WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump wrapped up his week that marked his first 100 days in office with a visit to Alabama, where Republicans continue to fully back the president.
Despite the economy shrinking in the first three months of 2025 as the country grapples with Trump’s trade wars, Alabama’s GOP members said they trust Trump’s economic moves will eventually work out in the favor of Americans.
U.S. Rep. Barry Moore, R-Enterprise, called Trump a businessman who understands how to fix things, such as through his sweeping tariffs.
“We’ve already seen deals cut on a number of tariffs, and so tariffs take time and to put capital infrastructure back in the US to create the jobs that’s going to fix the economy in the long term, it’s going to take a minute,” Moore told Alabama Daily News.
Moore pointed out that his constituents in the forest industry and Gulf shrimpers in particular “love” the tariffs.
“They think it’s going to give them a chance to get back in business and grow,” Moore told ADN.
The U.S. economy’s gross domestic product slowed by 0.3% in the first quarter of 2025, compared to a growth of 2.4% in the last three months of 2024. The decrease is attributed to an increase in imports, with companies trying to get ahead of Trump’s tariffs. A different key measure of the economy’s strength, known as real final sales to private domestic purchasers, rose 3% compared to a 2.9% increase during the last quarter of 2024.
Rep. Robert Aderholt, R-Haleyville, the dean of Alabama’s delegation acknowledged there would be some “bumps” along the way, such as in the stock market, but he remains confident in Trump.
“Generally, I think people know at the end of the day that he’s a businessman and he’s going to make sure that…the economy is not going to crash,” Aderholt told ADN.
U.S. Sen. Tommy Tuberville, R-Ala., one of Trump’s most ardent backers who flew with him on Air Force One to Tuscaloosa, said he’s not focused on the GDP. Instead, he wants to look at the “growth” arguing that “things are going to get better.”
“We need to build a middle class back,” Tuberville told reporters. “We need to get manufacturing back, jobs back. President Trump’s going to do that.”
Rep. Gary Palmer, R-Birmingham, told Alabama Daily News that Trump warned it could be a little “rocky” but said the president is prepared to handle it.
The state’s Republicans also praised Mercedes-Benz’s decision to add production of a new vehicle at its Tuscaloosa plant, which was announced Thursday, the same day Trump spoke at the University of Alabama’s commencement.
“We are getting even closer to the U.S. customer by localizing a core segment model in Tuscaloosa, strengthening our ties to the North American market where a range of Mercedes-Benz vehicles including the GLE and GLS models have their roots,” Jason Hoff, CEO Mercedes-Benz North America, said in a news release.
Sen. Katie Britt, R-Ala., called it a “huge win for our state.”
Democrats used the week to counter the results of Trump’s moves during his first 100 days. Rep. Terri Sewell, D-Birmingham, put it simply, describing her thoughts on the milestone in a post on X.
Trump’s first 100 days in office:
⬆️ Costs are up
⬆️ Chaos is up
⬆️ Corruption is up— Rep. Terri A. Sewell (@RepTerriSewell) April 30, 2025
She stood alongside Democrats Wednesday outside the Capitol for a press conference calling out the “failure” of 100 days under the Trump administration. Sewell, who represents Tuscaloosa, said she was standing with those who are protesting against Trump’s commencement address.
“Hands off our campus,” Sewell said in a video statement on X. “Hands off our democracy.”