North Bay Rep. Jared Huffman talks politics and fishing

As with Project 2025, Huffman did not remain among the lone voices for long. On July 21, Biden announced his resignation amid growing calls from Democrats.

Acting independently is not in Huffman’s character, Stephanie Burkhalter, a political science professor at the University of California, Texas, told The Press Democrat. Humboldt. When he first arrived in Washington, he was one of the founders of the Congressional Freethink Caucus, dedicated to defending the secular nature of American government. It’s a unique stance among politicians, who often bash the Bible or otherwise tout their religious beliefs when appealing to voters, she said. Huffman remains, he says, the only openly atheist member of Congress.

When it came time for lawmakers to call on Biden to resign, “a super insider in Washington probably couldn’t have said it,” Burkhalter said. Huffman “plays the game a little differently, and maybe more authentically,” she said.

What’s new is how recent events have raised the profile of Huffman, who was already on the rise in the more progressive wing of his party, but mostly as a climate activist. Huffman’s appointment to the Project 2025 task force demonstrated the closeness he is developing with Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, and he has begun appearing on cable news shows and in national political stories over his early skepticism about the continuation of Biden’s presidential race.

“I don’t pretend to be a political oracle who always gets everything right,” Huffman said. “But in this election cycle and at this moment, you know, with all these existential threats to democracy and a political trajectory that was looking very bad, I think I called it right and I felt like I had no choice but how to be more public and more visible than I usually am.”

Another North Coast political science academic, David McCuan of Sonoma State University, believes Huffman is poised for a rise in the Democratic-controlled Capitol or a prominent position in a reluctant minority party if Republicans win.

“You have a guy who has been at the forefront of change with Biden and a guy who is not afraid to challenge Trump and MAGA and be at the center of it all,” McCuan said.

Huffman doesn’t shy away from the fact that he has a lot riding on this election personally. He has served on the House Natural Resources Committee since his election to Congress in 2012 and would like to lead the body. If Democrats take back the House, the current ranking Democrat on the committee will be Rep. Raul Grijalva of Tucson, Arizona, who has been battling a cancer diagnosis. Although Grijalva is running for re-election, he has said his next term will be his last.

Huffman described Grijalva as a “great friend” and called the committee situation “very fluid.” “I hope he can get back to 100% and we’ll see where that takes us. But it’s certainly interesting to me,” he said.

While there are a number of senior Democrats on the committee, Huffman “has the education, training and experience that makes him the leader to lead,” McCuan said.

Given his high profile on climate and environmental issues, as well as his early support for Harris’ campaign, some observers also question whether Huffman could be in the running for a Cabinet position in the new Democratic position. Huffman said these questions are “completely hypothetical.” But he added: “I wouldn’t be interested in anything. I think at this point in my career I can be a little picky.”

If Republicans win the House, or even if they don’t but Trump wins the White House, Huffman’s next two years will look very different.

“If we have a Harris-Waltz administration, I’m working closely with them on big, bold climate action,” he said. In a Republican House, he would do it again while in the minority.

And “if we have a Trump administration, it’s only defense. Defending democracy and against all the rotten policies they will try to implement,” he said.

Not long ago Huffman butted heads with Trump’s Interior Department, led by oil industry lobbyist David Bernhardt, who is now chairman of the America First Policy Institute and who some say is waiting in the wings to support Trump’s pro-extractive and largely deregulatory approach to the environment . Huffman described Bernhardt as “one of the evil geniuses on their side.”

The Biden administration has seen a record increase in oil production on federal lands. approved more drilling permits than the Trump administration. However, Huffman notes that there have been some climate victories, such as large carbon subsidies included in the Inflation Reduction Act, which took effect in 2022.

That’s not enough to curb the threat posed by climate change, Huffman said. “I’m far from feeling good about where we are. This is bad,” he said.

While Huffman pondered the dangers of another batch of Trump environmental appointees, a river otter swam languidly across the lake. And when a reporter caught a fish, Huffman told him how to land a largemouth bass. Noting that the fish were larger than those the congressman had caught, the Democratic photographer joked that perhaps Huffman should pick it up and photograph it.

Huffman refused. “That would be… so Trumpian,” he said, laughing.

Despite the high stakes next Tuesday, Huffman won’t be spending Election Day anxiously refreshing news websites or watching X, formerly known as Twitter, where he maintains a vibrant presence. The congressman has a tradition that he observes on Election Day.

He will be fishing somewhere in his area.

You can reach staff writer Andrew Graham at 707-526-8667 or [email protected]. Follow him on X (Twitter) @AndrewGraham88.