Just hours after Pete Hegseth was confirmed as the new Defense Secretary, Alabama’s U.S. Senator Katie Britt reached out to him on social media regarding an Air Force instructional video about the Tuskegee Airmen.

Britt expressed confidence that Hegseth would “correct and get to the bottom of the malicious compliance” seen in recent days.

Hegseth publicly responded within 20 minutes, assuring the senator the situation would be resolved.

By Monday, the Air Force confirmed the story of the Tuskegee Airmen will be part of basic military training, and recognition was given to Britt for her swift action in quashing the brief controversy.

“Kudos to my friend @SenKatieBritt and leadership at the Pentagon for recognizing the importance of the Tuskegee Airmen,” tweeted Mississippi U.S. Senator Roger Wicker on Tuesday.

Britt’s handling of this bipartisan dispute could preview her elevated role in the Senate during the second Trump administration.

Later this week, she is expected to join Trump for the signing of the Laken Riley Act, a bill she sponsored enabling the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to detain unauthorized immigrants arrested and accused of certain crimes like burglary and theft.

“Senator Britt, in record time, has established herself as not only one of the most effective leaders we’ve ever seen from the Senate in this state, but one of the most effective leaders in the Senate, period,” said Angi Horn, a Republican Party strategist based in the Montgomery area.

“She is someone who is trusted, respected, and is seen not just as a woman or someone from Alabama, but as one of the hardest workers and most policy-intelligent people in the body.”

Tuskegee commitment

Britt’s actions in restoring the Tuskegee Airmen video demonstrate her ongoing commitment to honoring the historic all-Black military fighters who played a crucial role in integrating the segregated military during World War II.

It also highlights her work in securing federal funding for the predominately Black and Democratic-voting Tuskegee area.

Britt, as a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee last August, announced a $5.29 million federal award to Tuskegee University to support a new flight school degree program aimed at reducing an industry-wide pilot shortage.

University president Mark Brown praised the effort and Britt’s backing in addressing the pilot shortage, just as the Tuskegee Airmen did during World War II.

All of the nearly 1,000 Black military pilots were trained in Tuskegee, which today consists of 8,700 residents and is 87% Black. It’s also the heart of Macon County, where the largest percentage of voters in Alabama backed Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris during November’s presidential election.

Months later, Britt was the first Republican to defend the Tuskegee Airmen from perceived attempts to undermine President Donald Trump’s executive orders limiting diversity, equity, and inclusion programs.

“Her political radar and her political antenna shows a high level of maturity,” said Jess Brown, a retired political science professor at Athens State University and a long-time observer of Alabama state politics.

“I think she was clearly, in the terms of public opinion, on the right side of that issue. I would imagine that when she raised the issue, Hegseth knew intuitively, that given the (racial) composition of the Armed Forces, that I cannot be seen as anti-Black veterans. That’s the road they could have potentially gone down with that.”

While Democrats have acknowledged Britt’s role in resolving the controversy, they also criticized Trump for creating confusion around his executive orders. Still, figures like U.S. Rep. Shomari Figures, D-Mobile, thanked Britt and Hegseth for addressing the issue on social media.

“This is a different generation of leaders,” said Brent Buchanan, a Republican pollster based in Alabama.

“They’re connected. They’re listening. Senator Britt is also a very amenable, likable, relatable person who builds actual friendships, the way the Senate and government in general used to work.”

Senate growth

Britt, 42, took office on Jan. 3, 2023, and is currently 85th in Senate seniority.

But she also has seats on some powerful committees, including Senate Appropriations and Senate Rules. On Appropriations, she’s a ranking member of the Homeland Security subcommittee, and has made immigration reform a top priority.

Her work on the Laken Riley Act was called the “most significant” immigration enforcement legislation since 1996, according to state Sen. Andrew Jones, R-Centre, in an AL.com Op-ed.

Britt, former chief of staff under retired Senator Richard Shelby and CEO of the Business Council of Alabama, remains viewed as a rising star among Republican lawmakers in Congress.

This comes less than a year after a controversial response to the State of the Union Address delivered inside her kitchen that was met with criticism and mockery.

During the speech, Britt cited an unnamed woman who had told her that she was “sex trafficked by the cartels starting at the age of 12,” while criticizing President Joe Biden’s immigration policy.

A journalist later identified the woman as someone whose tragic experience occurred in 2004, when George W. Bush was president.

Trump, however, praised Britt’s speech, posting on Truth Social that she was “GREAT” in contrast to Biden’s delivery during his State of the Union address. Months later, Britt joined Trump at Bryant-Denny Stadium for the Alabama-Georgia game.

That speech aside, Brown said it’s Britt’s savvy in the Senate that is generating bipartisan acclaim, and right-wing approval – much in the same way as her predecessor, Shelby, the legendary earmarker.

Brown said Britt’s recent comments during the California wildfire were reassuring to both Democrats and Republicans, telling state residents affected by the devastation that they have the support of Congress.

Her comments came one day after Alabama’s other U.S. Senator Tommy Tuberville suggested California doesn’t deserve federal support unless they “changed their ways.”

“She handled it in a way that, in my view, won’t cause the members of the California delegation to just have rage in their spirit when they hear her name and the references to the state of Alabama,” Brown said.

“She manifested a degree of some compassion on what happened out there in a way that some other senators did not.”

He said that same approach is winning key votes on legislation embraced by Trump. The Laken Riley Act will be the first of the bills Trump will sign into law since he was inaugurated.

“I’m not so sure if Tuberville had a bill honoring motherhood, he could get 10 Democrats to co-sponsor him,” Brown said. “She is maintaining relationships with people from not only the R’s but some, if not several, D-sides of the aisle.”

Horn said that Britt, her committee assignments, and illustrate a profile that Alabamians should embrace.

“If the U.S. Senate had a draft, there would be 49 other states trying to get her right now,” Horn said. “That’s just the truth.”