By: Theadoris Morris|Staff Writer

Having made the trip for 33 years now, U.S. Senator Richard Shelby (R-Tuscaloosa) paid a visit to Chilton County residents as part of his annual visit Friday.

The free public meeting was held at the Jemison Municipal Complex off of U.S. 31.

Introduced by Circuit Clerk Glenn McGriff, the senator addressed the legislative agenda for the 112th Congress as well as other important issues facing the nation and the state.

“I’m no stranger to Chilton County and I’m glad to be here,” Shelby said. “I’ve had five terms in the U.S. Senate and four terms in the U.S. House, and I’m only interested in what is best for the country.”

Shelby went on to speak about taxes, Obama’s healthcare plan, the debt limit and more.

“I voted against the Obama health care plan,” said Shelby. “Healthcare is not cheap, it’s not perfect, but we should be building on what we have instead of tearing it down. When you ration healthcare – you ration life.”

“We need a new tax code,” he said. “The tax code is not made for you and me. It’s for over the years and for the people who can lobby, but not for you basically.”

Following his remarks, Shelby opened the floor to questions and comments from the audience.

Joe Mims, president of the Board of Education stood up and spoke about how for 200 years the federal government had minimal involvement with the Board of Education. Shelby agreed and went on to respond, “The Board of Education is not bettering education, it’s becoming a bureaucracy.”

“Whether Democrat or Republic we need to support our country,” Shelby said.

Shelby has held more than 1,600 county visits since being elected to the U.S. Senate and makes a commitment to hold at least one meeting in each of Alabama’s 67 counties every year.