Grand Junction Republican Jeff Hurd spent two weeks in Washington with fellow incoming lawmakers after being elected earlier this month to represent Colorado’s sprawling 3rd Congressional District.

Hurd takes over for Republican U.S. Rep Lauren Boebert, who has represented the Western Slope-based seat for two terms but moved across the state and won election in the 4th Congressional District, which covers the Eastern Plains.

The attorney and first-time candidate talked with Colorado Politics on Nov. 21 at the conclusion of the new member orientation about what he’s learned, what he hopes to accomplish and what’s next.

This interview has been lightly edited for length and clarity.

Colorado Politics: New House members have been back in DC for the past two weeks for orientation, and today was your last day, is that right?

Jeff Hurd: It was, and we had our office selection today, so I got my office. I was 55th out of 57th in terms of priority. I drew a bad lotto number, so I was teasing the other members of the Colorado delegation — the near-to-last will be the first. It’s kind of a surreal experience, being here. It’s humbling and awesome, but at the same time, you’re just getting hit with so much information.

It is all new. When somebody asks a clarifying question, and the response is, well, the rules are different because that’s on the suspension calendar, and everyone’s nodding their head. I’m like, “OK, what’s the suspension calendar?” So, it’s all stuff I need to learn. And I’m a very legal, rules-oriented guy, so I’m like, “OK, well, what rule is that that’s covering it, and how do I find that out and learn more about it?”

That’s something that I got some good advice from a legislator. He said the three P’s of effective legislating are the people — you need to make sure that you’re building relationship capital with your colleagues; policy — you need to understand your policy and know the facts; and, then procedure — you’ve got to understand procedure, as well, and use that to your advantage. So, I’m trying to do the the first P, the people part, as this orientation is not just with my colleagues in the conference on the Republican side, but also with our Democratic colleagues.

So, it’s been a good experience meeting a bunch of people from all over the country, literally, and on the Republican side and on the Democratic side. But I’m looking forward to coming home.

CP: Is it a big incoming class this year?

Hurd: It is — it’s 61. Historically, it’s maybe a little bit on the smaller side….

CP: There has been a lot of turnover and new members in the last few elections, at least. Do you have a sense of your class? Is there any way to characterize your fellow incoming lawmakers?

Hurd: Certainly, I know the Republican conference better than the Democratic conference, but they strike me as serious and wanting to work. They seem to be understanding why they’re here, and I don’t see any folks that are interested in making a name for themselves. Obviously, we’ll have to see. But my first impression is they’re generally a serious group of of individuals, and it’s diverse.

It’s just surreal. You can go see the Declaration of Independence — they took us to the National Archives. You could see those documents that really hit home, just what an honor this is to serve this district and 730,000 residents of the 3rd Congressional District. It really is. It brought it home when you’re here in Washington.

CP: You’re really stepping into history there.

Hurd: They said there have only been — since the first U.S. Congress convened on March 4, 1789 — 11,191 people who have served as members of the House of Representatives. It was a smaller number than I would have guessed. And it’s just — that’s not a huge number. It’s humbling to be a part of that group of legislators stretching back to 1789.

CP: Going through orientation there, does it change your sense of what you can accomplish or what you hope to accomplish?

Hurd: Yes, I think I’m even more optimistic that we can do good things for our state and our country. I think there’s a little bit of uncertainty, given the narrow majority in the House. But I think most legislators are focused on being part of a governing Republican Congress, and I think that there are going to be a number of things that will happen that will hopefully deliver on the promises that I made in my race and that Republicans made in other races across the country.

I think what we’re going to see is the president is going to take a number of executive actions after he’s elected, but certainly we’re going to need legislation, as well, and my sense is that the legislators that are here are ready to roll up their sleeves and get to work once the president is inaugurated on Jan. 20.

CP: Republicans do look like they’ll have a tight majority, possibly unchanged from the current 221 seats, but considering that President-elect Trump has already tapped several House members for his administration, it could leave just one or two votes to spare until those seats can be filled in special elections. Do you feel you’ll have the leeway to vote your conscience as opposed to sticking with the party, with the majority so slim?

Hurd: I told voters in my race that my priorities are the Constitution and then the 3rd Congressional District, and I fully intend to follow up on that when I’m serving. Certainly, what I also said when I ran was I’m principled, but also pragmatic, and so I think we’ll have to see, based on what the issue is, how important it is, and how it affects the 3rd Congressional District. There may be circumstances where it’s difficult, where there will be more pressure to vote in a certain way. But ultimately, at the end of the day, the people that I’m representing are the people the 3rd Congressional District, and I’m going to do what’s best by the people who have entrusted me with this responsibility.

CP: What’s been your impression as the incoming Trump administration has been rolling out nominations, and the kind of government that’s taking shape?

Hurd: I think when it comes to the areas that matter most, for the 3rd Congressional District, I’ve been pleased with the people that President Trump’s named, that he intends to nominate. Doug Burgum, for secretary of the interior, I think is a solid pick. I think the same for Chris Wright, who’s the CEO of Liberty Energy. I know him. He was actually a supporter of mine in my race. And he’s a Colorado energy CEO, and I think he has an excellent command of the facts, particularly when it comes to energy and energy policy. I think those are two terrific picks for the 3rd Congressional District.

Obviously, it’s the United States Senate that has the constitutional advise and consent duties, so I will let that process take place, and I trust the Senate will discharge that duty responsibly when it comes to the issues that matter most to the 3rd Congressional District. I’m optimistic about what we’ve seen, what we’ll see in a second Trump administration.

CP: What do you think about other key appointments that are still outstanding?

Hurd: I will tell you, Speaker Johnson made a joke that he hopes the president doesn’t appoint too many more from the Republican House conference, because our margins are already quite slim, as you noted. And actually, President Trump sort of joked about it when he spoke to the Republican conference, and you could see the look on Mike Johnson’s face. He smiled, but you could tell … every vote counts, I guess, in the 119th Congress. I’ll put it that way.

CP: Are you at the point where you’re putting in for committee assignments?

Hurd: I think the decision will be taking place next month, but I have let it be known what committees I’m most interested in. And there’s now a separate election, or sort of voting process that started, where I’m going to be working hard to get committee assignments that I think will fit my district, most importantly, but also my interest and my ability.

CP: What are your priorities for which committees?

Hurd: Energy and Commerce is my top priority. The 3rd Congressional District is an energy district. I am an energy attorney, and in addition to the energy work I’ve done, I’ve also done some telecommunications work, and I think the nature of my district and the skillset I would bring make me a great fit for Energy and Commerce. It’s not common that a freshman would end up on Energy and Commerce, but I’m pushing hard. And there are a number of factors that I think weigh in my favor: the fact that I’m an energy attorney, the fact that my district is a big energy district, the fact that there are a number of vacancies on Energy and Commerce — I think nine — and the fact that there aren’t a lot of representatives from the Rocky Mountain region on Energy and Commerce, and I’m also going to be in a tough race again in two years. I think all of those factors come together to make me a compelling candidate for Energy and Commerce.

There are other committees that I’d be looking at and I would love to serve on, so Energy and Commerce is the first, and I’ve let leadership and my colleagues know that that’s the committee that I would very much like to serve on. In addition to that, Natural Resources Chairman Bruce Westerman (an Arkansas Republican) is a terrific leader. Natural Resources would be another terrific fit for the 3rd Congressional District, and I think my interests and my background would be well served on Natural Resources, as well. Agriculture is the other committee I’m letting folks know I’m interested in. The farmers and ranchers in the 3rd Congressional District could benefit from somebody who’s on the Agriculture Committee.

And then the last one that I’ve let folks know about is Transportation and Infrastructure. You know, you just needed to drive I-70, heading east of Glenwood Springs to see how much work there is to be done on our transportation infrastructure. But it’s not just I-70. It’s other highways and roads and bridges throughout the state and the five-year, Surface Reauthorization Act, I think that’s going to be coming up. So, there’s an opportunity there to make sure that we get the funding that we need to take care of our infrastructure in Colorado, particularly our highways and roads and bridges. I think I’d be a good fit on that committee, as well.

CP: What’s the process to assign members to committees?

Hurd: There’s what’s called a steering committee, that’s the committee of Republicans that decide which members are going to serve on which committee…. There are members from 20 regions, and then there is a sophomore class representative, and then a freshman class representative on the steering committee. So, that’s a total of 22 votes. And then the speaker has four, and the majority leader has two, and there might be one or two other votes. So, that’s how the process works.

That steering committee will meet and decide who will serve on what committees in the 119th Congress. And so right now, there’s a lot of discussions going on, and it’s expected that members like me will reach out to members of the steering committee and talk to them about what I’m interested in, which committee assignments, why I’d be a better fit. And so it’s another election of sorts that I’m having to run, and all the other members are having to run, as well.

CP: Any big surprises during orientation that were different than what you expected?

Hurd: I would say the freshman class seems to get along better than I might have imagined, not just on the Republican side, but on the Democratic side, as well. And they seem like, generally, a good group of individuals that want to serve their districts and our country. I will say it was also surprising just how sprawling the Capitol Complex is. For me, it’s easy to get lost there. That’s been another surprise is just how big the complex is.

And I know it sounds sort of hokey, but it really is. You feel the weight and the privilege of what you’re doing here. And you know, when you just walk around, you think of the history, and somebody will point out this is where Abraham Lincoln’s desk was, and it just really brings home what a profound thing this is. So, I really do come at it with a sense of humility and awe, and these first two weeks have really brought that home.

CP: What’s next? Are you headed back to the district?

Hurd: Yes, I want to get back home. I want to see my kids and the people that voted to send me here. It’s been two weeks since I’ve seen them, so I’m going to be back home. There’s a lot of travel. I guess we’ll take a little bit of family time this coming week for Thanksgiving. But then after that, it is out across the district. I’m going to be in Pueblo, meeting with folks and and really on a listening tour. I need to meet with as many county commissioners as I can — you know, 27 counties (in the district) is huge, so a lot of it will be connecting with people and listening.

I know the San Miguel County commissioners, they’re interested in chatting. I would love to meet with them. San Miguel is a pretty blue county, as is Pitkin County, and I want to meet with those county commissioners, as well. And they will know that they have an open line of communication to me, just like all of my county commissioners will. It’s just a matter of getting that message out and seeing them and and trying to manage this flow of information. But it’s a great problem to have, and I look forward to the challenge.

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