Why liberals in Congress fear Alabama Sen. Katie Britt | INSIDE THE STATEHOUSE

Alabama Sen. Katie Britt has quickly established herself as one of the most effective, well-respected members of the United States Senate.

In all my years observing state and national politics, I have never seen someone gain esteem on both sides of the aisle as quickly and as genuinely as Britt during her first 16 months in office.

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Furthermore, she has done it all while being a steady, strong champion for Christian conservative values and priorities that Alabamians hold dear. In recognition of her staunch conservative voting record, Britt was honored with the Conservative Political Action Conference’s Award for Conservative Achievement this year.

In my pre-Christmas column this past December, I wrote about Britt’s early mastery of her roles on the Appropriations, Banking, and Rules Committees. Through appropriations, she secured the ninth-most funding out of 100 U.S. Senators ― despite being a freshman member and ranked dead-last in seniority at the beginning of the year.

This prowess in bringing Alabamians’ taxpayer money back home and making wise investments in the state’s future are the hallmarks of a senior stateswoman, far surpassing Britt’s status as the youngest Republican woman ever elected to the upper chamber of Congress.

Outside of her impressive appropriations acumen, Britt is already running laps around her colleagues when it comes to the art of legislating, too.

In recent weeks alone, Britt has seen a handful of her co-sponsored pieces of legislation be enacted into law in overwhelming bipartisan fashion. This includes complex foreign policy bills that crack down on America’s greatest adversaries: China, Iran, and Russia.

Britt has emerged as a stalwart advocate for Alabama’s military bases and communities. Britt helped ensure that training funds were not taken away from the Army Aviation Center of Excellence at Fort Rucker in her native Wiregrass by the Biden administration this month. Britt’s intervention was seen as integral in saving a flight simulation training program from being halted.

It is no secret that Britt has quickly cemented herself as one of the foremost pro-border security, anti-illegal immigration hawks in Washington. She helped lead the FEND Off Fentanyl Act, which was signed into law in April, alongside Republican Sen. Tim Scott of South Carolina.

Britt has been a champion for rural housing affordability and rural infrastructure. She has also made it a personal mission to increase health care access and improve health care outcomes for rural Alabamians.

First, Britt recently partnered with Sen. Laphonza Butler, a Democrat from California, to introduce the NIH IMPROVE Act. This bipartisan bill would provide consistent support and resources to conduct important research into America’s maternal mortality crisis and improve health care outcomes for women before, during and after pregnancy. This type of effort is especially needed in Alabama, where over one-third of our state’s 67 counties are classified as “maternity care deserts.”

Britt’s introduction of the comprehensive MOMS Act with Republican Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida also speaks to her commitment to solving the challenges facing so many women, children, and families. Sadly, Alabama has the highest maternal mortality rate in the nation. That reality is why Britt has also joined Sen. Maggie Hassan, a Democrat from New Hampshire, in introducing the Rural Obstetrics Readiness Act.

Additionally, Britt has co-sponsored a major bipartisan bill to expand coverage of telehealth services through Medicare and make it easier for patients to connect with their doctors. That’s not even to mention the two pieces of bipartisan legislation she has co-sponsored to help all Alabamians gain access to affordable insulin.

Finally, Britt, partnering with Sen. Amy Klobuchar, a Minnesota Democrat, introduced the Youth Mental Health Research Act. Britt is a member of the honorary congressional working group for the Bipartisan Policy Center’s Youth Mental Health and Substance Use Task Force, underscoring her national leadership on a critical topic for America’s children and families.

Unfortunately, you will not hear or see most of these bipartisan efforts by Britt covered by the liberal media. The Nancy Pelosi left wing of the Democratic Party lie and distort the bipartisan pro-women work of Britt. They fear our Katie Britt. The left wing ultra-liberals only shoot at worthy targets, and they have Alabama’s Katie Britt in their sights. If you want to know another person’s value, just look at who is attacking them.

Britt is an incredibly bright rising Republican superstar, and she is shining a light on the best of Alabama every day. We are fortunate to have a stalwart senator, who simultaneously fights for Alabama’s Christian conservative values and is an effective mover-and-shaker behind the scenes. That is why she was invited to sit at the Senate Republican leadership table. Britt is not only building Alabama’s future ― she is our state’s greatest asset today.

Steve Flowers' weekly column appears in over 60 Alabama newspapers. He served 16 years in the state Legislature. Flowers can be reached at www.steveflowers.us.

This article originally appeared on The Tuscaloosa News: Democrats respect, fear Alabama's Katie Britt | INSIDE THE STATEHOUSE