Our View: We can't park now; it's time now to move state in a forward step ahead

Politics can be a blood sport in Alabama, and the 2017 legislative session proved that once again.

Prison and Medicaid questions led the agenda going into the session, autism and education buffered it, then bills on Confederate monuments and redistricting closed it.

Federal authorities previously had mandated redistricting as a matter of priority, but adding fuel to the fire of that heated debate was an email distributed by a white lawmaker that black leaders saw as evidence of racism in the statehouse.

If that wasn't enough for this session: It began with one governor and ended with another.

The session began on Feb. 7, and Gov. Robert Bentley resigned on April 10. Gov. Kay Ivey was sworn in as Alabama's 54th governor the same day Bentley left office.

Ivey has done a good job of becoming more than simply a place holder. Her quick action in moving up special election dates for the state's recently vacated U.S. Senate seat, house-cleaning on the cabinet, endorsing key bills during the session and bringing a basic sense of calm to the office has done much to ease the tension after a tumultuous year.

It also has put in motion efforts to restore the state's image to the rest of the nation, and to the world, for that matter, when it comes to recruiting jobs and contracts.

So what's next?

Once the political honeymoon with Ivey has ended, it will be important that the Legislature and governor's office continue to find ground where actual progress can dictate results.

Alabama still needs fixes to its prison system, and they won't come simply by building new prisons. Ivey will need to help find answers better than the big price-tag suggestions her predecessor offered.

Ivey also will need to continue her early efforts of restoring the state's image by providing credible stability. And no, simply staying out of jail isn't enough.

Alabama has endured too much political scandal that has hurt deeply in multiple ways. It's a time for healing, but more. The state needs to make gains, not just spin in its tracks, and that will require leadership that sees a forward vision.

The list of issues is long and not likely to evaporate.

Let's hope Ivey and our legislators are up to the task and can move Alabama forward.