While the Trump administration has taken unilateral action on spending, trade and border policy, the legislative branch, with a supportive Republican majority, has essentially taken a back seat.
So what role can members of Congress play, especially the largely Democratic delegation from Washington state, in shaping the direction of the country?
U.S. Rep. Suzan DelBene recently joined KNKX’s All Things Considered to answer those questions. DelBene’s 1st Congressional District covers parts of King and Snohomish counties.
She sits on the House Trade subcommittee and also chairs the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, where she's leading candidate recruitment and strategy for the 2026 midterm elections.
During the interview, DelBene also addresses the Immigration and Customs Enforcement raid on a Bellingham roofing company earlier this year that led to 37 arrests. DelBene is scheduled to hold town halls in Lake Stevens and Bothell in the coming days while Congress is on a two-week break.
Interview Highlights
On her top priority right now
It's important to stand up for our communities with all that's happening, and taking back the House is a top priority, because there has to be a check on this President, this administration, Elon Musk. People understandably are outraged and scared across the country. They see an administration that's gone rogue, accessing personal information, taxpayer information, healthcare information; dismantling Social Security, the economic turmoil from tariffs and no oversight from congressional Republicans. They don't seem interested in acting as a co-equal branch of government.
On whether she’s received a response to an inquiry on the Bellingham ICE raid
We have not heard back. Congressman [Rick] Larsen led the letter, [the raid] was up in his district, and we should have answers. The administration has to answer for their behavior, and frankly, for the lack of due process that we've seen over and over again, making sure that peoples' rights are upheld. The courts have been involved, and they've defied court orders, so this is an incredibly concerning issue. They said they were going to focus on 'the worst of the worst,' but it is unclear how they're deciding where these raids are taking place, who they're detaining.
On Congress’ role in tariffs and trade policy
We have seen the president act arbitrarily: putting tariffs in place, taking them away, telling folks that they need to come to him if they want their tariffs removed, acting as if he alone gets to decide. He doesn't. The president needs to come to Congress, and I've put forward legislation, as have others and some in a bipartisan way, to make it clear that Congress has the authority over taxes and trade. Unfortunately, we have seen Republicans in Congress do everything they can to avoid having to vote on these issues or speak up.
On what industries in Washington are feeling tariffs
Clearly, we are on the northern border, and so there's a lot of trade back and forth there. But if you talk to our farmers, the majority of their fertilizer, the potash for their fertilizer, comes from Canada. When tariffs are put in place, that raises costs to them. They already have small margins. It also means that markets aren't open to them to ship their products out, and puts them in a terrible position. Boeing is a good example, but we have many manufacturers who provide products or parts for other manufacturers around the world. Let's be clear, these are prices that are raised for American consumers and for American businesses. They're the ones who are paying these increased prices.
On what she’s hearing from potential 2026 House candidates
We've seen folks all across the country wanting to stand up for their communities, and one way they can do that is run for office. We have a lot of opportunities across the country to pick up seats. We only need to pick up three more seats to have the majority in the House. And there's a lot of great people who are looking at running.
On why none of the DCCC’s district’s in play are in Washington
Well we have picked up seats in the Northwest. Marie Gluesenkamp Perez has been a great and strong representative in a very purple district. In fact, she's one of the Democrats who represents a 'Trump district' in Congress. We have 14 Democrats who won in 'Trump districts.' So we have opportunities in places where races were still really close, where people feel like the representative they have is way too extreme. You even saw recently in special elections in Florida how the margin that Republicans won by was slashed in half in a very red district, in two very red districts, because people are outraged and people are standing up.
Rep. DelBene spoke to KNKX in our Seattle studios when she was on the April congressional recess.
