They first need to win their own reelection races — and their party needs to gain control nationwide — but members of Connecticut’s delegation are starting to sketch out what Democrats’ possible return to power could look like from some of the highest echelons in Congress.
If both of those scenarios happen, nearly all of the Democrats in the delegation will vie for the top spot on their committees, giving Connecticut’s delegation the potential for outsized influence in the new session of Congress next year.
Democrats are looking to take back the House and the Senate, though the odds look better in the former. While uncertainty remains, that hasn’t stopped Connecticut Democrats from giving early previews of how they envision their potential roles as leaders of committees.
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And there’s a common theme in all those plans: oversight of the Trump administration.
“Connecticut, for a really small delegation, we’re going to punch well above our weight, and most of that is due to Rosa DeLauro’s likely appropriations chairmanship,” U.S. Rep. Jim Himes, D-4, said. “Rosa’s role there, Joe Courtney’s role on Armed Services, my role on Intelligence — from the standpoint of the power of the purse, I think is going to be really powerful check and balance.”
Some of these high-ranking positions wouldn’t be new for Connecticut’s House members. DeLauro, D-3, was previously chairwoman of the Appropriations Committee and has served as the ranking member since 2023 when Republicans took back the majority.
Courtney, D-2, has also served in both the majority and minority on the Seapower and Projection Forces Subcommittee. And Himes ascended the leadership ladder on the House Intelligence Committee, becoming ranking member in 2023. All three have maintained productive working relationships with the GOP chairs of their respective committees and subcommittees.
This time, U.S. Rep. Jahana Hayes, D-5, will make a foray into running for leadership, on the House Committee on Education and the Workforce. She’s mounting a challenge in what’s becoming a crowded race for either the gavel or ranking member.
Pursuit of the gavel
As a fixture on the Appropriations Committee, DeLauro sits on an influential panel that crafts spending bills, allocates money and funds the government.
Her current role as the Democratic ranking member comes at a time when there has been a major strain between the executive and legislative branch regarding federal funding. The power of the purse resides with Congress, but the White House, led by Russell Vought at the Office of Management and Budget, has sought to claw some of that back, whether through rescissions or the impoundment of appropriated money.
DeLauro, 83, said she doesn’t take either race for granted and currently doesn’t face any challengers for the chair. But in her potential quest for the gavel, she hopes to restore education and job opportunities that could help address the higher cost of living and restore her committee’s authority on grants and other funding.
“I want to, as I have done in the past, continue to use the appropriations committee as the way to look at how in fact we address this affordability issue, how we put money back into people’s pockets, how we provide the services in all of the areas that have a real effect on their economic security and their lives,” DeLauro said.
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She also works on the defense budget that could top $1.5 trillion, based on the request by the Trump administration at a time when the war in Iran has stretched into its eighth month. DeLauro acknowledged the dependence of the defense industry and contractors on Connecticut’s budget but said she’d want to work on improving funding for domestic programs and social services.
“Understanding that Connecticut is a defense-dependent state, I vote for the defense budget,” DeLauro said. “I deal with helicopters, engines, submarines, but I want to address the balance between what we are spending for education and health and transportation and housing, etc., with what we are spending with regard to defense.”
DeLauro also envisions handling some oversight “in my lane” by taking a look at where federal dollars are flowing and whether some money “has been transferred illegally.”
“It won’t be frivolous, and I don’t want to take on anybody else’s jurisdiction,” she said, “but as it has to do with taxpayer dollars and the use of taxpayer dollars.”
Unlike most of Congress’ committees, Himes, 60, serves on one of the more secretive panels because of the confidential nature of intelligence matters.
His job as ranking member places him in the “Gang of Eight,” a group of the Republican and Democratic leaders in the House and Senate plus the chairs and ranking members of both intelligence committees. Because of that, he typically gets a heads-up on major military actions, though that wasn’t the case with Venezuela and Iran.
The House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence has oversight over U.S. intelligence agencies as well as some issues concerning the Pentagon and other government agencies. As a potential chairman, Himes previewed oversight as a main objective.
“What I can talk about is an effort we’re going to make to try to shine a light on some of the entities who have bent a knee to Donald Trump’s demands,” Himes said, referring to law firms, universities and corporations that do business with the intelligence community. “We’re going to shine a light on instances where contractors and others did the administration’s bidding, either illegally or, if not illegally, at least in ways that raise pretty ugly conflicts of interest.”
Himes has already issued warnings to defense companies about cooperating with congressional oversight, specifically on a potential investigation into corporate donations for the construction of the White House ballroom. But if he gets the chance to become chair, he said, he’s cognizant he’ll need some amount of buy-in from Republicans during such a polarized time.
“I think it’s really important that our oversight efforts appeal beyond just the Democratic Party,” Himes said. “That people really understand why what we’re doing is important for the country and the health of the country rather than for Democrats who may be very angry at Donald Trump.”
Courtney’s work on the Seapower Subcommittee has a lot of crossover with the defense industries that power much of Connecticut’s workforce and economy.
Some of his focuses will be on the Department of the Navy, submarine programs, and the AUKUS agreement between the U.S., U.K. and Australia that will have to meet deadlines on the delivery of Virginia-class submarines.
“I think oversight of this administration is obviously going to be very strong in general with some of the executive orders and different actions that the president has taken,” Courtney said. “But I think we have our work to do too in Seapower, as far as making sure that the right investments are being made to deal with what’s happening out there in the world.”
Courtney, 73, also see opportunities for oversight, whether that’s on the Air Force One plane gifted by Qatar as well as the White House’s battleship proposal. He also believes oversight over the war in Iran and U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth’s tenure will be “front and center” for the full House Armed Services Committee.
“That’s another one we would be looking at in terms of making sure it’s the property of the government and not an individual,” Courtney said, regarding Air Force One.
Hayes, meanwhile, would be a newcomer to leadership on the House Education and the Workforce Committee.
She recently threw her hat into the race to lead the panel for Democrats. So far, Hayes and Oregon Rep. Suzanne Bonamici are challenging the current top Democrat on the panel, U.S. Rep. Bobby Scott of Virginia.
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