MONTGOMERY, Ala. (WHNT) — State lawmakers tell News 19 that connections are key when it comes to policymaking, even with officials in Washington, D.C.
Republicans attended the White House State Leadership Conference, and they said they are coming back home with partnerships.
Rep. Mack Butler (R-Rainbow City) said they discussed a variety of issues with cabinet officials, from SNAP benefits to homelessness. Butler said he wants to help the Trump administration implement policies on the state level — like removing candy from the list of SNAP-eligible foods.
“With all the junk foods and processed foods that we’ve been consuming, it is time to make America healthy again,” said Butler. “But, simple things as dealing with homelessness, they’ve got some key policies they’re wanting to partner on.”
A key policy for Rep. Susan DuBose (R-Hoover) is making sure school choice remains well supported in Alabama.
“A primary goal of mine is to make sure we continue to fully fund it,” she said. “So, every child that wants school choice, we fund them the money to do that. That’s gonna be especially important in two years when we go to universal school choice.”
But, Rep. Curtis Travis said these policies can be harmful to some Alabamians.
“We’ve got to be independent enough to say ‘this is Alabama, these are the residents of our state, this is what our citizens need, this is what I’m going to do to represent our citizens well,’” remarked Travis. “That’s what we’ve got to do.”
Still, Sen. Andrew Jones (R-Centre) said strong connections with leaders in D.C. make a difference.
“And, it’s great to be able to actually coordinate with the White House, instead of having to fight or be against the White House as we’ve done in the past,” said Jones. “We can actually lock arms and work together to do things that are for the greater good of the state of Alabama.”
Butler said having strong connections in D.C. allows him to better serve his district. He said the goal is to make Alabama safer, more productive, and to increase the quality of life.
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