Photo via Foushee for Congress.
U.S. Congresswoman Valerie Foushee (NC-04) joined Aaron Keck in 97.9 The Hill studios on Dec. 23 to share her thoughts about the past year in national government and to look ahead to 2026, when she’ll be running for reelection. Listen to the full conversation here.
Here are her responses to questions on a number of specific topics, which have been edited for brevity and clarity:
On 2025 In Congress:
Well, it’s been a very interesting year and one that I don’t think any of us thought that we could really predict. What we’ve seen with how President Trump is running the country, and not just there, but what happened in the North Carolina General Assembly with redistricting. And so looking at what will happen in 2026, certainly it will be challenging just as it has been what we’ve seen with DOGE cuts, the number of jobs that have been lost, particularly in this district. And just a general sense of inevitability that there’s no way we can control what has been going on in Washington. But I would suggest to you that the power still rests with the people, [and] people are showing their displeasure with a president that has gone rogue, who is legislating by executive orders. What we saw in November with special elections for me is a foretelling of what we will see in 2026.
On her biggest achievements this year:
Well, I’m proud that I have been given the opportunity to serve in leadership roles. I have been chosen as the Region 7 Whip. I report directly to Whip [Katherine] Clark and my region, it includes North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Louisiana, Mississippi. I report directly to the Whip and I keep those members from those states informed. I’ve also been tapped as one of the 24 bipartisan members of the AI Task Force and the New Dems Coalition Chair for AI and Innovation. And then just recently [I was] tapped by our leader as one of the three co-chairs of the new AI commission.
On AI discussions in Congress:
So at the end of the task force report, we put out a report about how we should start with guardrails. But the Republican majority has decided not to use that information immediately. So moving forward, we need to make sure that those guardrails that protect our civil rights in particular moves forward. There are states that have already started to implement guidelines for the use of ai, but the president and Republicans want to place preemptions there without the federal government doing anything. So, one of my purposes for being chair or co-chair to that commission is to make sure that we do allow, in the absence of federal regulation, states to do what they feel is necessary to protect their constituents.
On frustrations following 2025:
I think my biggest frustrations have been the lack of us doing anything meaningful as it relates to kitchen table conversations. This administration came in saying that from day one they would lower prices, and that has not happened. People are still worried about housing, people are really worried about healthcare costs. And to try to put it forward in such a way that Congress understood that this is a real issue for the American public. That healthcare is not just a privilege, but a right. And to see where we are now with the expanded tax credits about to expire in just a few days, and we did nothing. We shut down the government, Congress shut down the government by aid of the President and Republicans, and the speaker kept us out for 53 days, and we did nothing. So the frustration of not addressing the needs of the American public has far exceeded what I would’ve expected when I came to Congress.
On working with Republicans:
So one of the things that I hear from Republican colleagues [is] that they want change, but the ability to get it done by rank and file Republicans has not measured up in any way. It’s interesting to have these conversations and then have Republicans, at least in rhetoric, talk about what they will do, but then they allow time to expire in such a way that nothing is done. You hear of a Marjorie Taylor Greene decide that she’s gonna leave Congress, and these are the reasons, and they’re the same reasons that we have put forward as Democrats, particularly as it relates to healthcare. When given the opportunity to vote in such a manner that these changes can occur, they don’t. And we have watched Republicans vote in a way that will serve the public, but they control how those votes are processed.
And so when you see Republics can vote with us and then come back over a period of 40, 50 minutes an hour and change their votes after having been invited to the White House to talk to the president or having Speaker Johnson and others do the arm twisting, whereby if you are watching C-Span, you can see one by one, they will come in and change their votes. And so that’s frustrating to have the conversations and to feel like there are representatives on the Republican side who want to address the needs of their constituents. Understand these are not democratic problems, these are problems for the American public.
On running for re-election:
I believe that public service is in my DNA. It’s no secret that, um, I have served not just this district in general, but this community in particular. And to have grown up here and to have people to support me for representing them is humbling. You mentioned the fact that there’s so much more to be done. I wanna be a part of that. And I believe that I have gained the experience and I have forged relationships that I do believe, when we flip the house and we will flip the house in 2026, that it will give me an opportunity to bring forward those things that we know this district needs. I have, even in this climate, been able to bring funding back to the district, most recently for Hillsborough and the water treatment system. My last bill, the IMPACT Act 2.0, is being taken up in the Senate. Hopefully that’s still moving forward with bipartisan support, including Senator Tillis. So I do believe that I am poised to continue leading in the US House, [and] that I will continue to be able to use those relationships to bring back progress to this district. And I’m looking forward to it.
I would say that I’m probably the most progressive elected official in this area. I would challenge anyone to object my voting record and [say] that there’s not a continuous push for the progressive values of this district. We’ll see how it shakes out. I think people know my work and I am dependent on running on my record, of which I’m proud. To hear from constituents in this district, there’s a lot of support for my continued representation. So I’m humbled by that and we move forward.
When I’m reelected, I expect that we will continue to make sure that the 4th district receives what it needs to move forward. And by that I mean restoring funding for research. By that I mean restoring funding for our housing situation. By that I mean continuing to reduce the cost of living. As Hakeem Jeffries says, America’s too expensive for most of us. And first and foremost, we need to make sure that healthcare is indeed a right and not just a privilege for the few.
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