seems to be that a governor tries something, loses, and then goes and skulks in the corner.

Well, that's just not good enough.

[southlandshari]

12. I agree.

Amendment One was not short on specifics - I was extremely involved in working to get voters in Lee County to pass it, which they did by more than a 60-40% margin. I believe Riley proposed it for all the right reasons, and he and the people of Alabama were once again screwed royally by the likes of John Giles and the piss poor, elected for life state legislators who cared for nothing but protecting their kickbacks from crooked industries who make big bucks off of cheap labor and ridiculously regressive sales tax in this state. The disinformation put out on that referendum, and on Amendment Two last year, was reprehensible.

He staked his political future on trying to do the right thing, and that will make him vulnerable in the end. Of course I want Baxley as our next governor, but I'd much rather have Riley than Moore if the votes aren't there. Thankfully, I think they are!

[Syrinx]

13. I agree in the absolute with what you say

Anything to defeat that strange coalition of the piss poor and the filthy rich that seems to rule Alabama politics.

Go common sense! Yeah!

[jody]

15. Not short on specifics? I disagree.

Every second of a school day is already used.

Riley and his advisers were asked repeatedly and in various ways the following simple questions.
1. What new topics will be taught and what topics discarded?
2. What different teaching techniques/processes will be used and what techniques/processes discarded?
3. What proof is there that the new topics and different teaching techniques/processes will improve student performance?

Obviously my summary questions above are composites of questions asked by voters but neither Riley nor Alabama's Board of Education nor Alabama's Department of Education were able to answer them.

I've talked to hundreds of Alabama voters from across the political and economic spectrum and concluded the following. The majority of voters believed that by just giving more money for education they simply end up paying more for the same old thing.

Obviously you and I disagree and we aren't going to settle the issue with an online exchange. You've stated your conclusion and I've stated mine.

We do agree on one important fact, Alabama's education system is broke in two ways, broke as in needing repairs and broke as in needing money.

We disagree on whether Alabama's elected leaders know how to repair the system. :shrug:

[GrpCaptMandrake]

16. The GOP Gubernatorial Primary

needs to be as ugly and bloody as possible. Dedicated Alabama Repiglicans need to come out of it feeling as disaffected as humanly possible. Toward that end, Alabama Democrats need to stay the heck away from the Moore/Riley battle so that the Repigs will know they have only each other to blame and thus infect their hateful little party with even more nastiness than it ordinarily has.

Since both men are "church people," our party only benefits by watching these fake xtians drag out as much vitriol as they can generate as they try to out-Jeebus each other.

Maybe the state democratic party should quietly give away free copies of "Elmer Gantry" just to drive home the point.