Neguse: Everyone must engage to ‘change course of events’ in Washington

U.S. Rep. Joe Neguse, fifth from left, talks to emergency responders in Vail regarding wildfire mitigation, water issues and climate change (David O. Williams photo).

U.S. Rep. Joe Neguse (D-CO) asked his Republican colleagues to debate him on an amendment to the budget bill, which included protecting water rights in Colorado. Republicans refused.

“One would think that if they were so passionate about that they’d be willing to defend it,” Neguse said. “But they refused. I’ll continue to speak on behalf of my constituents. It’s my obligation. My hope is that we take it together, that we can better shape public opinion and ultimately, in turn, change the course of events in Washington.”

Democrats, who have minority status in both the House and Senate, are struggling to fight back against the Trump administration. Colorado Democrats are trying different strategies, from forming a task force to litigate against the administration to rallying against cuts to Medicaid and forcing policy adjustments.

Neguse, who holds a law degree from CU Boulder and whose district includes Vail and most of Eagle County, was tapped by Democratic House leadership to chair the Rapid Response Task Force Litigation and Working Group to push back against President Donald Trump. U.S. Rep. Diana DeGette (D-CO) is also a part of the task force due to her background as a lawyer. 

“Leader Jeffries has made it very clear, and I certainly agree with his assessment that this is an all-hands-on-deck moment,” Neguse said. “So members are responding in ways that perhaps our predecessors in prior congresses were not necessarily asked or called to do.”

The task force focuses on presenting legal challenges to Trump administration policy. One example: It contributed to a lawsuit against Russell Vought for dismantling the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. 

DeGette is also the highest-ranking member on the Health Subcommittee, which is underneath the committee that was instructed to cut $880 billion from Medicaid. She is rallying Democrats to explain the consequences of cutting the funding, she said.

“I’m working with a bunch of groups to let Republicans know that what they’re doing is going to throw millions of Americans off of their health care, and that seems to be working, because they were supposed to mark up the bill this week and they had to delay it,” DeGette said. “Now they’re still trying to figure out how they can try to cut $880 billion in my committee and not cut essential health care benefits. So, I’m not too sure this is a done deal.”

U.S. Rep. Jason Crow (D-CO) said it is important to be honest about what Democrats can and can’t do. One of the things they can do is discuss policy changes, he said. 

“One of the challenges that we faced going into this new administration and last administration was that we had to be more honest about the need for border security,” Crow said. “And I’ve been very clear about that. I don’t think we talked enough about it. I don’t think we acknowledged the need for a secure border, and we should have talked about it on our terms, doing it in a humane, lawful way, as opposed to the inhumane and unlawful way that this administration is going about it.”

Neguse has held nine town halls throughout Colorado and has heard from some constituents that Democrats are not doing enough. 

“Of course, one of the concerns that you just articulated is certainly something I’ve heard at various town halls that I’ve held, and my answer is that everyone in this moment has to be engaged and participating in our democracy,” Neguse said. “That our democracy is worth saving and that we requires all of us to commit to using our voices to champion the values that we care about and the concerns that we have about this particular administration, I think you’ve seen a more muscular response over the course of the last two months with respect to what I just mentioned, the litigation Task Force, the legislative activities, the oversight activities.”

Editor’s note: This story first appeared on the Colorado Times Recorder website.