Started in 2000, Jon is the founder and owner of JAG Trucking, LLC, located in Opelika. He is currently a member of the Auburn Kiwanis Club. If elected to the seat of Probate Judge, Jon’s goal is to return accountability, accessibility, and attention to the Probate office through being a reliable employee who is accountable for all of his job requirements, accessible to the public at all times — realizing that his job is to serve them — and attentive to the needs of the office and those whom they serve.

Some cool stuff this weekend in Opelika, and I’ll get that posted in the morning.  We’re ramping up for the Holidays and all the fun that brings.

Guess that’s why Steve “Redman” Penland isn’t running for anything this year, although I understand he may be running from a few things.

Davis will meet with members of the media at J & M Bookstore at 115 South College Street at 9:30AM

“I am uniquely qualified to serve the citizens of Lee County as its next Circuit Court Judge because of my diverse business background, broad range of legal experience and a commitment to public service.” Thrash graduated from Opelika High School in 1979 and then earned his Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from the University of Alabama in 1983. In 1986 he graduated from Cumberland School of Law at Samford University, Birmingham, Alabama. Thrash was in the private practice of law in Lee County where his practice consisted of business, corporate, banking, creditor, real estate, workman’s compensation, domestic relations, criminal defense, bankruptcy, social security disability and probate matters. He has practiced in all the trial courts of Alabama and has tried hundreds of cases during his career.

Among his cases were several jury trials including trials for capital murder, medical malpractice, automobile collision cases, condemnation cases, and wrongful termination. He served as Judge Richard Lane’s referee in the Family Court of Lee County where he presided over child support and juvenile trials and would make recommendations to Judge Lane for disposition of the cases. He currently serves as an Assistant Attorney General representing the Alabama Department of Environmental Management and the Alabama Scrap Tire Commission. He has tried enforcement cases throughout the State and has tried cases before the Environmental Management Commission. He is a member of the Alabama State Bar and serves on the Environmental Sections Executive Committee, and as its Treasurer. James and his wife, Cindy Henderson Thrash, reside in Opelika with their teenage son, James Ray Thrash.

As a family, they worship in the fellowship of First Baptist Church of Opelika. The primary for Lee County Circuit Judge, Place 2, is scheduled for June 1, 2010, with the general election following in November.

“I’m honored to have Jere Beasley’s support, and I’m deeply honored that he has agreed to play a major leadership role in my campaign,” Davis said.  “He has been a public servant and is renowned as one of the leading attorneys in the country. He has battled in the courtroom for Alabamians who have no other voice.  Most importantly, he is a man of deep faith and an active civic philanthropist in our state.  As I fight to transform our state’s economy and to restore confidence in public purpose in Alabama, I will draw on the values which Jere Beasley reflects. ”

Jere Beasley is senior member of Beasley, Allen, Crow, Methvin, Portis & Miles, P.C. in Montgomery, Ala.  He has been profiled in Time Magazine, Business Week, and many other noted publications.  He is also featured in the 2003-2004 edition of The Best Lawyers in America, a traditional database of over 16,000 lawyers in 30 specialties, all of whom have been chosen as “the best” by their fellow attorneys.  Beasley currently serves on the Board of Directors for the Montgomery Area Chamber of Commerce and the Alabama Shakespeare Festival. In 2006, Jere was named “Citizen of the Year” by the March of Dimes. He is also an active supporter of the Fellowship of Christian Athletes.  Most recently, Jere was selected to Alabama Super Lawyers for 2008 and 2009.  A father of three children and six grandchildren, Beasley and his wife attend St. James United Methodist Church in Montgomery.

“The American Clean Energy and Security Act, as proposed by the Democrats in Congress, will effectively serve as a death sentence for economic expansion in Alabama and in the South as a whole. In recent years many southern states, including Alabama, have been able to attract quality businesses that provide stable, well-paying jobs.  Much of this success has been because of the availability of high quality and affordable power sources.  If this bill passes, offered under the pretenses of protecting the environment, there is no doubt that the economies of Alabama, and the rest of the South, will suffer even more than they already have.

“Our environment is important, and we should seek to protect it so that our children and grandchildren may enjoy and learn from it for years to come.  However, we must draw the line when protecting our environment  becomes a shield for political maneuvering.  This bill is nothing more than an attempt by the liberal, Democratic members of Congress to enforce standards on businesses, which will in turn create a certain and drastic increase in taxes.  This is clearly a concerted effort to fulfill President Obama’s quest to ‘spread the wealth’ around.

“The worst thing during a major decline in the economy is to raise operating costs for, and taxes on, those organizations which keep people employed.  As a small business owner, I know what it is like to have families depending on you each week for a paycheck, and I also understand how difficult it is to hire new workers when your expenses and taxes continue to rise.  This bill will no doubt make it harder for existing businesses to strive and new businesses to be created.  Over 194,000 folks in Alabama do not have a job, most want one, but simply can’t find any work.  If this bill is allowed to pass, this staggering number will surely increase.

“Enough is enough.  It is time that we as Americans and Alabamians tell the federal government to get out of our lives.  The Tenth Amendment is clear: states like Alabama should be allowed to govern themselves on certain issues, and especially on an issue like energy costs, which vary from state to state and city to city.  Our state cannot afford to stand by any longer and allow the overreaching policies of a left-leaning Congress, deceivingly cloaked behind the noble aspiration of environmental protection, to destroy our economy, and our right as a state to govern itself.”

Robert Bentley, a Tuscaloosa dermatologist, was elected to the Alabama House of Representatives from District 63 in November of 2002 and ran unopposed for re-election in 2006.  He currently serves on the Agriculture, Education Appropriations and Internal Affairs Committees in the House.

“Serving in the state House has been a blessing and honor, but now the time has come to explore a new horizon and face new challenges to fulfill the deep commitment I feel to my local community, to our state, and to the people of Alabama,” Rep. Bentley said today.

Rep. Bentley will travel across Alabama by bus on Wednesday and Thursday to announce his candidacy during several press conferences. On Wednesday, the bus will travel from Tuscaloosa to Birmingham and Huntsville before ending the day in Montgomery. Thursday, the bus will travel from Montgomery to Opelika, Dothan and Mobile before returning to Tuscaloosa Thursday evening. 

Robert Bentley is a native of Columbiana, Alabama in Shelby County. He and his wife, the former Dianne Jones of Montgomery, have four children: John, Paul, Luke and Matthew. They have five granddaughters.