Representative-elect Mike Lawler (R-NY), left, and Maxwell Frost (D-Fla.), right, will be sworn in on January 2, 2023.
Mary Altaffer/AP; J. Scott Applewhite/AP
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Mary Altaffer/AP; J. Scott Applewhite/AP
Representative-elect Mike Lawler (R-NY), left, and Maxwell Frost (D-Fla.), right, will be sworn in on January 2, 2023.
Mary Altaffer/AP; J. Scott Applewhite/AP
It’s a time of transition on Capitol Hill. In the House of Representatives, Democrats are ceding majority offices to Republicans. As the legislators left to pack up their things, the first-time legislators were unloading their belongings and getting ready to settle down.
Florida Democrat Maxwell Frost and New York Republican Mike Lawler are two of them.
“It was a surreal experience,” Frost told NPR. “I feel like time has passed so quickly since Election Day.”
Frost was the first Gen Z member of Congress and he recently made headlines for tweet about denied for an apartment because of his credit rating. Lawler made headlines by defeating incumbent Congressman Sean Patrick Maloney, the head of the Democratic national campaign committee. And he’s not alone; Republicans toppled four seats in New York, a state known for being reliable Democrats.
“We’re the reason Republicans have a majority in the House,” Lawler told NPR. “I think there’s an opportunity to really work with our colleagues in the Republican convention, but also to find work opportunities across the aisle.”
Lawler and Frost spoke to NPR about the new balance of power on Capitol Hill next January and how that could affect the way they work.
This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
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Mike Lawler on where he sees himself as a good fit for the GOP’s ability to get the job done
I think we all have different experiences that shape our views, but it’s trying to put those experiences together. My approach has always been as a legislator and as someone who has been in politics for over 15 years, to build those personal relationships, to sit down with someone, to understand what’s going on. what makes them feel that way about an issue and find the area of agreement and start building on that. And so I think the question for both sides is, are there people in each conference really willing to do that work? It’s hard work and there will be people pushing back from within. But you have to be willing to do it. I am. And certainly being from New York and representing a county where Joe Biden got 10 points, you don’t get there by not being willing to meet people where they are.
Maxwell Frost on House Minority Leader-Elected Hakeem Jeffries and the Future of Democrats
I have had the honor of getting to know Hakeem, our future leader, Jeffries, over the past few months. Even during my campaign he was very helpful. And, you know, I see a lot of myself in him. He is a young Black man fighting for progressive policies in the world he believes in.
He expressed that it is important that we invite everyone to the table. And we’ve seen him do that, from making sure that there’s the best representation in the Democratic leadership to having young people, people from the LGBTQ community plus us, Black people. Black and Brown, people from all over the country. He has made it his goal to make sure that he is making the caucus leadership like the country. That’s something that really excites me. And for me, that’s really the way forward. And, you know, our caucus, like any other family, we sometimes have arguments and arguments and everything. But I’m really excited about the future of this party.
Both House freshmen on fulfilling their priorities despite the possibility of deadlock in Congress
Frost: As I said before, a political party is like a family, and there will be debates. But I think it’s important that, at the end of the day, we become a family again. And we work on the agenda that we have set. So that way we can deliver to our people and the people who sent us there. However, I will say: Yes, there are extremes on both sides of – and outside of – Congress, it’s just the way our country is run. But one extreme that I consider dangerous [is the] calls to question our democracy. It’s hard to equate that with what others would consider to be the other extreme, I guess it’s making sure everyone gets health care and huge resources are dedicated to the climate crisis and similar things. I just don’t see it as the same, even though a lot of times in these conversations we equate them. And I just think it’s important to keep that in mind, because we have to protect our democracy. We have to make sure we’re electing the people who really want to work across the aisle.
Lawyer: Look, I appreciate Maxwell’s sentiment, but I think part of the problem is that people are too quick to assign adjectives to adjectives they disagree with politically or immediately question. about their motives. And honestly, I think that’s part of the problem. I think that’s part of what undermines the search for bipartisanship and the search for compromise. And I think it’s great to say that our extremes are radical and crazy and your extremes just sincerely want to promote policies that help the world. That’s a bit of a broad statement, if you will. There are extremes on all sides. For example, I think Joe Biden won the election. I think January 6th is wrong. But I also understand that when people express concerns about electoral integrity, you can’t immediately dismiss that there are legitimate questions raised in the election process that you have to address from afar. policy and vision for the future. And I think we’re at such a toxic point in our politics. It is very easy to jump right in and say that person, that party and those people are bad. And I don’t see how that helps anyone in this conversation or this process.
