Ledbetter mum on Senate speculation
Patrick Graham, Proprietor
RAINSVILLE — Ask Alabama’s Speaker of the House what he thinks about Sen. Tommy Tuberville and his run for governor, and Rep. Nathanial Ledbetter (R-Rainsville) has plenty to say — and it’s all good.
Ledbetter had followed Tuberville’s coaching career during all of his stops, but the avowed Alabama fan really got to know and like Tuberville in the time leading up to and during the former Auburn head football coach’s successful campaign for the U.S. Senate in the 2020 general election.
“I think I was the first elected official in the state who endorsed him and people thought I was crazy,” Ledbetter told The Sand Mountain Leader in an exclusive interview. “He had just come back to Alabama from out of state, he had never been in politics, nobody knew him, not yet really, he’d been away, they were just getting to know him again, he was behind in the polls, but once we got things kind of organized he just started gaining more and more popularity.”
Most political pundits believe Tuberville wouldn’t have won that Senate race without the political clout and resources Ledbetter brought to bear on his behalf, and the two have been good friends and close political allies ever since.
“He’s one of those kind of guys that when he is in a room he is everybody’s friend,” the District 24 representative said. “He just has one of those personalities. I think that comes from so many years recruiting. He’s great in the living room. He doesn’t meet a stranger. Everywhere we went everybody would say something to him and he didn’t shy away from anybody.”
While an official endorsement is being saved for the appropriate time, Ledbetter is quick to share he supports Tuberville and believes he will do a good job if elected Alabama’s next governor.
“He is such a good communicator, I think that’s his biggest attribute,” Ledbetter said. “He says things that people think but maybe they wouldn’t say it normally. He’s done a really good job. His adaptability to the political world to me has been pretty impressive. He’s excited about the opportunity to be the head coach for the state of Alabama. I think that is how he sees it.”
While Ledbetter has plenty to say about his friend’s run for governor, the speaker is less enthusiastic about discussing who should replace Tuberville in the U.S. Senate. Ask Ledbetter about speculation he could be a candidate to fill the state’s now-open Senate seat and he doesn’t have much to say — at all.
Ledbetter considers the speculation a compliment, but he also makes it real clear real quick he’s not interested in going down that political rabbit hole.
“I think when you are in my position you are going to be named for everything like that,” Ledbetter said. “I just think when you are speaker or pro tem, when you are elevated to positions like that, your name is going to come up. Media people are looking for people’s names. I think it’s quite an honor for people to think you would do a good job at that and mention your name.”
He added, “My main thing is to do a good job at what you’re doing. If you do a good job at what you’re doing people will talk about it and you won’t have to talk about it. With the staff we’ve got and the leadership team we’ve got the success is attributed to them.
“You look over the record of what we’ve been able to accomplish in the state, it’s pretty impressive.”
