In 2018, Rep. Gallagher wrote an extensive piece in The Atlantic that grappled with one topic: How to Fix Congress. The problem, he concluded, “...is not the people. The problem is a defective process and a power structure that...funnels all power to leadership and stifles debate and initiative within the ranks.” In the piece, he put forward three solutions based on his own observations to help make the institution better serve the American people, but there are certainly other paths forward. Two years later, he decided to explore the topic of improving Congress by gathering suggestions from members who recently announced they would retire from Congress.

On this first of three special episodes of the NEW Look podcast, Rep. Gallagher is joined by Rep. Greg Walden, who was first elected to Congress in 1998 and has spent time as the Chairman of both the Energy and Commerce Committee and the National Republican Congressional Committee. In the conversation, Rep. Walden not only shares his family’s strong ties to Oregon (which date back to 1845), but also reflects on his more than 20 years in Congress and discusses how we can better protect Congressional power moving forward.