Tuberville is backing Rick Scott for U.S. Senate

November 11, 2024 – WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senate Tommy Tuberville (R-Alabama) went on Fox News to explain why he is voting for Sen. Rick Scott (R-Florida) for Senate Majority Leader.

The current Republican Leader Mitch McConnell (R- Kentucky) is retiring from the leadership position he has held for almost two decades. Sens. Scott, John Thune (R-South Dakota), and John Cornyn (R-Texas) are all seeking to replace McConnell as leader. The Republicans flipped four seat from Democratic control last week in West Virginia, Montana, Ohio, and Pennsylvania so Republicans will be in the majority for the first time since 2021. The votes for the leadership position are customarily held in secret – a process that Tuberville opposes.

"They're secret because the leader chooses that – the leader that is in office as we speak and that is Mitch McConnell," Sen. Tuberville told Fox News's Laura Ingraham. "I would rather push the vote closer to January first."

Tuberville said that he supports Scott because Scott is seen as an agent of change.

"We have no time to spare," Tuberville insisted. "We have to get somebody that is different than what we had. We have like a 20 percent approval rate in the Senate. We have got to have somebody with different strategy, different ideas, different communication skills."

Tuberville said that he thought that Scott would do a better job working with President Donald J. Trump (R).

"Give us a chances to do something different as President Trump is going to do," said Tuberville. "He (Scott) is a business guy. He has signed checks before. He understands the business world like President Trump does. They can communicate. That is why I am voting for Rick Scott."

It has been reported that Thune is the frontrunner for the position.

"You have three people running," Tuberville explained. "Nobody is going to get 27 votes and so there will be a runoff. Somebody will be eliminated, so Rick and Cornyn are probably number two and number three. Then whoever is number two probably against Thune at the end of the day will have a chance to beat Thune. I don't know what is happening; but I am not voting for Tommy Tuberville. I have gotten hammered from all over the state. Coach we don't want the same kind of Senate we have had in the past."

A lot of conservatives have been pressuring their GOP Senators to support Scott. Some insiders have said that the public pressure is hurting Scott.

"I think it will help , Laura," Tuberville said.

One issue that some members have raised is that Sen. Scott – like Tuberville – has been a critic of the U.S.'s generous support for Ukraine in their ongoing war with Russia.

"They don't want to be proven wrong," Tuberville said of pro-Ukraine war funding Senators. "We have had so many people on the Democratic and Republican side vote to give them money. I didn't vote to give them a dime. They can't win. I didn't want to get these people killed. Trump is going to get them out of it. I don't know what he is going to have to give up.'

Former State Representative Perry O. Hooper Jr. (R-Montgomery) agrees with Tuberville. He supports both Scott and a public vote by the Caucus on who will be the majority leader.

"Insisting on a roll call vote for Senate Majority Leader is a pivotal move toward accountability and transparency," Hooper told the Gazette. It ensures that every member's vote is recorded, fostering trust and demonstrating a commitment to principled leadership."

Hooper said that last week's Republican wave election that returned Trump to the Whitehouse and gave Republicans control of both Houses of Congress for the first time since 2017 is a historic moment.

"This is the beginning of rebuilding Americans' trust in institutions, setting the tone for a more open and responsive Congress and reinforcing the democratic values that underpin our system of government," said Hooper.

Sen. Scott has also been endorsed by Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Florida), Sen. Rand Paul (R-Kentucky), Sen. Bill Hagerty (R-Tennessee) and Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wisconsin). Scott also has the endorsements of many in the MAGA community including: billionaire Elon Musk, journalist Tucker Carlson and pundit Charlie Kirk

Tommy Tuberville was elected to the Senate in 2020.

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