By Grant Hallmark
Alabama Political Reporter
Scott Beason, a Republican State Senator representing the Gardendale area, announced his qualification to run for the District 6 of the US House of Representatives. He will be challenging Rep. Spencer Bachus, a Republican serving the 6th District since 1993. Although Beason has been increasingly isolated from the Alabama Grand Ole Party, he is betting Bachus’ stock with the electorate has fallen.
Beason made his announcement at the Alabama GOP headquarters in Homewood, a suburb of Birmingham. Although they were planning on having the announcement outside the building, the campaign moved the announcement inside at the last minute due to rain. He made his announcement for his candidacy with promises of taking on the establishment, chiding both parties for being part of the problem in our nation’s capitol. “Washington is out of control, and the sad part is that many Republicans are just as responsible for the problems as the Democrats,” appearing to cast Bachus as part of the Washington disorder and “out of control spending.”
While he remained calm under pressure from questions on fundraising and his political baggage, there was an awkward moment that arose from his wife, Lori Beason. When asked how she felt about the decision to run for Congress, she began to sob. In a moment of visceral emotion, she revealed, “I was personally against this,” but then went on to say that God has led Scott to this decision. Public life has undoubtedly been hard for the family, given the amount of controversy surrounding Beason. Over the last year, Beason has been accused of racism, blamed for the failure of the bingo corruption trial, and has become a lightning rod of criticism from the immigration bill detractors.
“I believe we need to fix the immigration issue on a national level,” Beason said of his intention to bring the same tough immigration policy to Washington. He went on to say he would fight corruption everywhere he could, in reference to his role as a witness in the bingo corruption trial. The press release that was passed around the room also extolled the virtue of his prevention of a tax increase on the residents of Jefferson County.
This will certainly be a doubled-edged sword for Beason’s ensuing campaign. While he stood by his principles in blocking the county tax increase, hundreds of 6th District many residents saw their jobs disappear and cuts in government services.
“Decisions are not made in Congress, they are made on Election Day,” Beason said. “This will be a grassroots effort, and I’m going to need a lot of help.”
