MONTGOMERY — Two Democrats filibustered Senate proceedings for about six hours on Thursday.
The Senate only passed two non-controversial bills before adjourning due to Democrats filibustering over legislation on the calendar by State Sen. Chris Elliott (R-Josephine) changing how the Alabama Department of Archives and History board is appointed.
The Senate's Republican supermajority allowed Democrats to filibuster most of the day without ending debate on bills via cloture.
"Two-thirds of the session remains, and priority bills addressing immigration, crime, and other issues that reflect our strong, conservative Alabama values will secure passage before the Senate adjourns sine die. Legislative sessions are marathons, not sprints, and the floor action today offered evidence of that fact," Saylor Cuzzort, a spokesperson for the Alabama Senate Republican Caucus, told 1819 News on Thursday.
Most of the filibuster by Senate Minority Leader Bobby Singleton (D-Greensboro) and State Sen. Roger Smitherman (D-Birmingham) focused on the Trump administration, DOGE, Elon Musk's country of origin, and the ills of changing the Alabama Archives and History Board's governance.
"It changes the whole board of the Department of Archives and History," Smitherman said on the Senate floor.
Singleton focused on Republicans' silence or agreement with Trump's Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) cutting some reported federal funding to UAB and other parts of Alabama. He said, "DOGE is robbing us blind."
"Money is being taken from Alabama right now, and you're alright with that because we've got an attorney general who wants to be on the side with the president. Maybe they're waiting for the governor to die or something. I'm praying for you, Kay. Don't you go nowhere, baby. Praying for you, love you to death. I don't want you to go nowhere because I wouldn't know what this shakeup would be. I'm just saying, I know some people are praying that she do. I'm praying that she don't. I love her," Singleton said on the Senate floor.
Singleton said Republicans were "afraid of the South African, and they're afraid of the current administration."
"A South African born (Musk) who's now here running our government right out of the Oval Office. Maybe he'll bring apartheid to America. Maybe that's what they're looking for, want Elon to come save you again. Maybe that's what is making America great again. Maybe Elon is the answer to making America great again. Nobody wants to talk about that. Everybody wants to sit around and be real quiet and sneaky quiet about it. Run up there, you know our U.S. Senators want to tweet and everything every day about the greatness of what the president is doing while they're still stabbing Alabama in the back, and we're alright with it. We won't open our mouths," Singleton said. "DOGE got y'all handcuffed. Everybody scared to be primaried. Everybody scared to say something to him and say something about him because they're afraid of being primaried."
Elliott told 1819 News on Thursday his Alabama Archives and History Board bill and his other bills that didn't receive a vote due to Democrat filibustering would be back later on the Senate floor for a vote.
"I expect all of these bills to come back again. You'll recall last week, we had the archives and history bill out of committee and back up on the floor. Sen. Smitherman had asked to read the substitute for the bill. He hadn't had a chance to read that,t so we carried it over so he'd have a chance to read the bill. We try to operate in good faith and certainly did that. (I) carried it over to let him do that. I didn't hear back from him really one way or the other, and so we put the bill back on the calendar along with a bunch of other government efficiency-type pieces of legislation. He did his thing today, which was on full show. I think you heard an awful lot of hyperbole on the floor today about the legislation. That's unfortunate. I think at the end of the day, this is something the caucus is interested in doing, and I think we'll see it back on the floor again," Elliott said.
To connect with the author of this story or to comment, email caleb.taylor@1819News.com.
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