The Real Truth with Tommy Spina

This week on The Real Truth , Tommy welcomes State Representative Phillip Ensler, Democratic nominee for lieutenant governor of Alabama. They discuss health care, education, public safety, the grocery tax, and Ensler's vision for moving Alabama forward.

This week on The Real Truth , attorney Barry Ragsdale returns with an update on the lawsuit challenging Tommy Tuberville's eligibility to run for governor of Alabama. Fresh off a two-and-a-half-hour court hearing and awaiting a ruling on Tuberville's motion to dismiss, Ragsdale breaks down the legal arguments presented before the court, explains what happens if the case moves forward, and discusse...

This week on The Real Truth, attorney Barry Ragsdale, one of the attorneys who filed a lawsuit on behalf of two Alabama military veterans challenging whether Tommy Tuberville meets the Alabama Constitution's residency requirements for governor, joins Tommy to discuss the case. Ragsdale explains the legal concept of quo warranto, outlines the evidence cited in the complaint, and discusses why he be...

Birmingham Mayor Randall Woodfin returns to The Real Truth for a wide-ranging conversation about the city's future. From public safety and street improvements to education, economic growth, and the Alabama Democratic Party, Woodfin discusses the challenges ahead and his vision for a stronger Birmingham.

This week on The Real Truth, Tommy sits down with Democratic gubernatorial nominee Doug Jones to discuss the Supreme Court's recent Alabama redistricting decision, voter turnout, representation, and the road to the 2026 election. They also examine the controversy surrounding Tommy Tuberville's residency, the challenges facing Alabama families and rural communities, and why Jones believes voters ar...

Recorded just hours before a major U.S. Supreme Court ruling, Tommy sits down with former federal judge U.W. Clemon to discuss Alabama's latest congressional redistricting dispute, allegations of intentional discrimination, and the decades-long fight over voting rights in the state. (Shortly after the recording, the Supreme Court issued its June 2 decision allowing Alabama to implement its 2023 co...

This week on The Real Truth , Tommy welcomes Democratic gubernatorial nominee and former U.S. Senator Doug Jones for a candid conversation about Alabama’s political landscape following the May 2026 primary elections. They discuss turnout trends, health care and rural hospitals, ethics in government, voter participation, and why Jones believes Alabama voters may be looking for a new direction.

Technical note: We experienced some recording challenges while capturing this multi-location phone interview, resulting in occasional clipping and uneven audio. Thanks for bearing with us because we felt the discussion was worth airing. Vince Schilleci and Whitt Steineker join Tommy to revisit The Real Truth's deep dive into Alabama's new and developing medical cannabis program. They discuss where...

Joellyn Beckham returns to The Real Truth for an update on the Bright Blue Dot billboards you may have seen while traveling the Red Mountain Expressway in Birmingham, their recent appearance on Al Jazeera, and the controversy and conversation the billboards have generated across the political spectrum. For more information, go to https://www.britebluedot.com/ or follow @ brbldot Season 3: "We The...

Breaking from Season 3’s ongoing “We the People” focus on the First Amendment and the Constitution, The Real Truth presents an extra edition emergency double-episode edition featuring former federal judge U. W. Clemon and Alabama Media Group columnist Kyle Whitmire. On May 6, Clemon filed a motion in federal court accusing Alabama Secretary of State Wes Allen of violating the terms of a 2025 agree...

The Real Truth continues its deep dive into the First Amendment and the Fourth Estate, as Tommy speaks with Lucy Dalglish, former dean of the University of Maryland’s Philip Merrill College of Journalism and a longtime advocate for freedom of the press. They discuss growing tensions between government power and First Amendment protections, including recent efforts to obtain journalists’ confidenti...

In this episode of The Real Truth , Tommy sits down with John Archibald, Pulitzer Prize-winning columnist and longtime voice in Alabama journalism to continue this season's exploration of the First Amendment and the Constitution in 2026. They explore the role of a free press in holding power accountable, the growing challenges facing journalists, and why protecting sources remains essential to unc...

As The Real Truth continues exploring the status of the First Amendment (and the Constitution itself), Tommy speaks with Robert Corn-Revere, a leading First Amendment and media law practitioner and current Chief Counsel at the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE). He successfully defended CBS Television and Viacom in the FCC proceeding resulting from the Super Bowl "wardrobe malf...

In this episode of The Real Truth with Tommy Spina , Tommy speaks with Lee Levine, one of the nation’s leading First Amendment attorneys. Levine has practiced, taught, and written about First Amendment law for fifty years. He has argued on behalf of the press in courts nationwide, including the US Supreme Court. They discuss the role of a free press, legal protections for journalists, and the grow...

Part of our ongoing look at government, power, and the Constitution, Tommy sits down with former U.S. Senator Doug Jones, now a Democratic candidate for governor of Alabama, to discuss what’s happening in Washington and what it means for the state. They explore the role of Congress, concerns over executive power, and how political pressure is shaping decision-making at the federal level. The conve...

Welcome to Season 3 of The Real Truth with Tommy Spina: "We The People" In the first episode of this new season, Tommy speaks with Bruce Rogow, founding professor of the Nova Southeastern University Law Center. He has argued over 450 civil and criminal cases in federal and state appellate courts, including eleven before the Supreme Court of the United States. In his eclectic career, Bruce has repr...

Part 9 of The Real Truth's in-dept look into Alabama's medical cannabis program. This week, Tommy speaks with Whitt Steineker, partner at Bradley and founder/co-chair of the law firm’s cannabis industry team, for an overview of where the program stands today and how it got here. From licensing delays and legal challenges to the status of integrated facility licenses, they break down the path from...

Part 8 of The Real Truth ’s deep dive into Alabama’s medical cannabis program. This week, Tommy speaks with Allen Forrest of Pick Up My Things, one of the licensed transporters in Alabama’s medical cannabis rollout. They discuss the transporter’s role in the seed-to-sale process, the security and logistics involved in moving cannabis materials, and how this often-overlooked part of the program hel...

Part 7 of The Real Truth ’s Alabama medical cannabis series. Tommy speaks with Dr. Brent Boyett, an addiction medicine specialist and certified recommending physician, about the doctor’s role in the program, how patients are evaluated, and why cannabis must be approached as a carefully managed medical treatment.

Part 6 of The Real Truth ’s deep dive into Alabama’s medical cannabis program. This week, Tommy speaks with Brandon Biles (President) and Natalie Siracusa (Laboratory Director) of Green Health Laboratories, currently the state’s only licensed testing facility supporting Alabama’s medical cannabis rollout. They explain the critical role of laboratory analysis, how products are verified for safety a...

In the fifth installment looking at Alabama's medical cannabis program, Tommy speaks with Antoine Mordican, CEO of Native Black Cultivation and one of the Alabama Medical Cannabis Commission’s licensed cultivators. Morgan shares his path from Chicago to Alabama, his decade-long preparation for this moment, and what it really takes to grow compliant, medical-grade cannabis in Alabama. Subscribe to...

In the fourth installment of The Real Truth's in-depth look at Alabama's medical cannabis program, Tommy talks with Jason Cobb and Dr. Rusty Sutterlin of Organic Harvest Lab, a cannabis processor in Birmingham. They break down what a “processor” does, how cannabis oil is extracted and refined, the role of testing and child-safe packaging, and what this step in the supply chain means for patients a...

Continuing The Real Truth ’s in-depth look at Alabama’s medical cannabis rollout, Tommy sits down with pharmacist and Alabama Medical Cannabis Commission vice chair Dr. Sam Blakemore. They explore the healthcare perspective behind the program, including safety standards, packaging requirements, and the systems designed to ensure medical cannabis is dispensed responsibly to qualified patients.

In the second episode of The Real Truth's in-depth dive into Alabama's medical cannabis program, host Tommy Spina speaks with Vince Schilleci, one of the owners of CCS Alabama, a company that was awarded one of the licenses to operate a dispensary by the Alabama Medical Cannabis Commission. They discuss the delays and developments of the program, what patients can expect once dispensaries begin op...

This week on The Real Truth , Tommy Spina is joined by John McMillan, director of the Alabama Medical Cannabis Commission, for an in-depth update on the state’s medical cannabis program. This episode is the first in a series of podcasts looking into Alabama’s medical cannabis system, patient access, physician certification, regulatory safeguards, and what patients and providers can expect as the p...