Martha Roby on WSFA Newsmakers
Part 1
Part 2
Part 3
Part 4
Roby has a tough fight ahead with Democrat Bobby Bright. He's very popular and has voted conservatively on all the "big bills" that you hear about on the news. He has made some missteps lately on the issue of repealing Obamacare, which he says he's not in favor of. Roby has been arguing that his vote for Nancy Pelosi as speaker allows the Democrats to move their agenda forward even if Bright isn't voting for each individual piece of legislation.
Alabama Politics: In the News
From CD 2:
Doc's Political Parlor does a round up of the CD 2 run-off
Martha Roby and Rick Barber have op-eds in today's Montgomery Advertiser
Gubernatorial Race:
Chuck Dean at The Birmingham News covers last night's debate in Springville, AL
Dean also covers Marengo County GOP Chairman's resignation over ties to Paul Hubbert and AEA in today's Birmingham News
J.D. Crowe has an amusing cartoon in today's Press-Register
Martha Roby Getting A Little National Media For A Stellar Fundraising Quarter
Roby Amps Up Fundraising
On another not, Roby is hitting Rep. Bright pretty hard over his failure to sign Rep. Steve King's discharge petition to repeal Obamacare.
Update on CD2
Barber has had some interesting campaign ads lately that have gotten him attention from national media. "Gather Your Armies" and "Slavery" got him on with Chris Matthews and Fox News.
So you'd think he might have gained some momentum right? He hasn't. According to the article below from The Hill, Barber may be learning an important lesson...local media gets you far more votes than national media.
Controversial ads aren't resonating in Alabama, officials say
By Barbra Kim - 06/30/10 06:19 PM ET
An Alabama House candidate's controversial campaign ads that feature conversations with actors playing dead presidents have received national attention but local GOP officials say they've gone virtually unnoticed in the 2nd district.
Several officials told The Ballot Box they didn't even know about businessman Rick Barber's (R) most recent web ad, which equates taxation to slavery and features an actor playing Abraham Lincoln.
"I really don't know what to think, I'm just surprised" to hear about it, said Charlene Erbskorn, chair of the Houston County Republican Party, which sponsored Monday's debate between Barber and rival Martha Roby (R).
Butler County Republican Party chairman Cleveland Poole was one of the few officials contacted by The Ballot Box who'd seen the recent "slavery" web ad.
He said it was overly provocative. "Comparing President Obama's healthcare act to Jewish prison camps or to slavery in the South is taking the comparison too far," Poole said.
Barber also released a minute-long TV ad that features him yelling about being taxed without representation to a group of men dressed as America's founding fathers. The ad closes with an actor dressed as a young George Washington murmuring, "gather your armies." He addressed the controversial ad during an appearance on MSNBC's "Hardball" Wednesday.
Host Chris Matthews asked if he was advocating violence against an elected government. Barber said it was meant as a metaphor -- "gather our political army." Matthews noted that wasn't what the ad actually says and Barber grew agitated. "Chris, do you know what a metaphor is?," he asked.
Moments later Matthews asked Barber if he'd ever been audited (the ad mentions "malicious audits" as a reason for rebellion). "It's irrelevant, I've been audited once," Barber said.
The ad prompted mixed feelings in Alabama Republicans. "I think it's a very different way of looking at things," said Montgomery County GOP chair Pat Wilson. "I think people misunderstand it." She hadn't seen the web ad, but speculated that was because it's directed at a younger, web-savvy audience. Barber said he'd received an overwhelmingly positive response from the district to his ads.
"People are frustrated with what's going on in the government, and they're willing to speak out about it," he said. "It's a bit on the controversial side, but most people resonate with the overall message."
A Roby campaign official said that Barber was pursuing a strategy of national attention and only represented a small number of people in the district.
Roby, backed by the National Republican Congressional Committee, is favored to clinch the nod in the July 13 runoff after taking first place in June primary. The winner faces Rep. Bobby Bright (D-Ala.) in November. The two Republicans will meet again on Thursday in a debate co-hosted by the Montgomery County Republicans, two other northern counties and several Tea Party groups.
Martha Roby Gets Montgomery Advertiser Endorsement
Here's what they had to say:
Four Republican candidates are seeking their party's nomination for the right to face Democratic incumbent Congressman Bobby Bright in the November general election.Of the four, Montgomery City Council member Martha Roby appears to have the best combination of experience and insight into the issues facing the residents of U.S. House District 2.Roby has served on the Montgomery City Council since 2003, where she has ably represented a racially and economically diverse council district. Roby earned her law degree from Cumberland School of Law at Samford University in 2001, and practiced law for several years.She has been a strong community volunteer, having worked with Sav-A-Life Montgomery, the Cleveland Avenue YMCA, the Britton YMCA, the Montgomery Area Business Committee for the Arts and the Montgomery Weed and Seed executive board.The other woman in the race, State Board of Education member Stephanie Bell of Montgomery, also has ably served the people of the area in public office for many years. As a state board member, Bell spoke out early and often about the corruption that tainted the state's two-year college system for so many years. But Roby's experience in office is more varied than Bell's, which has focused on the education arena.Based on her service as a city council member, her grasp of the issues facing the district, and her strong work ethic, the Montgomery Advertiser recommends Roby to Republican voters in the District 2 congressional race.
Martha Roby Gets Wetumpka Herald Endorsement
From The Wetumpka Herald:
Having a similar theme to Sen. Shelby about less government, and conservative values, Montgomery City Councilwoman Martha Roby is our pick for the Republican nomination in the Second District. She makes no bones about the fact that Washington has fallen into the wrong hands, and her first act will be to vote against the re-election of Nancy Pelosi of California as House Speaker. “I will go to Congress and work to increase transparency and accountability. I have a proven record on the Montgomery City Council of fighting tax increases and standing up against wasteful spending, and I'll do just that in Washington. However, my first vote will be to take the gavel away from Nancy Pelosi, so we can restore conservative leadership in Washington.” We agree with Roby that Congress has done too many things behind closed doors and the public’s right has been shut out. Washington is being misdirected in leadership. Voters need to recognize that poor leadership hurts the country. The Herald endorses Martha Roby
Martha Roby On Air In CD2
A lot of criticism on Doc's Political Parlor, but overall, I don't think it's a bad ad. Especially since Roby is the only candidate in CD2 with the money for television ads.