By Samuel Mattison
Alabama Political Reporter
Senator-elect Doug Jones appealed to his ability to work with Republicans in the Senate in multiple national news interviews.
Jones’ latest comments to Republicans came on Monday when he told CNN’s Jake Tapper that President Donald Trump should not resign over allegations of sexual misconduct.
The calls for the president’s resignation have come after high-profile lawmakers left office after sexual misconduct allegations in recent months.
Trump previously called Jones a “Schumer-Pelosi puppet,” but has since moderated his position saying that Jones is a “good man.” The president also distanced himself from Jones’ opponent Roy Moore, who has yet to concede the election.
Jones signaled to his future colleagues in the Senate that he will work on bipartisan efforts on some reforms.
“Now, don’t expect me to vote solidly for Republicans or Democrats,” Jones told Tapper. “I came up with Senator Howell Heflin from Alabama many years ago. He did — always to do the things that he thought was in the best interests of his constituents, which is in the state of Alabama.”
Most recently, he said in a statement that the recent delayed renewing of CHIP, a federal program for child health insurance, is due to “partisan fighting.”
Jones is the first Democrat elected to the Senate from Alabama in 20 years, and his election came in a state which has no Democrats seated in its state government positions.
The Alabama Republican Party, in a statement on the eve of the election, reminded Jones of the impending 2020 election in which Jones must contend with Republicans in a general election.
“If Mr. Jones aligns himself with the liberal Democrats in Washington, Alabama voters will remember his choices in the 2020 U.S. Senate election,” the party wrote.
Jones is set to take the Senate seat next year.
