Alabama News

In the sixth and final part of our 2025 high school football survey preview, the AL.com experts were asked to name one game they didn’t want to miss this fall.

One of those games happens on the first Friday of the season.

Here are their answers:

Thomas Ashworth, AL.com

Muscle Shoals at Hartselle, Oct. 24: This is sure to be another huge game in Class 6A. Last season’s game was decided by just 1 point with the Trojans winning the game and Region 7 with the win. With talent coming back for both teams, stakes will surely be high in late October.

Simone Eli, WKRG-TV

St. Michael at Jackson, Oct. 3: These two teams met twice in 2024 with the Aggies winning in the regular season and in the 4A state semifinals. This might well be the first of two meetings once again.

Randy Kennedy, AL.com and IHeart Radio

Saraland at Jackson, Aug. 22: This is not just a game. It’s a cultural event in Jackson. The Aggies are the reigning 4A champs. The Spartans have played in the last three Class 6A title games. This game also includes the three finalists for last year’s 4A Back of the Year – Jackson QB Landon Duckworth (winner), Jackson RB and Alabama commit EJ Crowell and St. Michael QB Gunner Rivers.

Gerhard Mathangani, WKRG-TV

Saraland at Jackson, Aug. 22: Eyes from around the state will be on this opener. The Aggies are 25-2 in the last two seasons. One of those losses came at Saraland in the 2024 season opener. Saraland is 41-3 in the last three years. Spartans coach Jeff Kelly is a former Jackson head coach.

Ben Thomas, AL.com

Thompson at Clay-Chalkville, Sept. 26: Thompson has lost six games to Alabama teams in the last five years. Two of those came against Clay-Chalkville, and both were classics. The Cougars beat Thompson 14-13 in overtime in 2024 and 36-33 in 2023 in a game televised by ESPN2. The Warriors won a tight game, 17-14, in 2022. In other words, Meeting No. 4 should be a star-filled classic.

John Vella, AL.com

St. Michael at Jackson, Oct 3: The first Friday of October is already circled on the calendar. The Aggies and Cardinals clash at Legion Field. In their last meeting, Jackson won 49-28 in the 4A semifinals a year ago on the way to a dominating state title win. There will be plenty of future college standouts on the field for both teams along with former NFL QB turned St. Michael coach Philip Rivers.

Dennis Victory, AL.com

Thompson at Hoover, Oct. 17: This game has decided the Class 7A, Region 3 winner in seven of the last eight seasons. One of the two has either won or played for the state championship for nine years straight.

Editor’s note: The p2icks panel will return on Aug. 21 with the first predictions for the new season.

How much does it take to get a rock and roll legend to take requests and play your favorite song?

The price was just $20 bucks for one lucky Paul Simon fan.

The 83-year old music icon was performing at the Walt Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles July 16 when a fan asked him to play “Kodachrome,” a song he has not performed since 2019.

The performer initially declined, but added a little snark, “..Unless you got $20 bucks,” according to a poster on Instagram who captured the moment.

The fan called his bluff and took out $20. In a style reminiscent of dive bar performances, Simon got off his stool, took the cash and sang a sample of the song.

The “Mrs. Robinson” and half of the Simon and Garfunkel singer-songwriter’s latest performances represent his return after canceling several shows in June due to undergoing surgery to address severe back pain, according to People.

Simon has never said why he retired his 1973 hit, but in 2024, Simon revealed that he had to retire another one of his hits from his live shows due to hearing loss in one ear, according to Yahoo Entertainment.

Going to the movies usually includes a big buttery bag of popcorn and a big gulp of soda to wash it all down in fizzy, sugary glory.

One national movie theater chain is expanding their offerings by adding new twists to their sodas. Regal Cinemas is rolling out new ‘Drips by Pepsi.’

The chain takes three classic flavors cola, lemon lime soda and lemonade as the base, then adds new toppings and flavors to create what promoters call “a swirling soft drink sensation.”

New varieties include tropicana Cotton Candy Lemonade, Pepsi Cherry Bobba Burst and Starry Dragon Fruit Blast.

The flavors are not yet available in all Regal Cinemas locations, and there are none in Alabama. According to allrecipes.com the new flavors are now in select Regal theaters in Alaska, California, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Illinois, Nevada, New York, North Carolina, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, Washington and Washington D.C.

The mother of a 45-year-old man who was fatally shot by police in Odenville two years ago has filed a wrongful death lawsuit in the deadly shooting.

Gregory Don Bratcher, a decorated veteran with a documented history of PTDS, was killed July 15, 2023, when Odenville police responded to what was described as a possible domestic hostage situation at a home at 15705 Highway 411.

The federal lawsuit was filed in Birmingham this week by attorneys James Michael Perry and Martin Weinberg on behalf of Bratcher’s mother, Virigina Bratcher.

The suit names as defendants Officer Jeffrey Eugene Linard II, Police Chief Glenn Walton, and the City of Odenville, and claims police had prior knowledge and experience with Bratcher’s mental health issues.

“Gregory’s death was preventable and unnecessary,” the suit states.

“This case concerns misinformation and miscommunication, an officer’s own internal biases resulting in excessive deadly force, and police department’s failure to provide a lawfully required mental health service toa man threatening suicide on his own property,” the suit reads.

“As a result, Gregory’s life was terminated without reasonable excuse or justification.”

Odenville city officials did not immediately return a request seeking comment.

Police were called to the home about 7:16 p.m. that Saturday night.

The police chief said at the time when they arrived, they secured the home and learned Bratcher had entered a wooded area at behind the house.

Walton said officers encountered the suspect and victim and immediately attempted to deescalate the situation.

Police officers from Odenville, Moody, Springville, Argo, Margaret and Leeds, as well as the St. Clair County Sheriff’s Office all responded to the scene.

According to the lawsuit, Bratcher and his wife, Alma, were inside their apartment on his parents’ property when they began arguing.

Bratcher left the apartment and went to a mobile home on the same property where his son and his wife’s daughter lived. His wife followed him there.

While in the mobile home, Bratcher got a gun and walked toward an open field in the rear of the property, threatening to kill himself.

One family member called 911, while others followed Bratcher and pleaded with him to not harm himself.

Bratcher’s wife’s daughter told the dispatcher that the family had notified the VA Caregiver Assistance Program about Bratcher’s mental health problems.

A dispatcher notified police that a caller had reported a man had her mother at gunpoint, the suit states.

The first officer who arrived on the scene located Bratcher and his wife in the field. Minutes later, Linard arrived.

Body camera footage showed Bratcher with a gun in his right hand, held across his chest, pointed upward and over his should toward the sky. His wife was pleading with him not to harm himself.

The suit said Linard got out of his patrol vehicle with a military-style assault rifle equipped with a scope.

“After exiting his patrol car, Linard flipped his hat backwards to make it easier to peer down his scope and aim his rifle,” lawyers say in the court documents.

Officers made verbal commands that could be heard over police scanners.

Within seconds of the first officer’s command to drop the weapon, the suit alleges, Linard aimed his rifle at Bratcher and fired a fatal shot.

Bratcher, lawyers contend, never aimed his weapon at anyone or himself, and never appeared to be holding his wife hostage.

The suit says Linard was communicating with dispatchers while responding to the scene and confused Bratcher with another Odenville resident who police had previously arrested.

“Linard erred in confusing these two individuals,” according to the lawsuit.

“He made no effort to confirm Gregory’s identity, and he failed to use any de-escalation techniques. Linard predetermined to resolve the situation immediately through deadly force.”

The suit states that previous encounters between Bratcher and Odenville police always ended peacefully.

According to Bratcher’s obituary, he served 17 years in the Alabama Army National Guard and was a sergeant when he was discharged.

“His selflessness and unwavering dedication to his comrades and the mission served as a shining example of military excellence, and his presence will be sincerely missed,” his obituary read.

Talking season is upon us, but when you’re the team who hasn’t finished above .500 since 2020, talk is cheap.

That’s the boat Auburn football is in going into the 2025 season. Despite the disappointing stretch, there’s a striking level of confidence in the program going into Year 3 of the Hugh Freeze era.

Freeze is 11-14 through his first two seasons at Auburn, but has landed back-to-back top 10 recruiting classes. This offseason, the Tigers added the eighth-best transfer portal class in the country, supplementing a roster that returns many of its young contributors from 2024.

The roster development overseen by Freeze is one of the main reasons he believes Auburn will be in the College Football Playoff discussion in 2025. He made that declaration publicly during his press conference on the main stage at SEC Media Days.

“Now, we’ve got to stay healthy, and we need the ball to bounce our way a couple times this year instead of against us,” Freeze added, “But that’s our full expectation.”

Auburn’s players don’t feel any different. The Tigers’ three representatives at SEC Media Days were all fitting spokesmen for Freeze’s critical third season in different ways.

Keldric Faulk shared Freeze’s confidence. A junior defensive end from Highland Home, Alabama, Faulk is Auburn’s top NFL Draft prospect going into 2026. He was also the highest ranked player in the Tigers’ 2023 high school signing class, a class Freeze had to salvage and put together within weeks of becoming head coach.

“We have the talent and the coaching staff to do it,” Faulk said of being in the CFP discussion. “Coach has brought in so many players he views that can take us over the top. He brought in his own coaching staff and his own players this year.”

Faulk is arguably Auburn’s most important player on defense. He’s the team’s best pass rusher and with two years of starting experience, he’ll undoubtedly be one of the group’s leaders in 2025.

Connor Lew is a similar figure to Faulk in the context of the 2025 season. He was another cornerstone of Freeze’s 2023 class and is going into his third year as a starter. Lew doesn’t have the NFL hype of Faulk, but helps make up the foundation of Auburn’s experienced offensive line.

He was asked at SEC Media Days what’s different about the team in 2025 and his answer spoke to the importance of this season.

“I just think there’s an increased level of intensity,” Lew said. “Everything is just more urgent, the focus. But there’s also a little bit of confidence too. We know we have the talent. Now, it’s just all about executing.”

Jackson Arnold may be the most important player on the team this season. The junior quarterback arrived on the Plains in January after transferring from Oklahoma.

The 2025 campaign could be just as much a turning point for his career as Freeze’s at Auburn. Arnold left Norman after a shaky 2024 season in which he began as the starter, was briefly benched midseason and trudged through a frustrating year that featured injuries all around him and two different offensive coordinators.

For Auburn, Arnold is the quarterback solution for a team that was held back by inconsistent quarterback play in Freeze’s first two years. He’s the centerpiece of an Auburn offense that could define Freeze’s tenure on the Plains.

Both parties are confident that the relationship will work. Arnold told reporters at media days that his fit in the offense was the biggest factor in his decision to transfer to Auburn. That’s without even mentioning Auburn’s multiple All-SEC receivers, an upgrade from what Arnold had at Oklahoma.

“My confidence is extremely high right now. I credit that to my whole teammates,” Arnold said. “I think having their respect and their trust and going out and doing what we did in the spring, I feel like the offense had a really efficient spring, which instilled a lot of confidence in me.”

Auburn’s players are saying the right thing, so is Freeze. On paper, the talent is improved, showcased by six Tigers earning preseason All-SEC honors. However, the media still picked Auburn to finish 11th in the conference, meaning the confidence is still mostly confined to inside the program.

Fortunately for Auburn, opinions in July don’t matter. The season opener at Baylor is a little less than a month and a half away, and the only way for the confidence to spread outside the building is to win.

Peter Rauterkus covers Auburn sports for AL.com. You can follow him on X at @peter_rauterkus or email him at [email protected]m

The Birmingham-Hoover metropolitan area ranked in the top five cities for recent college graduates in a new study by ADP, a payroll services provider.

The study, reported by The Wall Street Journal, ranked 55 metro areas with populations of at least 1 million.

The rankings are based on hiring activity, salaries, and cost-of-living.

Birmingham ranked fifth behind Raleigh, Milwaukee, Baltimore, and Austin.

The article said UAB and UAB Hospital and and other large employers in healthcare, finance, and technology boosted Birmingham’s favorability.

ADP compiled median salaries for workers ages 20 to 29 in jobs requiring considerable preparation, such as a bachelor’s degree.

The ADP study measured hiring activity by comparing the number of people ages 20 to 29 employed in considerable preparation jobs and the number of new hires over the last year in that category to establish a growth rate for employment in those jobs.

The affordability ranking for cities is based on the the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, which measures a metro area’s consumer price index by against the national cost index.

The National Weather Service issued a report at 7:13 a.m. on Saturday for strong thunderstorms until 8 a.m. for Jackson County.

Residents can look for wind gusts of up to 40 mph.

“At 7:12 a.m., Doppler radar tracked strong thunderstorms 8 miles northeast of Skyline, or 14 miles north of Scottsboro, moving northeast at 25 mph,” states the weather service. “Gusty winds could knock down tree limbs and blow around unsecured objects.”

Locations impacted by the alert include Scottsboro, Bridgeport, Stevenson, Hollywood, Skyline, Anderson, Hytop, Bass, Martintown and Long Island.

According to the weather service, “If outdoors, consider seeking shelter inside a building. Torrential rainfall is also occurring with these storms and may lead to localized flooding. Do not drive your vehicle through flooded roadways. Frequent cloud to ground lightning is occurring with these storms. Lightning can strike 10 miles away from a thunderstorm. Seek a safe shelter inside a building or vehicle.”

Shielding yourself from approaching lightning: Expert safety guidelines

Each year, lightning strikes the United States approximately 25 million times, with the majority of these electrifying events occurring during the summer months. Unfortunately, lightning is responsible for claiming the lives of approximately 20 people annually, as reported by the weather service. The threat of lightning becomes more pronounced as thunderstorms draw nearer, peaking when the storm is directly overhead and gradually waning as it moves away.

To protect yourself during a thunderstorm, take these recommendations into consideration:

Lightning safety plan:

• When venturing outdoors, it’s crucial to have a lightning safety plan in place.
• Stay vigilant by monitoring the sky for ominous signs and listening for the telltale sound of thunder. If thunder is audible, it’s a clear indication of nearby lightning.
• Seek shelter promptly in a safe location, preferably indoors.

Indoors safety measures:

• Once you’re indoors, avoid using corded phones, electrical devices, plumbing fixtures, and stay away from windows and doors.
• Lightning can follow conductive pathways, and these precautions reduce the risk of electrical surges.

Wait for the all-clear:

• After the last lightning strike or thunderclap, wait at least 30 minutes before resuming outdoor activities.
• Lightning can strike even when a storm has seemingly passed, so exercise caution.

When indoor shelter isn’t available:

If you find yourself outdoors without access to indoor shelter during a thunderstorm, take these steps to maximize your safety:

• Avoid open fields, hilltops, or ridge crests, which expose you to greater lightning risk.
• Steer clear of tall, isolated trees and other prominent objects. In wooded areas, stay close to lower stands of trees.
• If you’re in a group, ensure that individuals are spaced out to prevent lightning current from transferring between people.
• Camping in an open setting during a thunderstorm is strongly discouraged. If no alternative exists, set up camp in a valley, ravine, or other low-lying areas. Remember that a tent offers no protection against lightning.
• Do not approach water bodies, wet objects, or metal items. Although water and metal do not attract lightning, they conduct electricity effectively and can pose significant risks.

In summary, when facing the threat of lightning, vigilance and preparedness are your best allies. By following these guidelines, you can significantly reduce the chances of lightning-related accidents and prioritize your safety.

Navigating rainy roads: Safety tips for wet weather

Heavy rainfall may lead to flooding if prolonged or if there is excessive runoff. Excessive runoff can be a result of saturated ground and/or rainfall intensity. Follow these recommendations from the weather service to stay safe in heavy rain:

Beware of swollen waterways:

During heavy rain, avoid parking or walking near culverts or drainage ditches, where swift-moving water can pose a serious risk.

Maintain safe driving distances:

Adhere to the two-second rule for maintaining a safe following distance behind the vehicle in front of you. In heavy rain, allow an additional two seconds of distance to compensate for reduced traction and braking effectiveness.

Reduce speed and drive cautiously:

On wet roads, reducing your speed is crucial. Ease off the gas pedal gradually and avoid abrupt braking to prevent skidding.

Choose your lane wisely:

Stay toward the middle lanes – water tends to pool in the outside lanes.

Visibility matters:

Enhance your visibility in heavy rain by activating your headlights. Be particularly vigilant for vehicles in blind spots, as rain-smeared windows can obscure them.

Watch out for slippery roads:

The initial half-hour of rain is when roads are slickest due to a mixture of rain, grime, and oil. Exercise heightened caution during this period.

Keep a safe distance from large vehicles:

Don’t follow large trucks or buses too closely. The spray created by their large tires reduces your vision. Take care when passing them as well; if you must pass, do so quickly and safely.

Mind your windshield wipers:

Heavy rain can overload the wiper blades. When visibility is so limited that the edges of the road or other vehicles cannot be seen at a safe distance, it is time to pull over and wait for the rain to ease up. It is best to stop at rest areas or other protected areas.

If the roadside is your only option, pull off as far as possible, preferably past the end of a guard rail, and wait until the storm passes. Keep your headlights on and turn on emergency flashers to alert other drivers of your position.

In the face of heavy rain, these precautions can make a significant difference in ensuring your safety on the road. Remember to stay informed about weather conditions and heed guidance from local authorities for a secure journey.

Advance Local Weather Alerts is a service provided by United Robots, which uses machine learning to compile the latest data from the National Weather Service.

These little songbirds are hard to miss during the summer in Alabama’s forests. And even if you don’t see them, you’ll hear them.

Despite their distinctive black hood, male hooded warblers are primarily a yellowish green. Females are the same bright color, but without the hood.

Hooded warblers also have a loud, distinctive song, which along with their color makes them easier to spot in the woods. You may also see them flash their white tail feathers.

“I think they’re also really fun, especially for beginner birders who are just getting into it,” said Kira Williams, a graduate researcher at Alabama A&M University. “They’re pretty easy to see. And they’re really loud and always out there.”

The warblers begin to arrive in Alabama in late March and early April, a little earlier than their similar-looking cousins, the Kentucky warblers, according to the Audubon Society. They settle in Alabama’s forests for the summer to breed, hiding in the shrubbery and underbrush.

As they’re nesting, hooded warblers also have to look out for another bird. Brown-headed cowbirds will lay their eggs in hooded warblers’ nests, expecting the warblers to raise their young. This parasitic practice usually comes at the expense of at least one of the foster birds’ chicks or eggs, according to Cornell University.

Up to 75% of hooded warbler nests will have cowbird eggs in some areas, according to the Audubon Society.

Other threats to the hooded warbler include habitat loss and widespread urbanization, Williams said, which leads to declines in population. Many birds are also facing similar threats throughout the U.S.

Still, Williams said, hooded warblers are fairly common in Alabama. Williams studies migratory songbirds at Chapman Mountain Nature Preserve in Huntsville. Over the last two seasons, she said she’s captured 164 hooded warblers, one of the birds she sees most often.

Hooded warblers feed on insects, primarily caterpillars. Flashing their white tail feathers helps them catch insects, possibly by scaring the bugs into flying, according to Cornell.

The birds begin their fall migration as early as August, but they don’t fully leave Alabama until late October, according to the Audubon Society. In the winter, the birds settle in Central American countries including Guatemala and Nicaragua.

Hooded warblers have a very distinctive song: Williams says it sounds like they’re singing “I’m a hooded warbler.” Each male warbler (only the males are thought to sing) has a slightly different song, which nearby warblers can recognize. The unique song helps the birds mark their territory and spend less time fighting, according to Cornell.

Their second song sounds like “I know you are, but what am I,” Williams says.

“I know it sounds really goofy, but that’s really how I learned to ID this bird, by sound,” Williams said. “And I’d say it’s pretty true to the saying. And I just think they’re super fun, just by that. And especially since you always pretty much hear them. They are prolific singers.”

This is an opinion column.

Melania Trump was born in communist Yugoslavia (now Slovenia) and moved to America in 1996 at age 26 to pursue a modeling career.

In 1998, at age 28, Melania began her relationship with then 52-year-old, still-married-to-Marla Maples, Donald Trump. The rest is history.

Melania Trump’s Slovenia is not far from Ukraine. It’s less than 400 miles; about like driving from Birmingham to Baton Rouge for an LSU-Bama football game. That close proximity compels Slovenians to have a keen awareness of Vladimir Putin and Russia’s threat to Ukraine and the rest of southeastern Europe.

I’ve always found Melania Trump to be gracious, attentive but quiet, almost shy. Apparently, she is also very persuasive with President Trump, who stated:

“I go home. I tell the first lady, ‘You know, I spoke to Vladimir today. We had a wonderful conversation.’ She said, ‘Oh, really? Another city was just hit.’”

“There’s times I’d get home. I’d say, ‘First lady, I had the most wonderful talk with Vladimir. I think we’re finished.’ And then I’ll turn on the television, or she’ll say to me one time, ‘Wow, that’s strange because they just bombed a nursing home,'” Trump recalled in another conversation. “I’d say, ‘What?’”

Shortly thereafter, BOOM!

Thanks to Melania Trump, President Trump discovers how dishonest and evil Vladimir Putin is and adopts a 180-degree reversal on Russia’s Ukraine invasion.

Instead of giving public moral support to Russia’s Ukraine invasion, publicly humiliating Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, cutting off or suspending military aid to Ukraine, and calling for Ukraine’s partial or complete surrender (all in the name of “peace”), Trump “apparently” resumes America’s shipment of critically needed military aid to Ukraine.

I emphasize the word “apparently” because Donald Trump has a penchant for vacillation. You never really know where Trump is on any public policy issue until he does whatever he is going to do. Even then, Trump is renowned for reversing today’s position tomorrow. (See my Op Ed on Wall Street’s “Commander TACO” stock trading strategy as an example.)

Notwithstanding, Trump’s new-found support for Ukraine is all Melania Trump. Who knew? Melania deserves a medal!

Russia Invades Ukraine

Why are Melania Trump’s actions so important?

Russia conquered Ukraine’s Crimean Peninsula in 2014. In response, America and Western Europe shrugged their collective shoulders and did little, thereby encouraging Russia to orchestrate a “civil war” in the eastern Ukraine regions of Donetsk and Luhansk.

America and Western Europe again shrugged their collective shoulders and did little about Russia’s surrogate invasion of Donetsk and Luhansk, thereby encouraging Putin and Russia to launch an all-out, brutal, multi-front Ukraine invasion in 2022.

How brutal?

Ukraine civilian casualties are at least 12,000 dead and 29,000 injured while military dead are at least 45,000 with another 390,000+ wounded. I say “at least” because warring countries often minimize disclosed casualties for morale and propaganda purposes.

Russian casualties are worse, estimated at roughly 250,000 Russians killed and another 700,000 wounded in Ukraine. Russia’s grisly casualties perfectly reflect Putin’s disdain for human life.

After Russia’s 2022 invasion, America and Western Europe learned from history, belatedly showed some spine, and rushed large quantities of desperately needed military weapons and supplies to embattled Ukraine.

America’s costly but necessary military and civilian aid totals roughly $70 billion.

In my judgment, America’s aid has been “necessary” because military history teaches that doing nothing in the face of aggression often costs far more in the long run. That’s one of World War II’s most important lessons.

Some Trump-Ukraine history: in 2019, President Trump sought vengeance for Ukraine’s refusal to help Trump win his 2020 presidential race by suspending $400 million in Ukraine aid for 55 days.

In 2025, a still-seething President Trump again suspended Ukraine weaponry and intelligence aid, all while Ukrainians desperately fight for their lives and country.

And then Melania Trump happened.

Trump’s unexpected reversal is huge for Europe, world peace, and keeping America out of yet another major military conflict. President Ronald Reagan and “Peace Through Strength” come to mind. And Ukraine once again has a fighting chance of defeating Russia and reacquiring conquered territory.

Troubling Questions Remain

While I applaud Melania Trump’s influence with President Trump, some very troubling questions arise that strike at the heart of President Trump’s role as Commander-in-Chief.

Why did Melania Trump have to persuade President Trump that Putin is untrustworthy, evil, and a threat to Europe and the world? More specifically:

• Where was Secretary of State Marco Rubio during all this? I know Rubio. Rubio’s smart enough to know history’s lessons. Why did Rubio not help President Trump fully understand how Russia’s Ukraine invasion threatens America and the world?
• Where was Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth during all this? The No. 1 job of a Secretary of Defense is to advise the President on world military issues. Why did Hegseth not help President Trump fully understand how Russia’s Ukraine invasion threatens America and the world?
• Most troubling, where was President Trump’s National Security Council during all this? The NSC’s job is to advise presidents on national security and foreign policy. The NSC’s members are supposed to be a dozen or so of America’s “best of the best” defense and foreign policy experts. How in the world did the NSC’s members, collectively and individually, so badly fail to properly advise President Trump about the ramifications and cascading effects of Russia’s Ukraine invasion?

The White House’s national security and foreign policy “experts” better get their acts together because America cannot, and should not, have to rely on Melania Trump to always ride to the rescue.

That path is fraught with peril for President Trump, America, and the world.

Mo Brooks is a retired congressman from north Alabama and a long-standing conservative voice in state and national politics. In Congress, he served on the House Armed Services Committee for 12 years and the Foreign Affairs Committee for six years. He now writes an opinion column for AL.com.

DEAR ABBY: I am married to a man who is incarcerated. As you can imagine, it’s been hard on our family. I have two kids with him. I was pregnant with our youngest when he was arrested. According to his mother, since my husband went to prison, I can’t do anything right. She yells at me that she has it worse than I do regarding my husband.

Her reason is that she’s his mother, and nothing can change that, while I can always “throw him away” as a husband. She also resented it when I went to counseling because she wants me to tell her my troubles. When I tried, she’d always turn it back to her problems. She’s judgmental and mean. She calls it being “outspoken.”

Abby, am I wrong for being upset? Do you think she wants me to divorce her son or something? I think it was rude and stupid of her to say that to me. I married her son and had children with him. I don’t understand why she thinks we are competing. If it’s a competition, we’re both losing. We both have it bad. Just because she’s having a hard time doesn’t make whatever I’m going through any less bad, does it? — CONVICT’S WIFE IN OHIO

DEAR WIFE: I suspect there is nothing your mother-in-law would like better than for you to divorce her son. If you did, she would have him all to her overbearing self. She thinks you are competing because SHE is. Stay out of her way as much as possible until your husband’s release. Do NOT confide in her. You have enough to contend with without her stirring the pot, and you can rest assured she will.

Read more Dear Abby and other advice columns.

Dear Abby is written by Abigail Van Buren, also known as Jeanne Phillips, and was founded by her mother, Pauline Phillips. Contact Dear Abby at www.DearAbby.com or P.O. Box 69440, Los Angeles, CA 90069.