By Brandon Moseley
Alabama Political Reporter
Tuesday, July 11, the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC) released yet another attack on US Representative Martha Roby (R-Montgomery) whom they have identified as potentially vulnerable in the 2018 election. This time the comments regard Donald Trump Jr., Jared Kushner (Trump’s son-in-law and trusted adviser) and then-Trump Campaign manager Paul Manafort’s meeting with a Russian attorney who was connected to the Russian government concerning the sharing of information about Democratic Presidential campaign nominee former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.
DCCC Spokesman Cole Leitner said, “This goes beyond partisan politics and Representative Martha Roby must show leadership on this important issue,” said DCCC spokesperson Cole Leiter. “American intelligence agencies have already determined Russia worked to undermine our elections last year and now there is proof that Trump campaign officials were willing and eager accomplices. Roby should have the courage to say so.”
Donald Trump Jr. acknowledged to Fox News host Sean Hannity that the meeting took place and that he did exchange emails with the British National who set up the meeting between top Trump campaign officials and the Russian emissary. Trump Jr. says that his father had no knowledge of the meeting and has said that he has shared all of the emails to the special counsel and Congressional investigators.
The New York Times is reporting that the trio knew the meeting was with a Russian lawyer about, “very high level and sensitive information” and was a “part of Russia and its government’s support for Mr. Trump.” In March Trump Jr. did not remember that this meeting occurred even though it is now being reported that Donald Trump, Jr. eagerly set up the meeting, telling his contact that “if it’s what you say I love it especially later in the summer.” Donald Jr. told Hannity that if he had it to do over again he would have handled it differently.
The DCCC claimed that, “This latest piece of evidence isn’t just a smoking gun. It’s evidence that the Trump campaign was willing and eager to collude with the Russian government in an attempt to distort and undermine our democracy. It’s time for a straightforward answer to a simple question: Does Representative Roby now believe the Trump campaign colluded with Russia?”
Supporters of the President claim that this is not necessarily collusion and that collusion is not a crime even if it did indeed occur during the 2016 election.
The DCCC has identified Roby as vulnerable tracing to the 2016 campaign. Disgruntled conservatives attempted to oust US Representative Martha Roby (R-Montgomery) in the Republican Primary, instead backing Wetumpka Tea Party President Becky Gerritson and Robert Rogers in the GOP primary. GOP Primary voters rejected that challenge and Roby won with 66.4 percent of the vote.
Roby appeared to be coasting to an easy victory over a badly outclassed and underfunded Democratic Party opponent Nathan Mathis; then the media released a ten year old videotape of Donald Trump Sr. using the p-word and claiming that he could force himself on women and they would submit due to his TV celebrity status. Congresswoman Roby and then Alabama Governor Robert Bentley (R) both denounced Trump and said that they could not support him in the November election. Roby called for Trump to step down from the Republican ticket. Most Republicans however disagreed and Trump won election in November.
Angry conservatives and Trump supporters may have forgiven Trump; but they did not forgive Roby. Roby only got 48 percent of the vote even though Trump carried her district in a landslide. Mathis got 40.5 percent of the vote and 10.5 percent of the voters wrote in Becky Gerritson or some other candidate.
Roby took the seat away from the Democrats when she defeated conservative Democrat Bobby Bright (D from Montgomery) in the 2010 election.
According to original reporting by Politico, Donald Trump reportedly put Rep. Roby on his enemies list.
Politico’s Alex Isenstadt wrote that according to his sources: “For now, Trump aides don’t expect him to weigh in on Roby’s race with an endorsement for her opponent. At the same time, they don’t expect him to take steps to publicly back the incumbent.”
Roby has been working to mend fences both with conservatives in her district and with President Trump.
Roby spokesman Todd Stacy has denounced the Politico story as, “fake news” and a work of “pure fiction.”
A Roby spokesperson told The Alabama Political Reporter that she is not on the President’s enemies list and that Roby has, “Actually had a very positive relationship with the Administration and been invited to the White House multiple times for bill signing and meetings with Ivanka.”
State Representative Barry Moore (R-Enterprise) has already announced that he will challenge Martha Roby in the June 5, 2018 Republican Primary. Moore was one of the first politicians in the state to endorse President Trump.
