From Louisiana Congressman Garret Graves to Mississippi’s Sen. Thad Cochran, Gulf Coast lawmakers are serving on key Congressional committees that could have a major impact on regional issues, including energy, infrastructure and sex trafficking.
As USA Today reports, Sen. Thad Cochran, R-Miss., again chairs the powerful Appropriations Committee. Rep. Garret Graves, R-La., serves on the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee and Martha Roby, R-Ala., takes a new seat on the House Judiciary Committee.
“Obviously, if Mr. Trump’s $1 trillion (spending plan) on infrastructure would go through that would be a really big one,” Graves says. “We definitely need transportation help down here.”
With Republican President Donald Trump and a Republican-controlled Congress, Gulf Coast lawmakers believe they have a better chance to push through their agenda.
Lawmakers from across the region have been assigned recently to a range of key committees that are particularly critical this session as Congress pushes an agenda that includes immigration reform, a repeal of the federal health care law and a rollback of some energy policies. Most of the region’s lawmakers are Republicans.
Pearson Cross, a University of Louisiana at Lafayette political scientist, says some Gulf lawmakers are in the right spots. He expects those on energy and natural resources committees will work to undo some regulations implemented under the Obama administration.
“Those are real opportunities to do better for Louisiana energy producers,” he says. “That didn’t happen in the last administration so much. At least there wasn’t much love felt. We can argue about output … but I think you’re going to see a lot of love from this administration.”
