In 2004, James and his brothers entered into an agreement with Orange Beach, Alabama, to build a toll bridge over the Intracoastal Waterway. Although analysts expected the city to profit from the project beginning in 2014, the city must now borrow to meet the terms of the arrangement. James no longer owns the bridge but sold it to an Australian company for $70 million. As of December 2009, the city had paid the company almost twice the amount the city collected in revenues from the bridge. He has owned and operated asphalt and heavy construction businesses; with his father and brothers, formed and operated the Escambia County Environmental Corp., an incineration company treating non-hazardous industrial waste, 1986-1996.
Political positions
The Washington Post has described him as a conservative Republican. James has been an outspoken opponent of President Barack Obama's and President George W. Bush's economic proposals. He asserts that financial corporations, the auto industry, and insurance companies should not be bailed out by taxpayers but should file bankruptcy. He has also called for improvements to education including higher pay for school administrators. He opposes the legalization of gambling as a means to fund education. James is pro-life and opposes public funding for abortions. James opposes expansion of same-sex benefits to employees of the University of Alabama in Birmingham and stated that "If elected Governor of Alabama, I will vigorously oppose this measure and will enforce the spirit of Alabama law defining marriage as a sacred union between a woman and a man." He wants English-only driver's license exams. He claims that Alabama is an English-speaking state and ought not waste money issuing the exam in 12 languages. This was part of a cost-reduction program he proposed. He has not ruled out a return to politics in the future.
Gubernatorial campaigns
James finished third in the 2002 Republican gubernatorial primary. The theme of his 2010 campaign was "common sense" solutions. Typically, his campaign focused on job creation and the economy. In 2010, he came in third in the Republican primary, losing a runoff berth to second-place finisher Robert J. Bentley by 167 votes. Other candidates in the 2010 race included then lawyer Bradley Byrne and former State Treasurer, Kay Ivey. James stated that as governor he would end multilingual testing for driver's licenses in Alabama in favor of English-only testing. A campaign commercial on this issue gained attention in the national media and on the internet. The advertisement drew criticism from MSNBC's Rachel Maddow and Keith Olbermann, the editorial page of The New York Times, Jon Stewart, CNN's Rick Sanchez, Fox News Channel's Juan Williams, and Comedy Central comedian Daniel Tosh. James's campaign was managed by Sandra Lucas, a former staffer of Governor Bob Riley. The campaign was being advised by the former national campaign chairman to Mike Huckabee, the former governor of Arkansas who unsuccessfully sought the 2008 Republican presidential nomination. John Saltsman served as senior adviser to the James campaign. The Huckabee campaign won in Alabama during the 2008 Republican primary. James' campaign chairman was former U.S. Congressman Sonny Callahan of Mobile. U.S. Congressman Robert Aderholt served as an advisor to the campaign. Brett Hall, Press Secretary for former Kentucky Governor Ernie Fletcher, managed the campaign initially and then served as communications director after Lucas was brought on board. Libertarian activist and consultant Stephen P. Gordon served as the e-Campaign Director.
