State Auditor Andrew Sorrell addresses the Mid-Alabama Republican Club

State Auditor Andrew Sorrell addresses the Mid-Alabama Republican Club

February 8, 2025 – VESTAVIA HILLS, AL – State Auditor Andrew Sorrell (R) spoke to the Mid-Alabama Republican Club about his duties as Auditor, election integrity, cryptocurrency, his campaigns, de-banking, and his tenure in the Alabama House of Representatives,

Sorrell, who owns a gun store and pawnshop, is from Muscle Shoals in northwest Alabama. He and his wife – Hannah – have two daughters,

Sorrell said that he met his wife on a bus tour of Italy. She asked him if he liked politics, and he was sold. In the first year of their marriage he ran for the Alabama House of Representatives.

"Hannah, this is not going to be your typical win your primary and it is an automatic in the general," Sorrell said.

Sorrell was challenging long time incumbent Democrat Marcel Black. Few gave Sorrell a chance of winning,

"In fact I was told he was unbeatable," Sorrell said making the decision to run anyway.

Ultimately, Black, at the urging of his wife and son, dropped out of the race, Sorrell narrowly beat the Democrat that replaced Black on the ticket. Sorrell acknowledged later to Black that he probably would have lost to the incumbent if Black had stayed in the race given how close the race wound up being. Sorrell credited his campaign's door knocking efforts for the victory.

Sorrell served in the Legislature from 2018 to 2022. In 2022 he was elected State Auditor.

In 2021, I carried a bill that would exempt bitcoin from ad valorem tax," said Sorrell. "The bill ended up dying on the floor."

"95% of the debate on the floor (of the Legislature) is not really debate," said Sorrell. "It is delay tactics. It is kind of sad."

Sorrell said that his first vote in the Legislature was the gas tax.

"They said you could vote no; but you couldn't speak against it on the floor," said Sorrell. "I gave a two-minute speech on why I was voting no on the gas tax,"

The body applauded.

"Why did they do that? I asked (Rep.) Mike Ball when I got back to my seat," Sorrell said. "They were just impressed that you were brave enough to go out on the floor and do that," Ball replied.

(Rep.) "Mike Shaw (R-Hoover) is carrying the crypto bill," Sorrell said.

Sorrell said that President Donald J. Trump has talked about increasing the U.S. government's holdings of Bitcoin as part of establishing a sovereign wealth fund for the U.S.

"We have 1% of the world Bitcoin supply. Trump wants to make it 5%," said Sorrell. "El Salvador has already declared it to be legal tender in their country. 1 out of 15 people in the world own crypto currency."

Sorrell said that he and his wife Hannah have been working for an effort to exempt nursing moms from jury duty.

"Candace Brown is a mother of five including one who is four months old," Sorrell said.

Brown was not exempted but instead told that she could use the Jefferson County Courthouse nursing room. It was filthy and had not been cleaned in a year.

Sorrell said, "Judge Elizabeth French – it was a female judge. That is the craziest thing," told the Mothers after their children made noise "If y'all bring back your children tomorrow I am going to call DHR.:

Sorrell said that Rep. Susan Dubose (R-Greystone) and Senator April Weaver (R-Briarfield) agreed to carry the bill in the legislature; but Alabama Justice Brad Mendheim saw the news report about Mrs. Brown so the court, "By administrative rule they fixed it" to allow nursiung moms to get an exemption from jury duty.

"Jefferson County Commissioner Judge Boling found out about it ordered the room cleaned and got new furniture," for the room said Sorrell.

Jefferson County Commissioner John Knight (R) said, "That was on the state end. Once we found out about it we fixed it."

Sorrell applauded the swearing in of two new Alabama school board members.

"Conservatives on our school board willing to take on serious issues like getting trashy books out of our school libraries," said Sorrell.

"I am not sure that we need CNN student news in our classrooms," said Sorrell saying that it has become liberal "indoctrination."

Sorrell said that the State auditor's office had been so cut by the Legislature that, "When I arrived there our budget was less in 2023 than it was in 2001. My staff, they were parking on meters because we did not have parking places. We were leasing space from the Ethics Commission and our rent was set to triple when our lease ran out."

Sorrell moved the staff back to the Capital.

Sorrell said that he now has a good working relationship with the Governor's budget office.

Sorrell said that he supports Rep. Debbie Woods' (R-Valley) legislation to raise the Board of Registrars pay from $80 to $150 a day.

Sorrells said that Senator Andrew Jones (R-Centre) is carrying a bill to strengthen the auditor's ability to go after persons for stealing or destroying state property.

Sorrell said that his company's credit card company closed their account. The next year another bank closed their account. The same thing happened the third year. They weren't missing payments, but because they were a gun store big banks were debanking them to improve their social credit scores with liberals.

"We sell guns. These banks are feeling pressure to cut ties with all of these subgroups that are unwoke," Sorrell explained. The same thing is happening to Prolife groups, fossil fuel companies, and farmers. The same thing happened to Nigel Farage in Great Britain. He brought attention to the issue.

"It wasn't just Nigel that got debanked but one million other people in Great Britain," said Sorrell who supports state legislation to prevent the big banks from debanking citizens, businesses, and farmers.

Sorrell said that he supports efforts by Secretary of State Wes Allen to clean up the voter rolls.

The MARC meets on the second Saturday of each month in Vestavia Hills. Next month they will meet in the VH library. The month after that they will meet in the City Hall again,

Janey Whitney is the President of MARC.

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