Scott Bruun: The Rise of Greg Walden

Wednesday, September 30, 2015

Scott Bruun, GoLocalPDX MINDSETTER™

Let’s start by stating the stunningly obvious: Oregon is a blue state.

Our governor is a Democrat. Our secretary of state, attorney general, state treasurer and labor commissioner are Democrats. Both chambers of the Oregon Legislature are controlled by Democrats. Our U.S. senators are Democrats. And four of Oregon’s five congressional seats are held by Democrats.

The one holdout is Greg Walden, Oregon’s only Republican in congress. Walden jokes that with only one voting member, it’s easy for Oregon’s Republican Congressional Caucus to agree on strategies.

Of course the caucus meetings must be boring as hell.

Greg Walden is the outlier among Oregon’s political elite. Yet his talent, hard work and growing national prominence have made him Oregon’s most influential politician. Given last week’s surprise announcement that Speaker of the House John Boehner is resigning, we will likely see Oregon’s lone Republican rise even further.

By any account, Walden is an excellent congressman. He’s been a stalwart voice for healthy forest policy, an issue finally seeing some traction given the severity of this year’s fire season. He also chairs the prestigious Subcommittee on Communications and Technology, a forum where some of the most far-reaching issues of our time are addressed.

To his credit, Walden is also accessible. His constituents know him because they see him, and they also see him get things done. As we learned the hard way by watching former-congressman Wes Cooley, it takes much more than a warm-bodied button-pusher to be a good member of congress.

From a commuter-fatigue standpoint, there are few jobs more demanding than that of a West Coast congressman. Leave home on a Monday morning and fly some 3,000 miles. From Tuesday through Thursday, attend floor sessions, committees and dozens of individual meetings. Fly home on Friday, then spend the weekend meeting with constituents and attending community events.

There are many things for which to criticize congress. Hard work is not one of them.

For years, one of the hardest working members of congress has been Greg Walden. It’s mind-boggling, but Walden has logged something like 530 round trips between PDX and DC. That much cross-country flight would wear anyone down – though the upgrades and frequent-flyer miles must be epic.

Yet those trips tell only part of the story. For several years, Walden has been a senior member of the National Republican Congressional Committee, or NRCC. The NRCC is the entity largely responsible for candidate recruitment and campaign guidance. With this job, Walden spends time in places like Buffalo, New York; Lincoln, Nebraska; and Shreveport, Louisiana – to name just a few - in order to recruit and assist Republican congressional candidates.

Two years ago, Walden was selected by his peers to chair the NRCC. In the 2014 election under Walden’s leadership, Republicans increased their majority to 247 out of 435 total seats in congress. This was a pick-up of 13 seats, and resulted in the strongest majority for Republicans since 1929.

Okay sure, that whole ‘tide of history’ thing probably had a little something to do with those sweeping Republican victories. Nevertheless, it pays to be in the right place at the right time. Walden was there at the right time.

Change is constant in politics. Boehner’s departure will motivate some of the newer and more ambitious members to angle for the top jobs. The maneuvering will be fascinating to watch. But when it’s all said and done, the most likely outcome is that current leadership will simply move up a rung or two on the congressional ladder. Tenure and seniority still dominate the culture of congress.

Kevin McCarthy, a positive and high-energy congressman from California, is likely to be the next Speaker of the House. McCarthy will vacate his current position as Majority Leader. With this move, Greg Walden may very well move up the leadership ranks as well. There are several leadership positions that Walden may move into, including conference leader or Majority Whip. There is even a chance that Walden may find himself in McCarthy’s vacated Majority Leader position. A positon which would make Walden the second most powerful member of congress.

Whatever happens in the short term will make contemplation of Walden’s longer term path more interesting. Walden’s stature in congress will continue to grow. His rise puts it well within the realm of possibility that one day, perhaps in a few years, Walden will become Speaker of the House.

As dysfunctional as congress seems, one wonders if Walden would even want the job. Want it or not, though, there is no doubt that a Greg Walden speakership would provide a historic boost for Oregon’s influence on national policy. A level of influence that Oregon has not seen since folks like Mark Hatfield and Bob Packwood walked the halls of congress.

Scott Bruun is a fifth-generation Oregonian and recovering politician. He lives with his family in the 'burbs', yet dutifully commutes to Portland every day where he earns his living in public affairs with Hubbell Communications.