Roby: I work well with Trump administration

Published 1:34 am Thursday, May 31, 2018

About 70 people joined U.S. Rep. Martha Roby, R-Montgomery, for a fish fry lunch Wednesday at a PowerSouth-sponsored event at The Buckboard.

Roby addressed the crowd, then took questions from state reporters covering the campaign. She was relentlessly on message as reporters asked her repeatedly for reaction to criticism from her opponents about comments she made about President Donald Trump during his campaign for the White House.

“The campaign is over and it’s time to govern,” Roby said, arguing that she has worked well with the Trump administration.

“We’ve had a lot of accomplishments both in the nation and here in the district,” she said. “I work well with the administration. I have a good relationship with them. I’ve been invited to the White House many times to participate in bill signings and round tables on issues, even with the president.

“I have a good working relationship with the administration,” she said.

Roby cited the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, her work to reform the Veterans Administration, and rebuilding the military as recent accomplishments.

She said she also supported a farm bill that “did not quite make it across the finish line,” adding that she hopes it will come up again.

She also said her assignment to the Appropriations Committee has given her an “important seat at the table” to ensure the things local voters care about are funded.

Asked about the potential effects on Alabamians of tariffs proposed by the Trump Administration that could affect auto makers abilities to get supplies, and the ability of farmers to export soybeans and other crops, she said, “I’m for free trade and I’m for fair trade.”

“What the admin has hinted at over the course of the past few months has not yet been written into policy,” she said. “What we’re doing is keeping a close watch to ensure what is presented to Congress represents the values and interests of the Second District. Farmers pay a huge role in that.

“As I travel and visit with industry, these are conversations we have,” she said. “It is important for me to know where they stand, and to have the opportunity to hear from people I represent.”

The Andalusia Area Chamber of Commerce and the Opp Chamber of Commerce worked with PowerSouth to coordinate the Roby event.