Alabama

Migrant controversy hits heartland as Alabama council meeting boils over, state officials slam feds' 'mess'

Published

1 year ago

September 9, 2024

Migrant controversy hits heartland as Alabama council meeting boils over, state officials slam feds' 'mess'

Residents of a small Alabama city were up in arms at the migrant influx during a recent city council hearing that lawmakers suddenly cut short amid the outcry.

Meanwhile, state leaders demanded answers from the feds as the migrants appear to be in the country legally under Temporary Protective Status provisions extended to Haitian nationals by Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas.

In Sylacauga, just south of NASCAR’s Talladega Superspeedway, City Council President Tiffany Nix abruptly curtailed public comment as residents demanded accountability for the at least 50 migrants that appeared in the city.

“We’re done,” Nix responded to resident David Phillips, who had criticized council’s attitude as “entirely unacceptable” during the meeting last week.

“[Haiti is] a failed state – their president (Jovenel Moise) was assassinated in 2021 – there is no way the State Department can vet these individuals,” Phillips said before Nix cut in as another resident called out, “Please let him talk.”

MIGRANT CRISIS ROILS BOSTON AREA AS SCHOOL STANDS FIRM ON RESIDENCY POLICY

Nix then made a motion to adjourn the meeting and ordered the gallery cleared.

“This is our city,” a woman in the gallery said. “Good to know, they don’t want to hear the truth,” another said.

Another resident wondered aloud how local schools will be able to handle the new migrants, noting that financial resources would be needed for children that only speak French-Creole and not English.

Amid the murmuring, Nix could be heard asking, “What would you like us to do?”

Earlier in the meeting, Nix said there is no reason to launch a municipal investigation and that people should not treat others “differently because of how they look.”

State Rep. Benjamin Robbins, who represents the city, wrote a letter Thursday to Mayorkas, demanding a federal response.

“As the secretary of Homeland Security, you are charged with overseeing immigration enforcement and refugee resettlement,” he wrote.

“Recently, my district has seen an influx of Haitian immigrants. You and your agency have failed in your responsibility to notify our community of the relocation of refugees, provide any information to local leaders or answer questions.”

Robbins said the situation has caused “panic and confusion” and left local leaders “helpless.” Robbins said he would demand Congress investigate if DHS does nothing.

Sylacauga Mayor Jim Heigl separately told Alabama’s 1819 News that information the migrants were in his city legally “came out from [Gov. Kay Ivey’s] office and also came from Mike Rogers’ office, [Sen.] Katie Britt’s office and [Sen. Tommy] Tuberville’s office.

BIDEN’S LATEST BORDER ORDER MAY EMBOLDEN MIGRANTS TO FLOUT IMMIGRATION LAWS, COMMIT MARRIAGE FRAUD CRITICS SAY

Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey (AP Photo/Vasha Hunt/File)

Rogers, the chair of the House Armed Services Committee, called the situation in his district “yet another example of the Biden-Harris administration’s moronic immigration policy failures.”

“Those two never cease to amaze me with their total incompetence and outright antagonism toward hardworking Americans. The way to fix this is to re-elect President Trump,” Rogers said.

Alabama House Speaker Nathaniel Ledbetter added his biggest concern is the lack of information from the feds on the migrants already inside the state.

“We have asked repeatedly,” said Ledbetter, R-Rainsville. “Once they are here, communities like Sylacauga and Albertville are left to deal with the disaster. Our schools don’t have the ESL resources to support the immigrant children, housing these people is an issue, crime is an issue, and the federal government has offered zero support whatsoever.”

Tuberville told Fox News Digital the feds are abusing their parole authority, which he said is supposed to be used sparingly and only for humanitarian purposes.

Instead, he said the administration is using it as a tool of “mass amnesty to millions of people.”

“We have no idea who most of these people are,” Tuberville said.

Fox News Digital reached out to the city and was directed to Nix’s email but did not receive a response.

Meanwhile, in Montgomery, state Senate President Pro-Tempore Greg Reed, R-Jasper, said Monday the Biden administration has allowed millions of illegal immigrants to “pour in” and cause a crisis.

“The immigration catastrophe they have … openly incentivized is hitting home right now for Americans across the country, including right here in Alabama,” he said.

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

Immigrants line up at a remote U.S. Border Patrol processing center after crossing the U.S.-Mexico border on Dec. 7, 2023, in Lukeville, Ariz. (John Moore/Getty Images)

“Alabama officials are prepared to use the tools at our disposal to clean up the mess and confusion their reckless policies have created,” Reed went on, adding that the crisis in Sylacauga emphasizes the importance of the presidential election.

A spokesperson for Ivey responded to a question about the mayor’s comments by saying her office has not received any facts or communications from the feds or to local officials on the matter.

“Separately though, Alabamians and Americans all over the country are rightfully concerned over the current Biden-Harris pro-illegal immigration policies. No doubt this is a contributing factor to the concerns of people in Sylacauga and other areas,” Gina Maiola said.

“People are on high alert. Gov. Ivey will continue taking action to enforce the law, doing everything in Alabama’s authority to secure the U.S. southern border and protecting our citizens from the harmful effects of illegal immigration.”

DHS did not respond to a request for comment for this story.

Charles Creitz is a reporter for Fox News Digital.

He joined Fox News in 2013 as a writer and production assistant.

Charles covers media, politics and culture for Fox News Digital.

Charles is a Pennsylvania native and graduated from Temple University with a B.A. in Broadcast Journalism. Story tips can be sent to charles.creitz@fox.com.

Source link

Alabama

Star Alabama WR will sign with SEC rival out of transfer portal

Published

4 hours ago

January 11, 2026

Press Room

Star Alabama WR will sign with SEC rival out of transfer portal

A bad day in the transfer portal for Alabama football got a little bit tougher on Sunday evening. Wide receiver Isaiah Horton, a starter for the Crimson Tide in 2025, announced that he’ll be transferring within the SEC.

Horton will land at Texas A&M, the same place as former UA offensive tackle Wilkin Formby. The wideout shared the news on his social media Sunday.

The Horton news follows a day in which Alabama missed out on a potential superstar replacement at receiver, when Cam Coleman announced his commitment to Texas. To make matters worse for the offense, running back Hollywood Smothers, who publicly committed to the Crimson Tide from NC State, flipped to Texas on Sunday as well.

Horton provided valuable size in Alabama’s receiver room. He caught 42 passes for 511 yards and eight touchdowns in 2025.

The 6-foot-4, 208-pound native of Nashville, Tenn. led the Crimson Tide in touchdown catches. He had a knack for getting open in the end zone in clutch situations, as seen most clearly in the Iron Bowl.

As Alabama struggled against an Auburn team playing with an interim coach at Jordan-Hare Stadium in November, Horton caught three touchdown passes. He made his final scoring grab on a crucial fourth down late in the fourth quarter.

With Horton gone, plus Germie Bernard running out of eligibility, Alabama has just one returning starter (Ryan Williams) at wide receiver from the 2025 season remaining. The other spots will likely be filled by the likes of Lotzeir Brooks, Rico Scott and Derek Meadows.

Alabama will be facing off against the Aggies this season, for the first time since 2023. The Crimson Tide will host Texas A&M on Oct. 24 at Bryant-Denny Stadium.

Undergraduate players are allowed to enter the transfer portal through Friday. Players who do can sign with a new team at any time, even after the entry window is closed.

Source link

Alabama

Nate Oats Rips Alabama Players for Being ‘Too Comfortable With Losing’

Published

16 hours ago

January 11, 2026

Press Room

Nate Oats Rips Alabama Players for Being ‘Too Comfortable With Losing’

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — No. 13 Alabama men’s basketball might have a bit of a problem.

The Crimson Tide was upset by Texas at home on Saturday night, and the 92-88 loss was riddled with negatives. Alabama came into this one with a road loss to undefeated Vanderbilt, and this should’ve been a game to shake it off.

But Alabama was down by double digits to Texas on numerous occasions throughout the contest. Crimson Tide head coach Nate Oats said during the postgame press conference that defensive assistant Brian Adams “does a really good job putting good game plans together,” but “guys that don’t care enough to lock in and follow” those game plans.

“It starts with effort,” Oats said. “The want-to, competitive edge, guys just don’t want to lose, give you everything they got. The guys are apparently too comfortable with losing right now, because they’re not giving us everything they got on that side of the floor.

“So, I think it starts with having guys that just refuse to lose. From there, it goes to guys, like in the moment, having some personal pride in stopping their man. Too many blow-bys, too many isolation plays, just beat one-on-one, guy’s not locked down on the help side, a guy gets beat…I do think we’ve got some guys that care enough about winning on the defensive end, but you’ve also got to score the ball on offense, too.

“So we’re going to have to figure out the right lineups to play that care enough, compete enough, are tired of losing, got enough personal pride in their defense and they care enough to prepare. … Losing doesn’t bother them enough yet. I don’t know how many losses it’s going to take until it bothers them, but it bothers me. It bothers the coaching staff, and as soon as it starts bothering the players enough, I’m sure they’ll change.”

Another way to ensure winning is by converting at the free throw line. Alabama looked the part in the first half, as it hit 11 of its 12 attempts from the charity stripe. But in the second half, in part due to the defense, the Crimson Tide continued to fall behind, and it led to UA converting just eight of its 15 attempts in the latter 20 minutes.

“When you’re locked in, you’re locked in,” Oats said. “When you’re locked in on defense, all you care about is winning the game. When you’re locked into the defense and you go to the line, and you’re just focused on winning the game, you’ll step up and you’ll make your free throws.

“When you’re worried about a lot of stuff that’s a distraction, worried about stats and some other stuff, and you’re not locked in, that’s when you go to the line and miss. Especially when you’re a good shooter, guys that should be making free throws at a high level. And the pressure got them a little bit in the second half, we got down 13.

“I mean, we do a free-throw game. It took us four tries to get it the way I wanted it yesterday. Guys have got to care enough to get in the gym and work on their free throws. So, free throws are the only thing in the game of basketball that has no variation to it ever, except for a variation you put in your own mind. Well, get enough reps up, you train your mind and basically become a machine at the free-throw line. Obviously, we’re not putting enough reps up right now.”

Alabama freshman forward London Jemison said after the game that the team needs to be “more connected” during games, practices, film and even when focusing on nutrition.

Oats provided an outline for the defense to gel more, the free throws to fall through the basket and a stronger connection to be enforced. And it’s quite a simple solution.

“It looks like we need some leadership to step up,” Oats said. “Some guys that want to get everybody together, tired of losing, stuff’s got to change. It’s not a talent problem. It’s a focus, effort and competitive juice problem. So, if they’re not as connected, that falls on the leadership of the team.

“And we’ve told these guys, ‘We’re here to help you. This is your team, your season. I’ll be coaching for a long time after this. They get one opportunity with this group to put it together. That’s it.’ So, if they love their brothers and they want their teammates to perform well, they’re going to give a lot better effort on the floor than what they’re doing. Maybe they’re not as connected.

“To me, it seems like we don’t have any bad guys. Like, there’s nobody that everybody just doesn’t like. They seem to like each other, but they obviously don’t respect their teammates enough to give a winning effort out there. Some of the guys are really bought into winning, but not everybody. So we’ve got to get everybody bought into winning.”

Alabama (11-5, 1-2 SEC) aims for a resurgence against Mississippi State (10-6, 2-1 SEC) on the road on Tuesday night.

Source link

Alabama

Where to watch Texas vs. Alabama today: College basketball free stream

Published

1 day ago

January 10, 2026

Press Room

Where to watch Texas vs. Alabama today: College basketball free stream

If you purchase a product through a link on our site, we may receive compensation.

The No. 13 Alabama Crimson Tide host the Texas Longhorns Saturday at 8 p.m. ET. The Crimson Tide have four losses this season, all have come against teams ranked inside the top 11.

Texas vs. Alabama will air on ESPN, and streams live on DIRECTV (free trial).

What: Men’s college basketball regular season

Who: Texas Longhorns vs. No. 13 Alabama Crimson Tide

When: Saturday, Jan. 10, 2026

Where: Coleman Coliseum, Tuscaloosa, Alabama

Time: 8 p.m. ET

TV: ESPN

Live stream: DIRECTV (free trial), fuboTV (free trial)

Texas is 3-4 in its past seven games, and doesn’t have a win over any currently ranked teams. A road win over Alabama would help its cause in the national ranking and the SEC standings. Alabama hasn’t lost to an unranked team this season, and a second straight would hurt their hopes for a top seed in the NCAA Tournament.

Here’s a recent college basketball story via the Associated Press:

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Tyler Tanner scored 23 of his career-high 29 points in the second half and No. 11 Vanderbilt remained undefeated by beating 13th-ranked Alabama 96-90 on Wednesday night.

The Commodores (15-0, 2-0 Southeastern Conference) extended their best start since winning 16 straight games to open the 2007-08 season. This is only the second time in the program’s 124-year history that Vanderbilt has won its first 15.

Vanderbilt hadn’t played a ranked opponent until this game, also the first here between two top-15 teams since Jan. 5, 1974. Then-No. 10 Vanderbilt beat the 14th-ranked Crimson Tide in that game on its way to splitting the SEC championship with Alabama.

Vanderbilt also beat Alabama for the first time at Memorial Gym since 2018, ending a five-game skid against the Tide.

Duke Miles had 19 points and five steals before fouling out, and four other Commodores finished with at least four fouls. Tyler Nickel scored 12 points while Devin McGlockton and AK Okereke, who also fouled out, each had 10.

Tanner, a sophomore guard, added seven assists and four steals. He was 12 of 15 at the free-throw line — all in the second half.

Alabama (11-4, 1-1) had its four-game winning streak snapped in a game featuring 63 combined fouls, with two technicals on the Crimson Tide.

Amari Allen led Alabama with a season-high 25 points. Leading scorer Labaron Philon Jr. added 18 but checked out with 16:06 to go and never returned. Aden Holloway had 22 points and Latrell Wrightsell Jr. scored 13.

Fouls called left and right turned the first 10 minutes of the second half into ugly ball, and Alabama never led by more than four. Allen hit two free throws that pulled the Tide to 59-58 with 12:14 left.

Vanderbilt went on a 16-4 spurt that included a technical foul on Alabama coach Nate Oats with 8:39 to go. Tanner hit both free throws off the technical, then Mike James knocked down a 3-pointer for a 74-63 lead. The Tide made it interesting but got no closer than 94-90.

Up next

Alabama hosts Texas on Saturday.

Vanderbilt hosts LSU on Saturday.

Can I bet on the game?

Yes, you can bet on the game from your phone in New York State, and we’ve compiled some of the best introductory offers to help navigate your first bets from BetMGM, FanDuel, DraftKings, Bet365 and more.

Source link