WASHINGTON – Alabama’s Republican lawmakers lauded President Donald Trump’s address to a joint session of Congress where he touted efforts to cut the federal government, while Democrats looked for answers on his plans to lower costs.
The state’s Congressional delegation all sat in the House chamber Tuesday. GOP members were active during the speech, often applauding the president, while Alabama’s Democrats remained still during Trump’s 99-minute speech.
Rep. Mike Rogers, R-Saks, who chairs the Armed Services Committee, said his biggest takeaway from Trump’s speech was how the president’s explanation of the Department of Government Efficiency’s efforts showed they weren’t frivolous.
“When Trump spent so much time listing examples of what most objective people would think was wasteful spending or inappropriate, I thought that was impactful,” Rogers told Alabama Daily News.
Rogers said although DOGE’s work to shrink the federal government could hurt some federal workers, it’s still a worthwhile cause.
“While I think there may be some kicked dogs that howl, some of them will be able to get their jobs back and get the funding put back in place, but that doesn’t mean there’s not wasteful spending that shouldn’t be pointed out,” Rogers said.
Rep. Gary Palmer, R-Birmingham, said Trump’s speech showed he was making good on his campaign promises.
“From his perspective, I think that he convinced the American people that he’s going to do what he said he’d do, and that’s typical Trump,” Palmer told ADN.
Alabama’s newest Congressman Shomari Figures said Trump missed an opportunity by not further explaining how he would work to lower costs for Americans.
“We just ran an entire election where inflation was a significant issue that Republicans ran on and ran on, allegedly having the solutions for it,” Figures, D-Mobile, told ADN. “The president spent nearly an hour and a half talking about everything but solutions to the high cost of living here in America.”
House Republicans met with Elon Musk Wednesday night to discuss DOGE. Before the meeting, Palmer said he’s sensitive to the fact that people are losing their jobs from the cuts. He said he wanted to know the justification for the layoffs, but said he expected a lot of them are reasonable because of the “bloated” federal government.
“I feel for people that are going through this, but I’m hopeful that we can reevaluate some of these things, and there may be some opportunities for people to come back,” Palmer said. “I don’t know that. That’s part of what I want to find out from Musk.”
First Lady Melania Trump invited Alabamian Jeff Denard to Tuesday’s address. The president shouted out the steelworker and volunteer firefighter from Decatur during his speech. U.S. Sen. Katie Britt, R-Ala., and Rep. Dale Strong, R-Huntsville, met with Denard after Trump’s address. Britt said the president is fighting to protect Alabamians like Denard.
“I am proud to be a partner to President Trump in his efforts to onshore critical supply chains, drive up real wages for U.S. families, and usher in a new era of American prosperity, ” Britt said in a statement.
Trump said Americans like Denard show the need for his new tariffs.
“Stories like Jeff’s remind us that tariffs are not just about protecting American jobs,” Trump said. “They’re about protecting the soul of our country.”
However, economists warn that new tariffs on goods from Mexico and Canada could hurt consumers. Figures said the new tariffs are “not wise” and called out the White House for not understanding how these decisions could impact everyday Americans.
“Starting a trade war is unnecessary and it’s not conducive to being able to lower the cost of living here in America,” Figures said. “We know that businesses are going to feel it. Homes are going to feel it.”
Sen. Tommy Tuberville, R-Ala. said people are going to feel some pain from the tariffs, such as higher prices for groceries, but Tuberville said he hopes that pain will be temporary.
“We’re going to have to suffer a little bit,” Tuberville said. “Make this tariff situation work because these are the best ways for us to get our country back going again.”
Rep. Terri Sewell, D-Brimingham, brought a Birmingham social security worker as her guest to Trump’s address to highlight DOGE’s impact on federal workers.
“We want to know what the plan is, because right now, the plan is hurting average, ordinary Alabamians each and every day,” Sewell said.
Trump also discussed his desire for America’s version of the Iron Dome, called the ‘Golden Dome’ which would create a missile defense system around the country. Rogers said Alabama would play a central role in the creation.
“Any endeavors that we do to strengthen our country with a golden dome type defense system will be very economically beneficial for Alabama, particularly north Alabama,” Rogers said.