'We don't make it easy': Former Sen. Doug Jones critiques Alabama voting system while launching new radio show

'We don't make it easy': Former Sen. Doug Jones critiques Alabama voting system while launching new radio show

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. —

Fairfield native Doug Jones has many titles. He serves as counsel and a senior government relations advisor, as well as a distinguished senior fellow at the Center for American Progress, a national co-chair of Lawyers for Harris, and, of course, a former senator.

But now, he's trying some new avenues.

A radio voice announces, "It's 'The Cloakroom with Senator Doug Jones' on Sirius XM Progress 127," followed by a familiar "Well, hello, folks!"

For the first time, Jones hosted a political satellite radio show that aired a couple of weeks ago.

"You know, they called me this summer," Jones said. "I do a lot of interviews on Sirius Radio, and they said, 'Why don't you guest host for a couple hours? We'll give you the time. You can talk about whatever you want to.' And I said, 'You know, look, I'll do a couple of interviews.'"

One of his first guests was a very high-profile figure in Washington, D.C., who visited Birmingham just last year.

Jones introduced the Honorable Ketanji Brown Jackson.

"Your Honor, welcome to Sirius Progress," he said.

"Oh my goodness, I'm delighted to be here. Thanks for having me," she responded.

"She is just such an incredible human being and just so fun to talk to," Jones said. "You know, it was interesting that when she came to Birmingham. I got to tell you, when I first talked to her about this, I assumed that she and Patrick, her husband, would come in the night before. We'd have a dinner somewhere, she would do the speech, go to the Civil Rights Institute, and go out of here, not spend six days in Alabama. She came in on Wednesday and left on Tuesday, and we had dinner at our house."

The election

Of course, it's hard not to talk politics with the election looming.

The former senator said "he's bullish" on Alabama, but he doesn't like it when his beloved home state shows up in negative national headlines.

"The people in control of this state are the ones that continually do things that put us in a bad light," Jones said. "Whether it's going to confederate birthday parties, you know, things like that. It doesn't show Alabama very well on the national stage."

How about the way the state runs our elections? Jones said it's long past time Alabama makes voting easier.

"We don't engage voters enough. We don't make it easy for them to do that. We're in an age right now between families and work and all the other obligations. People cannot go and stand in line at the government's convenience. They need to be able to get to the ballot by mail. They need to be able to get to the ballot easier. Seven days a week, if necessary. Just like so many other states," Jones said.

On the big screen

OK, back to the former senator's budding media career. Live radio? Check. What about film?

This summer, he and some other government alumni took part in a documentary style film called "War Game."

"It was totally unscripted, in which there was another Jan. 6 insurrection, and how the government would respond should there be some members of the military go rogue. I played the Attorney General," Jones said.

The movie is based on a hypothetical situation, but would the former senator consider playing attorney general in real life?

"Next question," he said.

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