In the midst of perceived stand-offs between House Democrats and House Republicans, U.S. Representative Ruben Gallego (D-Phoenix) said Congress compromises more than people think.
“You only hear about when we are actually not in agreement with each other,” Gallego said. “But there are a lot of times when we do agree on bills that are small in nature.”
Gallego served in the Arizona House of Representatives from 2010 to 2014, representing much of South Phoenix, and acted as Assistant Minority Leader in that chamber. He has since been in office for nine months.
Gallego said there have been a number of compromises made in the Republican-majority House, such as those made in regards to the defense budget, veterans issues and how we compensate physicians for treating those on government health insurance. Where there is a difficult time finding compromise, he said, is with the issues that impact the nation in general.
Those larger issues involve Medicare, Social Security, the Department of Veterans Affairs, war refugees and comprehensive immigration reform.
“I think that’s where we have a lot of differences of opinions, where we don’t see the Republicans joining with us and trying to find some compromise,” he said. “At the end of the day, you know, when it comes to foreign policy, we have to put politics aside.”
When it comes to operating in the State House and now Congress, Gallego said his strategy is generally the same.
“You take every day one step at a time, be open to new relationships and new ideas, and go in there and fight for my district,” he said. “I think it’s benefitting me so far.”
To that end, Gallego said he is focused on managing his time between Washington, D.C. and Phoenix.
“I spend most of my time actually even split between D.C. and Phoenix, making sure I’m that I’m still keeping contact with my community and my constituents,” Gallego said.
Gallego said the committees he serves on, the Natural Resources and the House Armed Services Committee, are important focuses for Arizona in particular.
Natural resources are “very much intertwined with the fabric of Arizona,” Gallego said. He added that mining, rural and agricultural land and water issues are some of the factors he considers to be a part of that.
As an Iraq war veteran, Gallego is especially interested in Arizona's military installations.
“I’ve been very lucky to get top notch staff,” Gallego said. “I’ve also been very lucky to be mentored by a couple of members of Congress to help me transition in. It is a little different from the Sate House, but overall, I think we’ve been very happy with my performance so far.”
Gallego’s Phoenix office is located in ASU’s downtown campus University Center building. According to a press release on Gallego’s website, the Congressman is part of a group of House Democrats called the Future Forum, which is looking to gain millennial voters for the 2016 election.
Journalism student Vanessa Herb said Gallego has to take into account the state he comes from.
“I think that he’s a Democrat in his personal views, but I feel like he has to take into account the state that he’s in,” she said.
ASU Undergraduate Student Government Downtown Vice President of Policy Ryan Boyd says USG-D is not necessarily following Gallego’s policy.
“The situation with Congressman Gallego is simply one in which USGD has not fully invested in primarily because we are working on items in the municipal, University and state level more, especially since it appears the Higher Education Act won’t be reauthorized this year,” he said.
Related Link:
Gallego wins in Democratic 7th Congressional District primary
Reach the reporter at Tristan.Ettleman@asu.edu or follow @ettletodd on Twitter.
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