By Brandon Moseley
Alabama Political Reporter
On Thursday, October 1, Tea Party activist Becky Gerritson announced that she is running for the Second Congressional District seat currently held by Congresswoman Martha Roby (R-Montgomery). The Martha Roby for Congress campaign responded to Thursday’s announcement by Wetumpka Tea Party President Gerritson afterwards.
Roby spokesman Todd Stacy said in a statement, “Mrs. Gerritson has been running a quasi-campaign for years, so I’m glad she has decided to make it official. Elections are indeed a time to choose. Alabama voters have rightly chosen a strong, smart, responsible conservative they can depend on in Martha Roby. She listens to the people and fights on their behalf against the entrenched bureaucracy in Washington. She will campaign vigorously to make sure her constituents always have representation in Congress that is strong, smart and responsible.”
Stacy said, “Everyone is frustrated with the gridlock in Washington, but Alabama’s conservative Representatives and Senators aren’t the problem. Washington liberals led by Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton are the problem, and we are all better off fighting together against them rather than dividing our own ranks.”
The Roby campaign said that since first running for Congress in 2010, US Representative Martha Roby has been a tireless fighter for the conservative cause.
Her campaign lists her accomplishments as: “fighting to prevent harmful military cuts that hurt service families and threaten national security; fighting to expose corruption at the Central Alabama VA and improve how local veterans receive care; fighting on behalf of the unborn to advance major legal protections for life and defund Planned Parenthood; fighting to find the truth about the September 11, 2012 Benghazi terrorist attacks as a Member of the Select Committee on Benghazi. fighting to give Alabama farmers a fair shake by passing a responsible farm bill and by reining in unnecessary environmental restrictions;” and “fighting on behalf of homegrown Alabama businesses to expose and push back overly-aggressive federal agencies and policies.”
Gerritson told reporters at her Wetumpka rally on Thursday that Roby votes with the Washington “establishment.”
Congresswoman Roby said on Twitter Wednesday, “BREAKING: the House has given final passage to the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) – a critical bill to authorize military spending across the spectrum. That means if the Senate concurs, the bill is sent to the president’s desk.”
Rep. Roby said, “This one wasn’t easy, as ill-advised reductions in recent years have left Congress and military leaders with difficult choices. This NDAA does right by our troops and is good news for our military, including our installations in Alabama. One of my top priorities is fighting against harmful cuts to our nation’s military, like sequestration. That’s especially important now with all that is going on in the world. We have to project strength abroad in the face of aggressive adversaries, and that starts by properly funding our military.”
Rep. Roby warned, “Unfortunately, President Obama had previously threatened to veto this legislation, and some in the Senate might try to block it. But I believe we can build enough pressure to force their hand if we work to raise awareness. The decisions we make about how we fund our military is the next big message we will send abroad. That’s why I am fighting to increase military funding after years of harmful cuts and to do away with sequestration once and for all.”
The bill passed by a vote of 270 to 156.
Congresswoman Roby is an attorney, a mother of two, and is married to attorney Riley Roby, who is with the firm of Balch & Bingham.
Roby was first elected to Congress in 2010 when she defeated Congressman Bobby Bright (D) in a closely fought General Election race.
Roby (39) was born and raised in Montgomery, the daughter of Joel Dubina, who is a Senior Judge on the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit. She has a bachelors degree from New York University and a law degree from Cumberland Law School at Samford University. She served two terms as a member of the Montgomery City Council, 2003-2010; before her election to Congresses.
