[W]ASHINGTON — Rep. Peter Welch is seeking a seventh term in the U.S. House.
Welch plans to file to run in the Democratic primary Thursday afternoon.
“What I think I have to offer is an enormous amount of energy that is unabated,” Welch said in an interview. “In fact, it may be even more intense now in face of the peril that Donald Trump poses to all the progress this country has made.”
President Trump, Welch charged, is a “divider.” He said that though the president campaigned on a promise of helping people who live in rural parts of the country, his policies have been “very, very harmful to rural America and middle class.”
“We have the worst president in my lifetime and we’ve got an opportunity to turn things around and reverse direction this next election,” Welch said.
Welch said his focus is on programs to bolster the middle class, like access to health care. He also says there’s a need to address climate change.
Welch had $2.1 million in his campaign war chest at the end of the first quarter of this year, according to the most recently financial disclosures.
Welch has served in Congress since 2007. The congressman currently sits on the Energy and Commerce Committee and the Oversight and Government Reform Committee.
Before he was elected to Congress, Welch was a Vermont state senator, serving as president pro tem. He also had an unsuccessful run for governor.
Welch faces multiple primary challengers in the election. Benjamin Mitchell of Westminster is registered as a candidate in the Democratic primary. Dr. Dan Freilich of Brownsville has also indicated plans to run.
Freilich has raised concerns over Welch’s acceptance of special interest donations.
Welch has recently been under scrutiny for accepting campaign donations from pharmaceutical industry players that were interested in a 2016 law on enforcement and prescription drugs. A recent review found that Welch held a financial stake in companies impacted by the legislation.
Asked Thursday whether he has been swayed by campaign contributions associated with corporations, Welch replied: “Absolutely not.”
He said there is transparency around the contributions from political action committees.
“The reason I have accepted that is it’s totally transparent, so any contribution I get from any political action committee is recorded immediately, and every single dollar I spend in my campaign is transparent,” Welch said.
The congressman is optimistic about Democrats’ chances during the 2018 midterms nationally.
He said that he sees a mobilization of voters against Trump’s presidency.
As to leadership of House Democrats, Welch said he expects change is coming.
“We’re going to have a transition and I don’t know what that will be and when,” he said.
Welch said he would like to see a shift in how power is distributed within Congress. Too much power lies in the speaker’s office, he said. Committees should have more sway, he said.
Welch also said that through his terms in office, he’s worked across the aisle on a number of different initiatives. Those relationships, he said, make him a better advocate for Vermont.
“It’s helpful to me in my effort to help Vermont that I’ve established good relationships with a number of my colleagues,” Welch said.
