Becky Gerritson Pushing Rep. Roby Into Danger Zone in AL -02 Congressional Race
By Remso W. Martinez
U.S. Rep. Martha Roby, from congressional district 2 in Alabama, has risen to a position of power within the GOP establishment in the House of Representatives, but her betrayal of her conservative constituents might take winning a fourth term out of existence.
Recently Politico listed “Roby’s race in Alabama’s 2nd Congressional District as one of nine primaries to watch nationally this year.”
Roby is feeling the electoral heat from Wetumpka TEA Party president and co-founder Becky Gerritson. In December, Gerritson and her grassroots conservative supporters, according to Paul Gattis from al.com:
CRITICIZED ROBY FOR SUPPORTING GOVERNMENT FUNDING OF AMTRAK, WHICH WAS PART OF AN OVERALL SPENDING BILL THAT FUNDS THE GOVERNMENT.
According to Roby’s spokesperson Todd Stacy, he attempted to point out “that federal funding for Amtrak was cut by 40 percent in the spending bill and that the vote was in support of avoiding a government shutdown.” Trying to say funding Amtrak was the “conservative” decision to make however was not winning him any points from actual free-market supporters. According to the organization FreedomWorks:
THIS AMENDMENT BY REP. TOM MCCLINTOCK WOULD COMPLETELY END THE FEDERAL SUBSIDIES FOR AMTRAK. IN SPITE OF BILLIONS OF DOLLARS IN TAXPAYER SUBSIDIES, AMTRAK HAS CONTINUED TO RUN AN INEFFICIENT SERVICE THAT RACKS UP MASSIVE ANNUAL LOSSES, AND SHOULD NOT CONTINUE BEING PROPPED UP BY THE GOVERNMENT.
“This is a very conservative district and every conservative organization rates her tenure in Congress as a failure,” Gerritson said during an interview with Politico (referring to a previous AL.com story).
Stacy tried to argue Gerritson’s claim by citing that Roby has:
A lifetime “A” rating from the National Rifle Association.
A 100 % rating from National Right to Life.
A 100 % small business rating from the National Federation of Independent Businesses.
The No. 1 rating among all Alabama delegation members from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.
But when you look at other organizations without deep-pocketed ties to the GOP, you get a completely different picture of the Congresswoman according to the following non-partisan think-tanks and organizations:
57% lifetime score from FreedomWorks.
61% from the Heritage Foundation.
56% from the Freedom Index.
50% from Conservative Review.
Conservative Review specifically stated in their scorecard for Roby that:
ROBY CALLED HERSELF A CONSERVATIVE WHEN SHE FIRST RAN IN THE TEA PARTY FUELED WAVE YEAR OF 2010. (MARTHAROBY.COM) HER TENURE IN CONGRESS HAS BEEN ANYTHING BUT CONSERVATIVE. SINCE STEPPING INTO OFFICE, ROBY HAS CONSISTENTLY HELD A LOW LIBERTY SCORE™, ESPECIALLY FOR REPRESENTING THE DEEP RED STATE OF ALABAMA. ADDITIONALLY, HER POOR RECORD IS ONE OF THE WORST OF ANY REPUBLICAN MEMBER IN THE DEEP SOUTH.
RED STATE’S ERICK ERICKSON SUPPORTED ROBY’S PRIMARY OPPONENT IN THE 2010 RACE, CALLING HER A PERFECT “STATUS QUO REPUBLICAN,” WITHIN A YEAR OF HER ELECTION, ERICKSON WROTE THAT SHE LIVED UP TO THAT BILLING. HE WROTE, “SHE HAS LED ON NOTHING CONSERVATIVES CARE ABOUT AND VOTED AGAINST CONSERVATIVES ON MUCH THAT THEY DO CARE ABOUT. SHE HAS CARRIED WATER FOR THE LEADERSHIP, BETRAYED HER CONSERVATIVE CONSTITUENTS, AND FAILED TO FIGHT AGAINST THE TIDE OF CREEPING SOCIALISM IN THE COUNTRY.” (REDSTATE)
This common argument for Roby to be replaced in the upcoming 2016 election is why so many libertarians and conservatives have rallied behind Gerritson. In a December interview with The Libertarian Republic, Gerritson echoed the worries of her district:
VOTERS ARE CONCERNED ABOUT THE FUTURE. THEY SEE A PRESIDENT AND AN UNELECTED SUPREME COURT RULING, NOT GOVERNING. THEY SEE THEIR RIGHTS TAKEN AWAY. THEY SEE A DEBT RISING THAT THREATENS THE SECURITY AND ECONOMIC STABILITY OF THIS COUNTRY. AND, WHAT’S WORSE, MANY FEEL HELPLESS. THEY VOTE, AND THEN THEY SEE NOTHING CHANGE. I’M RUNNING TO BE THE KIND OF LEADER THAT THE VOTERS CAN KNOW AND TRUST WILL ACTUALLY STAND UP AND FIGHT THE STATUS QUO TO CHANGE THE DIRECTION OF THIS COUNTRY.
Disclaimer: Remso is currently the campaign manager for Austin Petersen’s presidential campaign. He has also publically endorsed Becky Gerritson in her primary challenge against Rep. Martha Roby.
Remso W. Martinez is a prominent libertarian activist and freelance writer. He was previously the head policy analyst for the Brian Suojanen for Delegate campaign in Virginia, and is the current campaign manager for Austin Petersen's 2016 presidential campaign. Remso is a graduate of Marion Military Institute and is currently attending Liberty University.
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