Former Auburn University football coach, Tommy Tuberville, breaks down the Republican Senate primary election results in Alabama as he defeats former U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions on ‘Fox and Friends.’ Tuberville said the “country is trouble” and that is why he is running.
“The referendum for Donald Trump last night in Alabama, he is going to take this state overwhelmingly,” Tuberville, the Trump-backed candidate, said about his victory. “So anything we can do to help him. You know, this country’s in trouble. That’s the reason I’m running.”
STEVE DOOCY, FOX & FRIENDS HOST: He’s the man of the hour, and joining us right now on the heels of his very busy victory night last night Alabama Republican Senate Candidate, Tommy Tuberville. Tommy, good morning to you.
TOMMY TUBERVILLE (R-AL), U.S. SENATE CANDIDATE: Morning, Steve, and thank you for pronouncing my name right. You’re one of the first ones, you and Brian. Thank you.
DOOCY: Our pleasure. Tommy, you know, the president over the last month or so has endorsed a couple of candidates who did not win in Colorado and North Carolina, so was the pressure on you to win over Jeff Sessions, who the president really does not like because he was the attorney general, recused himself, and then the whole Russia thing happened?
TUBERVILLE: You know, I felt a little pressure for that because I’m a huge Donald Trump fan. I think he’s done a great job. With four or five people — he’s a quarterback. He’s in the pocket and he’s got people hanging all over him, but he’s still completing passes.
And you know what? The referendum for Donald Trump last night in Alabama, he is going to take this state overwhelmingly. So anything we can do to help him. You know, this country’s in trouble. That’s the reason I’m running. I told people a year and a half ago, which by the way this is the hardest thing I’ve ever tried to do in my life, but I’m doing it for the reasons.
I told — I was telling everybody this country’s in trouble and we better get control of this country from Washington, D.C. on down to local government. And that’s the reason I’m running. I want to be a part of what’s going to happen in the next few years when we get President Trump reelected. We have to keep the Senate.
JEDEDIAH BILA, FOX & FRIENDS HOST: Important to note, we invited opponent Doug Jones on the program. We have not heard back as of yet. So tell me. I want to ask, there’s a lot of key issues in the country right now, the economy in particular coming off the heels of the coronavirus pandemic, which is still in process but a lot of states have been suffering shutdowns and then reopening, shutdowns, then reopenings. What is the key issue that drives you in this election?
TUBERVILLE: We’ve got to get jobs back in the state of Alabama and all over the country. You know, I’ve traveled this country for the last 30 years recruiting and going into businesses and schools and going to the rural areas, urban areas.
The big thing that we’ve done is we’ve sold our country out to China and foreign countries. We’ve sent everything out. We’re — we don’t have the small manufacturing jobs in this country, in the small communities. We got to get those back. We got to give our kids an opportunity to look in the direction of a job and a successful career and raise a family other than look around going, what am I going to do? Am I going to get on welfare or am I going to work hard to make ends meet in terms of getting that job and work their way up? There’s no possible way right now in some of these smaller areas in Alabama —
KILMEADE: Right.
TUBERVILLE: — and even across the country to make ends meet with not having the jobs.
KILMEADE: So there’s no doubt about it. If you don’t win your Senate seat and flip that seat, I don’t think Mitch McConnell’s Majority Leader, so there’s pressure on your shoulders which I’m sure you welcome. There’s all talk that Georgia’s changing. Not so much as red as it used to be, that Arizona not as red as it used to be. What about Alabama? And what is it going to take to beat Doug Jones?
TUBERVILLE: Well, we’re totally different. He doesn’t believe in the values of most people in the state of Alabama. He believes in abortion, no guns, big spending. I mean, he voted to impeach President Trump. You can’t do that in this state. I mean, this is the best president we’ve had in my lifetime that gets things done, and he’s not listening to the people of Alabama.
If you’re a senator, you represent the people of your state, not your party. And I’m going to represent the people of the state of Alabama and they know that. I’ve been all over it telling them I’m their voice, and to do that, I’ve got to get to Washington, D.C. where I can help Senator McConnell and Donald Trump get their agenda done.
DOOCY: Yes. So Tommy, as you are now going to be the candidate versus Doug Jones, the Democrat down there in Alabama, for the people who are watching from other states, what does November come down to?
When you look at Joe Biden, you know, he’s — yesterday he was talking about his energy program and things like that. Donald Trump, however, the Democrats are trying to say really screwed up the coronavirus federal response. When people go into the voting booth in October for early voting and November on that Tuesday, what’s it all about? What does it come down to?
TUBERVILLE: Well, as you just said, Steve, the big thing — and we polled this — the coronavirus is number one thing on everybody’s mind, and it should be. It’s dangerous. We’ve got to be able to handle it. President Trump’s done a good job. I mean, he got caught blindsided with no materials to fight back in terms of in our hospitals, but we’re finding more and more out about this. And he’s going to overcome this. President Trump is the guy that’s going to lead us through this if we just listen. Of course the left don’t. They don’t want to listen to anything. I mean, they’re totally opposite of what he wants to do.
And the other thing, obviously, economy. President Trump knows he’s got to get jobs back. He’s got to get people jobs, and he’s doing it. He’s working hard. I mean, this guy — I told him — I was on Air Force One with him not too long ago. I said, “Mr. President, I don’t know what you’re taking, but I want to take it. I want the energy you got. I don’t got a lot of energy.” I mean, this guy’s unbelievable.
(LAUGHTER)
KILMEADE: Yes, and — yes, and let’s see if you can get football back in the fall, OK, and at least practicing in the summer, but that’s pretty much out of your realm right now.
Tommy Tuberville, congratulations on the big win last night. Best of luck in November.
TUBERVILLE: Thank you. God bless.
