Stunning emails paint Alabama House Speaker Mike Hubbard as desperate for money, favors

A filing today {Friday} by special prosecutors cites evidence and emails that portray Alabama House Speaker Mike Hubbard as a man who, despite wearing the fine cloth of one of the state's most powerful men, teetered on the brink of financial collapse and desperately pleaded with friends, lobbyists and principals for money and jobs in a way that put him on the wrong side of the law.

Hubbard was indicted last year on 23 felony counts of using his office for personal gain. The revelations today come in response to a motion by Hubbard's defense team to more specifically describe the charges against the Speaker.

The filing and the cited evidence indicate Hubbard was facing tremendous financial pressure. After being elected Speaker in 2010, he was laid off by his primary employer, Auburn's IMG Sports Network. His own company, Craftmaster, failed to pay employee withholding taxes to the federal government in 2011, which led to the company defaulting on a $600,000 loan from Regions Bank personally guaranteed by Hubbard.

Hubbard went to Will Brooke, a financial advisor at Harbert Management Corporation and a board member at the Business Council of Alabama (and a former candidate for the U.S. House in the 6th District) to develop a plan.

Read more: http://www.al.com/news/birmingham/index.ssf/2015/02/stunning_emails_paint_ala_hous.html