Raúl Grijalva, the top Democrat on the U.S. House Natural Resources Committee, will not seek to remain in that position in the next Congress, he said in a written statement Monday.
The announcement by Grijalva, an Arizona progressive who has led Democrats on the Environment, Public Lands and Tribal Affairs Committee for a decade, paves the way for California’s Jared Huffman to assume the role of ranking member.
In another major development among House Democrats, Rep. Jamie Raskin of Maryland said he will challenge Rep. Jerry Nadler of New York for the ranking member on the powerful House Judiciary Committee.
“Here we will be on the front lines defending people’s freedoms and rights, the integrity of the Justice Department and the FBI, and the security of our most precious birthrights: the Constitution and the Bill of Rights, the rule of law, and democracy itself,” Raskin said in a “Dear Colleague” letter to lawmakers on Monday. “I respectfully and humbly ask for your support for my candidacy.”
Grijalva is focused on recovery
Grijalva announced in April that he had been diagnosed with lung cancer. He returned to Congress last month. His Monday statement said he would continue to focus on his recovery.
“After much consideration, I have come to the conclusion that this is the right moment to pass the torch as top Democrat,” he told the House Natural Resources Committee for the 119th Congress. “I do not make this decision lightly because being elected as a ranking member is an honor in my professional career. I will continue to focus on improving my health, increasing my mobility, and serving my district during what will likely be unprecedented challenges for our community.”
Grijalva was re-elected to the House of Representatives in November. He plans to serve his entire term as a rank-and-file member, a spokeswoman said.
In a statement, Huffman said that if named ranking member, he would ask the House Democratic Caucus to grant Grijalva the title of ranking member emeritus “in recognition of his distinguished career and the enduring significance of his leadership.”
Grijalva was first elected to the House of Representatives in 2002. In 2015, he was named the ranking Democrat on the Natural Resources Committee.
Inflation Reduction Act
Grijalva chaired the committee while his party held the majority from 2019 to 2023.
The first half of his term was marked by investigations into the first Trump administration, including a criminal complaint the former Interior Minister David Bernhardt.
The second half, which took place in the first two years of the Biden administration with unified Democratic control of Washington, saw the passage of the climate-focused Inflation Reduction Act, which Democrats passed along party lines.
With hundreds of millions in tax breaks for renewable energy projects, the law represented the largest federal investment to date to combat climate change.
“I am so deeply proud of the progress my colleagues and I have made in protecting our nation’s rich natural and cultural heritage, advancing justice for communities burdened by pollution, amplifying the voices of Indigenous peoples, and upholding tribal sovereignty as well “And securing a cleaner, safer climate and energy future for all Americans,” Grijalva said Monday.
Avoid races among Democrats
Grijalva, who is also chairman emeritus of the Congressional Progressive Caucus after co-chairing that group from 2009 to 2019, thanked “colleagues, tribal nations and environmental organizations” who supported him in his brief attempt to fend off the challenge to Huffmann.
Huffman, 60, said last month He would seek to unseat the 76-year-old Grijalva, a rarity among House Democrats, who do not apply term limits to committee positions and typically adhere strictly to seniority.
Huffman is the top Democrat on the panel’s Water, Wildlife and Fisheries Subcommittee. He is also a member of the Congressional Progressive Caucus.
In a statement from Huffman on Monday, he was full of praise for the outgoing leader and said he would seek to work closely with him during the transition period.
“For the past twelve years, Rep. Raul Grijalva has been my friend and ally on the Natural Resources Committee,” Huffman wrote. “In working with him, I saw his courage, determination and passion for protecting our country’s precious natural resources, as well as his ironclad commitment to rebuilding frontline and indigenous communities. He inspired me and countless others with his passion and the clarity of his values.”
“Future generations will benefit from all he fought for and achieved throughout his remarkable career,” the statement continued. “Rep. Grijalva leaves big shoes to fill, and I will now dedicate myself to building on his legacy of principled and productive leadership as ranking member of the Natural Resources Committee.”
Grijalva’s statement did not name Huffman.
A spokesman for Chairman Bruce Westerman, an Arkansas Republican, did not immediately return a message seeking comment.
Raskin and Nadler
Raskin said in his letter that he was announcing his challenge to Nadler, a longtime top member of the panel, with “respect and boundless admiration,” but also said the upcoming session of Congress will be critical to the country’s future and the The House of Representatives judiciary will play a major role in this.
“We are faced with a government that would essentially apply the Alien and Sedition Acts of 1798 on steroids. They want to weaponize the Justice Department and the FBI not only for mass arrests and deportations of immigrants, but also for political revenge and law enforcement. “They would collapse the system of separate powers into an all-powerful monarchical executive, turning America from a defender of democracy and human rights to an open collaborator with autocrats and authoritarian oppression,” wrote Raskin, a former constitutional law professor at the Washington Post. He is a member from American University Washington College of Law and a member of the Investigative Committee of the 117th Congress on January 6.
“They want to align us with Putin’s Russia, Kim Jong Un’s North Korea, Xi’s China and Orban’s Hungary. In the 119th Congress, the Judiciary Committee will be the headquarters of Congress’s opposition to authoritarianism and MAGA’s campaign to dismantle our constitutional system and the rule of law as we know it. I hope to be at the center of this fight, and as someone who has battled cancer and chemotherapy, I can tell you that I will never give up.”
Nadler told his colleagues last month he would like to continue in his role as the committee’s ranking member, Axios reported.
Last updated on December 2, 2024 at 7:41 p.m
