McKinney/Christopher
state school board tilt:
'My, what big teeth you have, grandma' or 'Ain't nobody in here but us (GOP) chickens'
By Chip Drago
Mobile Bay Times
Challenger Paul Christopher had to ring just two doorbells to swamp incumbent Randy McKinney in the fundraising battle for a seat on the state school board -- further evidence in the eyes of some GOP leaders that the Ladd Stadium manager is a wolf in disguise for the state teachers union.
Christopher dismisses the charge, saying he's not an Alabama Education Association stooge, but "just a simple man" and more importantly his own man.
Still, nothing about Christopher's recent campaign financial disclosure prompts GOP leaders to retreat from their wary assessment of his bid to beat AEA nemesis McKinney.
"My, what big teeth you have, grandma," is the word in Republican circles upon seeing that 66-year-old political novice Christopher raised more than $158,000 in about two weeks.
May 14 was a 'cha-ching, cha-ching' day for the Christopher campaign as it collected $110,000 from nine different political action committees, all of them housed at 441 High Street in Montgomery. Almost paling in comparison was a visit to 3326 Bankhead Avenue in Montgomery, home to three political action committees which backed Christopher with $25,000 in contributions.
McKinney raised just $22,460.
GOP leaders assert that AEA Executive Director Paul Hubbert, who also serves the state Democratic Party as its vice chairman, has drafted Christopher as a Trojan horse to infiltrate the GOP, win election to the school board and restore AEA's comfort with the state school board and its policies. The recent ouster and indictment of former two-year college Chancellor Roy Johnson led to Gov. Bob Riley's appointment of Bradley Byrne to the post. Riley and Byrne instituted a number of measures -- not the least of which was a ban on "double-dipping"' by state legislators, many of whom are employed in education -- that have rankled Hubbert, some legislators and educators.
A federal investigation continues into charges of corruption in the state's junior colleges and their ties to legislators. Johnson has entered a guilty plea and is now cooperating with authorities.
The GOP issued a statement Friday afternoon saying, "The Alabama Republican Party is strongly encouraging Republican voters to pay special attention when casting their votes in the primary for the State School Board of Education. (AEA and Hubbert are) heavily funding certain Republican candidates in an effort to take control of the School Board, fire Chancellor Bradley Byrne and continue the corrupt practices that have recently been exposed."
Party leaders expressed a reluctance to involve themselves in a primary battle, but decided to make an exception in state school board races where they detect a ploy.
“Traditionally the Party does not get involved in our primaries, but this is a unique situation where the Democratic Party and the AEA are fully funding candidates to run as Republicans and we believe we have a responsibility to alert all Republicans to this situation prior to Tuesday’s primary election," the GOP statement released Friday quotes party chairman and state Rep. Mike Hubbard.
"Our Steering Committee met, and unanimously voted to work against Paul Hubbert’s ulterior motives for the good of our Party," Hubbard continued. "We encourage all Republican voters to not allow the Democrats to hijack our primary, specifically in the election for the State Board of Education, which, based on the levels of corruption that have been exposed, is the last place Democrats need to be in control.”
The Mobile County Education Association's Wade Perry was baffled that teachers would draw criticism for opposing McKinney given his place at the table in support of Johnson during the era of suspect practices and apparent corruption in the two-year college system.
The political drama is playing out at a level above his pay grade as a novice candidate for public office, said Christopher.
"I've never been involved in politics in my life," he said. "I've had friends over the years who have had an involvement in education and a lot of other people with an interest in education approached me about running. I pondered it a long time. People on the sidelines sometimes complain. You can't complain if you don't put your hat in the ring. At least you shouldn't complain. But I'm not interested in complaining. I'm interested in trying to make a positive difference for our kids who need and deserve the best educational opportunities that we can give them."
Christopher said he "doesn't really understand politics," and doesn't really care to because he has a single focus and that's "students and teachers."
Christopher said teachers are over-burdened with paperwork to the detriment of their students. Christopher said his daughter is a former Mobile County public school teacher who became frustrated with the system's mania for testing and is now "happy as a lark" teaching here at a parochial school where the joy of learning comes before fear of the bureaucracy. Christopher said his wife enjoyed great success as a teacher in the local school system but the lunacy of the "no child left behind" program led to her transfer from the classroom to an administrative position.
Christopher said he opposes "double-dipping," in the sense that nobody should get paid twice while doing a single job.
"Use me for an example," he said. "When I have to be involved in a meeting (for state school board business), whatever time I spend, that's at my expense whether I use vacation day, days off without pay, whatever I have to do to see that I'm not getting paid by Ladd Stadium while I'm doing work for the state school board. There would be a substantial difference for me. I'd be paying a premium out of my own pocket."
People can have two public sector jobs without cheating the public, said Christopher. Just as it is wrong to draw pay for two jobs while performing only one, it is wrong to deny an individual as well as the public itself the right to participate fully in civic life whether as a candidate for office or as a voter with all options for representation before him.
"I'm just a plain simple guy," said Christopher. "I don't have any agendas. All I want to do is help students. Period. That's all I want to do. Every year a group of children leaves our classrooms. In my estimation, we have a moral duty to have those children prepared to succeed in life."
