MONTGOMERY — State Senate Minority Leader Bobby Singleton (D-Greensboro) criticized President Donald Trump ahead of his visit to the University of Alabama on Thursday.
The University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) recently canceled a scholarship for black medical students after the Trump administration opened an investigation into the "race-based scholarship" in February, to which Singleton voiced his displeasure Thursday on the Senate floor.
"The University system is basically taking scholarships away from black medical students, a part of that system, and the same man, the president, coming down to speak to them. I guess that's what they wanted so that's what they got. So, all those folks that are rolling with the Tide, I have to look at them in a different light now," Singleton said.
Singleton was also critical of recent DOGE grant cuts to UAB, the Department of Public Health and other federal programs.
"I'm not hearing voices from leadership wanting to speak up. I guess everybody runs to Tuscaloosa today and praises him and bows down to the king dictator, the master, and say, 'Thank you for taking away our grant money. Thank you for taking away everything from us in this state. We appreciate you taking it away from us,'" Singleton said.
Singleton said, "The NIH grants they're taking away from UAB. We see money being taken out of Head Start, all the social services programs to help poor folks."
He called Elon Musk "the alien up there in his office from DOGE taking all our money away."
"Please, please, please, I'm begging like James Brown. Please, please, please tell Mr. President to give us our money back," Singleton said. "The alien up there in his office from DOGE taking all our money away. And we embrace that. We've got to make sure that we thrive as a state. We can't be running behind this man when he don't care nothing about our state," Singleton said. "When you get there, would you please, please, please tell him we need money for health care. Tell him little babies down here need that money back, that UAB needs that money back. Would somebody carry the message? We're the third most dependent state in America on federal funds and we act like we got a lot of money and we stick our chests out like we're so good. We need federal dollars to thrive."
He added, "We need our little money in this state."
"Would you please, please, please, please, I'm like James Brown," Singleton continued. "I'm on my knees. Tell the alien up in Washington, the South African, leave Alabama alone. Give us our money back. If Tuberville wants to do something for us, get us our money back. If Katie Britt wants to do something for us, get us our money back. She don't go unscathed either. Get us our money back. Want to cut our money and then come home and act like they doing so much up in Washington. Took the money over here to poor folks over in Lowndes County for their water and sewer projects. Took the money. Where you at, Terri Sewell? Speak up. I'm not leaving any of them out."
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