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Marin's veteran congressman adjusts to new political landscape

Marin Independent Journal - 2/15/2023

Feb. 15—No one is talking about Marin's representative in Congress, Jared Huffman, joining the ranks of politicians seeking to replace Sen. Dianne Feinstein, and Huffman is just fine with that.

"I've already endorsed Adam Schiff," said the Democrat from San Rafael.

Huffman, who will turn 58 on Saturday, was elected to his sixth term in the House of Representatives in November with more than 74% of vote. He is adjusting to his party being in the minority in the House again for the first time in four years.

When Democrats took control of the House in 2019, it was Huffman's first experience being in the majority and he relished it. The changeover resulted in him being named chair of the Subcommittee on Water, Oceans, and Wildlife.

"Having the gavel in my hand, setting the agenda, actually passing good legislation instead of always fighting against bad stuff — that is a pretty different job," Huffman said at the time.

In January, Huffman was elected as the Democrat's ranking member on the subcommittee, which has been renamed the Water, Wildlife, and Fisheries Subcommittee. But he has lost the power to set the agenda.

"It means I'm on the receiving end of their agenda," he said. "It's a pretty dramatic change."

David McCuan, a professor of political science at Sonoma State University, said Huffman will have a front row seat for the political fireworks expected as Republican Rep. Paul Gosar of Arizona takes over this year as chairman of the Subcommittee on Energy and Mineral Resources, one of the other five subcommittees in the House Committee on Natural Resources.

"We'll all need popcorn to watch those full committee hearings," McCuan said. "Markup sessions will become must-watch C-SPAN TV."

Both Gosar and Republican Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia have been given committee assignments for the new Congress. Last year, they lost their assignments by a bipartisan vote because of incendiary actions.

"Gosar produced this really weird video that depicted him killing Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez," Huffman said of the animated clip. "It just tells you how far this current Republican Party has drifted from any semblance of decorum and decency that that would all be swept under the rug and he would have a gavel in his hand."

Gosar was one of the House Republicans who initially opposed Rep. Kevin McCarthy's election as speaker before voting to approve him on the 12th ballot. McCarthy was finally elected speaker on a 15th ballot.

Regarding the looming deadline for Congress to raise the federal debt ceiling, Huffman said, "I'm pretty confident that clearer minds in the Congress will prevail and we will increase the debt ceiling, just as Republicans did several times under the Trump administration, but I'm certain there will be drama between now and then."

If the nation were to default on its debt, the result could be an increase in the interest rate on the debt, resulting in higher costs for the nation.

Huffman said he believes McCarthy had to promise to make raising the debt an issue in order to get the votes he needed to become House speaker.

"It's pretty clear that McCarthy made a commitment that he would walk the plank at least ostensibly on the debt ceiling, that he wouldn't support a clean increase," Huffman said. "So we don't know how this plays out, but I think he has to at least do something performative."

While Huffman girds for battle with Republicans on his political right, he also has to protect his left flank, where some Democrats see him as being too conservative.

"From a progressive vantage point, the decision on endorsement for California's next senator was a test that Congressman Huffman has failed," said Norman Solomon, a West Marin resident and co-founder of RootsAction.org.

Solomon said that Huffman could have endorsed one of the other two candidates: Rep. Katie Porter of Orange County or Rep. Barbara Lee of Oakland.

"But instead, Huffman chose to endorse Adam Schiff, who can be fairly described as a longtime booster of militarism and corporate power," Solomon said.

In November, two days before President Joe Biden's 80th birthday, RootsAction sent a message to the president wishing him a happy birthday and letting him know the organization had launched a "Don't Run Joe" campaign in New Hampshire, where one of the early Democratic primaries will take place.

The message urged Biden to announce that he will forgo a second term and thus "clear the path for progressive leaders to guide the Democratic Party to victory in 2024."

Asked if Biden's performance at the State of the Union address strengthened an argument for being the Democratic party's nominee again in 2024, Huffman said, "I don't know about that. Only Joe Biden will determine if he runs. Whatever opinions we might have about that, if he runs he's going to be the Democratic nominee, and we can absolutely win with him."

So why isn't Huffman in the race to replace Feinstein? After all, Barbara Boxer moved up from being a Marin County supervisor and a member of the House to a Senate seat in 1992.

"The truth is I think I've got the greatest job in the world," Huffman said. "I'm excited about the kind of difference I'm starting to make because I'm getting good at it. I'm finding myself in more senior positions of influence. I'm really not interested in being distracted by ambition."

Huffman has been appointed chair of the House Committee on Caucus Procedures for the Democrats and a member of the Democrats'Regional Leadership Council.

Brian Sobel, a Petaluma political analyst, says Huffman is a "pragmatic progressive."

"He understands that to get things passed you have to work with other people, even occasionally Republicans," Sobel said. "He realizes the prize is getting legislation passed."

"Nothing in Washington happens quickly," Sobel said. "Jared has been in office 10 years, and that is about the time when you really start taking off. He is now hitting his stride in Congress."

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(c)2023 The Marin Independent Journal (Novato, Calif.)

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