What to Know in Washington: Senate’s Ex-Governors Caucus Grows


By Michaela Ross

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In the 118th Congress, there are 14 former governors in the Senate — the most in a generation — who hope to leverage their state chief executive experience to forge bipartisan deals amid divided government in Washington, where compromise is often frustratingly elusive.

Their negotiating skills will likely be called on in the coming months as Congress tackles nettlesome issues including raising the debt limit and proposals for entitlement changes, renewing farm programs, and passing spending bills.

“You’ve made executive decisions, you take it more seriously and you’ve had to be bipartisan in the way that you approach things,” Sen. Mike Rounds (R-S.D.) told Bloomberg Government on former governors’ impact on the legislative process. “I think that bodes well for our country.”

Former governors have played key roles in securing recent deals on infrastructure, same-sex marriage, and the national debt. Governors-turned-senators say their legislating is better informed by their time enacting federal mandates like Medicaid, managing a balanced state budget, or serving as commander-in-chief of their state’s National Guard.

“Governors tend to be pragmatic,” said Sen. Pete Ricketts (R), who was Nebraska governor from 2015 to 2023 before being sworn in to the Senate last month. “We have our principles, but we also know that we want to get things done.”

Ricketts’s appointment to the Senate after the resignation of Ben Sasse (R-Neb.) last month brought the total number of former governors to its highest level since the 104th Congress (1995-97), according to data compiled by Bloomberg Government.

Read more from Zach C. Cohen and Greg Giroux: Senate’s Ex-Governors Use Statehouse Experience to Broker Deals

Happening on the Hill

CONGRESS’ SCHEDULE

  • The House is adjourned until Feb. 27.
  • The Senate meets at 10 a.m. to consider judicial and defense nominations.

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IRS Nominee Werfel to Prioritize High-Income Audits, Taxpayer Service

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Biden FCC Nominee at Center of Debate About Broadband Equity

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Energy Permitting ‘Ripe’ For Bipartisan Overhaul, Lawmakers Say

The House is poised to move first on a revamp of federal permitting rules for energy projects, with a bill that could come as soon as this spring, according to lawmakers involved in the effort.

White House ‘Better Not Kill’ Alaska Oil Project, Senators Warn

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Capitol Architect’s Ouster Is Only Start of Changes for Office

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Senate Democrats Seek to Quadruple Stock Buyback Tax in New Bill

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Elections, Politics & Probes

Virginia On Track To Elect Its First Black Woman to Congress

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Feinstein Retirement Skews the Senate Younger, But Only a Smidge

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Giuliani, Pirro Thrown Back Into 2020 Vote-Fraud Defamation Case

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DeSantis’s Big Gun Bet Outflanks Trump, Risks Backlash Elsewhere

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Around the Administration

BIDEN’S AGENDA

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Biden Names Brainard as Top Economic Aide, Creating Fed Vacancy

Biden named Federal Reserve Vice Chair Lael Brainard as his top economic aide, plucking away one of the central bank’s more dovish voices and creating a vacancy as it works to quash inflation.

Brainard’s Exit Spurs Speculation on Fed Vice Chair Replacement

Federal Reserve Vice Chair Lael Brainard’s pending departure to the White House has spurred speculation over who would replace the influential dove as policymakers weigh how much further to raise interest rates.

Biden Team Mulls Using Privacy Rule Amid State Abortion Bans

The Biden administration is working on a proposal to better protect the privacy of patients seeking reproductive health care, a move that follows concerns from providers struggling to offer services amid state abortion restrictions.

US Ag Chief Vilsack ‘Disappointed’ in Mexico GMO Corn Decree

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Labor Regulators Face Congressional Priorities Under SECURE 2.0

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US Scrambles Jets for ‘Routine’ Intercept of Russian Warplanes

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Florida Businessmen Charged Over Haiti President’s Assassination

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China Warns of Retaliation Against US Entities in Balloon Saga

China warned that it will retaliate against the US over violations of its sovereignty, potentially escalating a lingering dispute just as top diplomats from both nations plan to attend a security conference in Germany.

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To contact the reporter on this story: Michaela Ross in Washington at mross@bgov.com

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Andrew Small at asmall@bgov.com

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