Murphy upbeat after talks with president
Congresswoman thinks Democrats can work with Donald Trump
U.S. Rep. Stephanie Murphy said Friday that she is optimistic that her party can work with Republicans after meeting this week with President Donald Trump,
The bipartisan push by Murphy, D-Winter Park, is important in a swing district that is evenly split between Republicans and Democrats.
Murphy, who also met with Trump along with a few fellow Democrats in June, was part of a group of Congress members from both parties who sat down with Trump at the White House on Wednesday.
“I believe I was invited because the president wants to meet with policymakers focused on trying to move issues forward,” she said in an interview with the Orlando Sentinel.
The first-term representative cited the bipartisan support for six of her bills that have passed the House, adding, “I’ve built a reputation in Washington for working in a bipartisan manner.”
Murphy said she raised the issue of Hurricane Irma relief and asked for a presidential commitment that federal funds will reach areas quickly.
“Sometimes it takes months or even years to get federal dollars into the community,” she said, adding Trump and Homeland Security Adviser Tom Bossert expressed support for making sure there were no delays.
Murphy said the group also discussed upcoming plans for tax reform, infrastructure improvements and a bipartisan health care proposal “to help stabilize the market and avoid dramatic [insurance rate] increases. He encouraged us to keep working on that.”
The most surprising potential bipartisan deal is Trump’s conditional support, along with Democratic congressional leaders, for a law protecting Dreamers, childhood immigrants currently shielded by the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals policy he recently rescinded.
“I think there’s a great chance that we’ll be able to come up with a bipartisan, durable solution for Dreamers,” Murphy said.
Trump said in a statement Wednesday he was also hopeful of getting things done on those fronts.
“When we set aside our differences — and it's amazing how sometimes how little our differences are — we put our country and we put the citizens of our country first,” he said.
Murphy has focused on bipartisanship ever since her election over longtime Republican U.S. Rep. John Mica last year, joining the Problem Solvers Caucus and teaming with Republicans to sponsor legislation such as a bill funding workshops to train federal, state and local first responders.
On the Republican side, state Rep. Mike Miller, R-Winter Park, who has announced he will try
to unseat Murphy next year, has often stressed bipartisanship himself.
“My experience in Tallahassee reaching across the aisle … proves we can work together for common interests without abandoning our conservative principles,” he said Friday.
But the Democratic base will likely be fired up to oppose Trump, and getting out core Democratic voters could be just as important for Murphy’s re-election chances. She also faces a challenge from her left from Chardo Richardson of Longwood, a former ACLU of Central Florida board member.
“My first priority is getting relief for my constituents,” Murphy said. “I’ve always said I’ve been willing to work with members across the aisle.”