Congressman says U.S. needs new leadership

Gary Palmer believes the country needs to return to its roots.

Palmer represents Alabama Congressional District 6, the new district for Elmore County starting Jan. 1. Palmer has opposition for the seat from Gerrick Wilkins, and both are currently campaigning for the District 6 seat.

Palmer spoke to the Elmore County Republican Party at its annual scholarship dinner and gave a brief update on issues in Washington. He said most of the problems were related to divisive politics.

“It is a tough time in our country’s history,” Palmer said. “We are amazingly resilient people. We’ve gone through tough times. It’s amazing what God does. He raises up the right people at the right time.” 

Palmer likened current issues to those in the U.S. in the late 1970s and early 1980s. There was high inflation and high interest rates

“Things were really bad for the country,” Palmer said. “Homebuilders were leaving the foundations. They couldn’t afford to finish the houses. There was an energy crisis. Military was in shambles. The Soviet Union was in Central America, the Caribbean, central Africa. They had invaded Afghanistan.”

Palmer believes the United States can return to the prominence it found coming out of the Cold War. But the nation has to come together to do it. 

He said California has more evangelicals in the country than any other state. Texas is No. 2, but Californians don’t vote in high numbers. Palmer encouraged everyone to get out and vote.

“It is like we are ashamed to admit we have political affiliations,” Palmer said. “We will talk about Auburn and Alabama football, but we won’t talk about religion or politics. The time has come and gone for that. We have got to stand together as a people around common values.”

Palmer said he was helping former President Donald Trump craft campaign policy.

“I believe he is the guy to get things done,” Palmer said. “I don’t think Russia would have invaded Ukraine. Because Putin would have thought he would have bombed the Kremlin.”  

Palmer is a historian and reflected on the early 1980s as Pope John Paul II was set to visit communist Poland. He said the Soviet thought about having the Pope assassinated.

“Instead they filled the Polish schools with atheism and tried to muzzle the Polish media,” Palmer said. 

The Pope journeyed to the Communist Bloc and was greeted by millions seeking change. Eight years after, President Ronald Regan demanded the wall come down in Berlin. It did 18 months later.

Palmer said the Soviet Union has been replaced by China in recent times. It brings similar issues of control over natural resources, many of which China supplies the U.S.

“We have got to focus on critical minerals,” Palmer said. “That has become a national security issue. We don’t mine minerals. We don’t refine them. If we got into a conflict with China we would be up the creek.”

To cut the dependency on China, Palmer said he and other Republicans want to help private investment mines and refineries to mine minerals in Central and South America.

“It’s not government or foreign aid, but private investment to help build out their energy infrastructure,” Palmer said. 

The Republican Party also has plans to lower the debt through a balanced budget.

“There are no gimmicks,” Palmer said. “We have a way to get our debt back to a manageable level. We can do this, but we need everybody on board.”

The House of Representatives currently has a slim Republican majority, but the party has had some recent health scares to its top members. Majority leader Steve Scalise is out getting treatment for cancer. Hal Rogers was in a head on collision in Washington D.C. and is still recovering. 

Palmer said the Republican Party is trying to hold on until they return, but even then, it’s still just a three-person majority. Palmer wants more Republicans to be elected to the House and for the party to get the majority in the Senate. 

Palmer believes the world is waiting to see what happens in this year’s election. He spoke with diplomats and leaders, especially Sweden.

“The media has led you to believe all these European heads of state and diplomats didn’t like Trump,” Palmer said. “I very carefully asked about President Trump. The diplomat said, ‘We like him because when he says something, we know he will do it.’ There is no substitute for certainty in foreign policy.” 

Palmer hopes Trump will be elected, and he challenged Elmore County Republicans to help.

“We need to give him four years to get us started in the right direction,” Palmer said. “We all have the chance to be a part of history. Your names may not be written on a page. You may not have your picture in a history book, but what this generation of people do will be reflected in history — to bring back the greatest nation in the world.”