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Defeated Rep. Peter Meijer doesn’t plan to endorse Republican John Gibbs for Congress [1]
['Brian Mcvicar', 'Bmcvicar Mlive.Com']
Date: 2022-08-10 21:06:05.661000+00:00
GRAND RAPIDS, MI — While U.S. Rep. Peter Meijer wished John Gibbs luck after he lost to him in the Republican 3rd Congressional District primary election, he says he has no plans to endorse his former rival.
“I don’t have any plans to,” Meijer said, appearing on the Fifth Column Podcast, where he discussed his loss to his Trump-endorsed challenger, the dynamics of the race, and whether he’ll consider running for office again. “I haven’t endorsed anybody.”
Meijer spoke on the podcast Aug. 3, after he introduced Gibbs at the Kent GOP Unity Reception, congratulated him on his victory, and wished him “the best of luck in all that is to come.” Gibbs, who grew up near Lansing but hasn’t lived in West Michigan until he moved here last fall to launch his congressional campaign, will face Democrat Hillary Scholten in the November election.
The first-term congressman, who was defeated by about 52% to 48%, left the Kent GOP event without taking questions from the media, and he did not respond to questions by email and text following the event.
During the podcast, hosted by journalists from Reason magazine, Vice News and Freethink Media, Meijer said he was planning to take some time off following the primary, and that he hasn’t planed his next steps yet. But he said he wants “to be very impactful” in what he does after his term ends at the end of the year.
He answered “quite possibly” when asked whether he will run for Congress or public office again.
Meijer, 34, of Grand Rapids Township, could not be reached for comment Wednesday.
Reflecting on his primary race, Meijer said he was hopeful his impeachment vote wouldn’t cost him his seat, because he didn’t’ want to become a “political cautionary tale” for “standing on principle.”
“There are certainly votes I could have cast, aside from the impeachment, that would have made my life easier, or I would have had to explain fewer things,” said Meijer, who was targeted by Gibbs for voting to impeach Trump following the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol.
“I think eventually my thought process was I’m happy to explain anything. I’m happy to defend any vote on the substance.”
The Aug. 2 primary was the first election held in the new 3rd Congressional District, which was redrawn after the 2020 census and now includes portions of Kent, Ottawa and Muskegon counties. Looking back on the race, Meijer said he “maybe could have made more of an effort in some of those areas.”
“But at the same time, we had a great team and ran out there,” he said. “It’s hard to Monday morning quarterback too much of it. At the end of the day, each race is going to be unique, and each race is going to be different.”
When asked what he will remember most fondly about his time in Washington, Meijer pointed to his accomplishments, noting that it’s possible to “accomplish things” in Congress despite its deep partisan divide.
“You can accomplish things as a member of congress, especially if you find an area where not a lot of folks are paying attention and maybe it isn’t going to get into the partisan limelight on one side or the other,” he said. “MSNBC is going to look at it and say pass and Fox News is going to look at it and say snooze. You can do something in those spaces.”
Those spaces, Meijer said, have included work he’s done in an attempt to expand health care and disability benefits to veterans exposed to noxious fumes and other toxic chemicals near burns pits while stationed overseas. He also mentioned work he’s done to repeal outdated Authorizations for Use of Military Force that remain on the books for the Gulf and Iraq wars.
“I will look back fondly and with great pride at what we were able to accomplish as an office,” Meijer said, noting that he’s on track to set a record as a freshman Republican for most bills signed into law.
“Flying to Afghanistan was a lot of fun too,” Meijer said later in the interview, referring to the unannounced August 2021 trip he made to the country amid a frenzied withdrawal of American troops and Afghan allies.
The trip drew him a rebuke from the Biden administration, who said Meijer and his traveling companion, Rep. Seth Moulton, D-Mass, “could be taking seats that would have otherwise gone to other Americans or Afghans fleeing the country.”
Meijer said he saw his trip as part of his oversight duty as a congressman.
Reflection on the challenges in Washington, Meijer said he’s hopeful the Supreme Court will help restore a “better balance between the Executive and the Legislative” branch.
“There’s hope,” he said. “Justice (Neil) Gorsuch will revive the non-delegation doctrine, and we will more narrowly constrain the commerce clause, and there will be a better balance between the executive and legislative, between the states and the federal government, and all will be well in the world.”
Gibbs, who denies the results of the 2020 election, will face Scholten on Nov. 8.
While a Democrat hasn’t represented Grand Rapids in Congress since 1974, when attorney Richard Vander Veen was elected for one term to the seat in the wake of Watergate, Scholten says she has a chance to turn the district blue this year.
Read more:
Does Grand Rapids Public Schools need more early childhood centers? School leaders want to know
Nearly 1,000 high schoolers earned credits through Kent ISD’s summer school program
Defendant in Gov. Whitmer kidnap case wanted to ‘build an army,’ jury told
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[1] Url:
https://www.mlive.com/news/grand-rapids/2022/08/defeated-rep-peter-meijer-doesnt-plan-to-endorse-republican-john-gibbs-for-congress.html
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