WASHINGTON — In the marble corridors of the Russell Senate Office Building, there is a particular kind of silence that precedes a storm. It is the silence of expertise—the quiet, methodical clicking of heels belonging to Senator Katie Britt (R-Ala.) as she navigates the institution she has known since her days as a young aide.
While the national media fixates on the fire-breathing rhetoric of the administration, Britt is doing something far more effective: she is building the infrastructure of the “mass deportation” era with the surgical precision of a veteran Hill operator. As the Chair of the Homeland Security Appropriations Subcommittee, Britt isn’t just a participant in the current border theater; she is its primary financier and legislative engine.
The Shelby Protege at the Helm
To understand Britt’s effectiveness, one must look at her pedigree. Serving as Chief of Staff to the legendary former Appropriations Chairman Richard Shelby provided her with an intimate map of the Senate’s …