Walden emerges as clear favorite in key committee battle

Rep. Greg Walden (R-Ore.) is the clear favorite to be the next chairman of the influential House Energy and Commerce Committee, according to a handful of GOP insiders who are closely tracking the race.

Walden and Reps. John Shimkus (R-Ill.) and Joe Barton (R-Texas) — all senior members of the Energy panel — are vying to succeed current Chairman Fred Upton (R-Mich.), who is stepping down because of term limits.

{mosads}But Walden, who has had two successful cycles as the House GOP’s campaign chief, appears poised for victory. As the National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) chairman, Walden has campaigned and raised cash for many of the lawmakers who will ultimately decide Thursday who gets the prized Energy gavel.

The nine-term Oregon lawmaker also serves in leadership and is close to Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) and Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.). Both leaders have tremendous influence over the powerful 31-member Steering Committee, which doles out committee chairmanships and assignments; Ryan alone controls four votes.

“Walden is going to walk away with it,” said one House Republican who sits on the Steering Committee and has spoken with all three contenders about the race.

“And I wouldn’t be surprised if Ryan weighs in for Walden during the Steering meeting.”

The lobbying effort by both Walden and Shimkus has kicked into overdrive in recent days. The two men have been emailing and texting Steering members on almost a daily basis, sources said. Their offices have also delivered packets to Steering members outlining exactly how they would govern the Energy panel. And Walden and Shimkus have asked their surrogates to reach out to friends they have on the Steering Committee.

Barton, a former Energy chairman who has the ceremonial title of “chairman emeritus,” jumped in the race late but also has been aggressive this week, sources said.

The Energy and Commerce panel has broad jurisdiction that attracts a host of powerful interests. Its energy portfolio makes it a important panel for that sector, but the committee is also the source of legislation that impacts health care, telecommunications and consumer protection.

Walden, 59, a former state lawmaker who previously owned radio stations, has led the panel’s technology and telecom subcommittee and has focused on improving healthcare in rural parts of his native Oregon.

But his strongest case for the gavel may center on his campaign work.

He beat expectations as NRCC chairman the past two election cycles, helping the GOP surpass the “Drive to 245” campaign in 2014 and hand the party its largest majority since the Great Depression. This month, Walden was instrumental in limiting House losses to just six seats. Some campaign observers had predicted a loss of 20 GOP seats.

Since the 2010 cycle, when he began as an NRCC deputy chairman, Walden has raised more than $10 million for his House colleagues and traveled over 250,000 miles — equivalent to 10 trips around the world.

“He’s running on his NRCC record,” said a senior GOP leadership aide. “And he exceeded expectations both times he was chair.”

A Walden spokesman would only say that the congressman feels “very good” about the race and that he looks forward to making his case to his colleagues on Steering on Thursday before the closed-door vote.

Shimkus’s pitch to colleagues has focused on his history on the committee.

The 58-year-old lawmaker carries slightly more seniority on the panel than Walden. And in a letter to members earlier this month, the 20-year veteran of the House noted his time serving on each of the committee’s six subpanels, and his work crafting a major rewrite of federal chemical safety laws, which became law earlier this year.

He said he would “lead the Energy and Commerce Committee on a path of repeal, reform, rebalance and restoration consistent with Speaker Ryan’s Better Way agenda.” He vowed to undo Obama administrative rulemaking measures, including “building the case” against the cornerstone legal principle that agencies have the power to interpret laws as they see fit.

One small political advantage Shimkus has over Walden: The Illinois congressman is roommates with both Majority Whip Steve Scalise (R-La.), who has a vote on the Steering panel, and Ways and Means Chairman Kevin Brady (R-Texas), who doesn’t have a vote but has many friends on the decision-making panel.

Industry groups are reassessing their priorities for the committee after Republicans captured control of Congress and the White House.

Energy groups, especially fossil fuels, will have longer wish lists for Congress. Their aim will be to dismantle President Obama’s energy sector rule making and institute policies to help grow business rather than play defense against a new Democratic administration.

The incoming chairman will have a major role in replacing ObamaCare.

GOP leaders are planning to repeal and replace the law using a tactic called budget reconciliation, which will require direct input from the Energy and Commerce Committee next year.

The chairman will have big shoes to fill on healthcare: Upton was one of a half-dozen GOP leaders to craft a Ryan-backed plan known as “A Better Way.”

Walden has been an ardent critic of ObamaCare, co-sponsoring several of the House’s repeal bills. But he has also endorsed some parts of the law, such as protections for people with pre-existing conditions and allowing young people to stay on their parents’ plans until age 26.

The committee could also tackle laws governing the Federal Communications Commission and continue examining policies toward the growing telecom and tech sectors.

Upton, a member of the steering committee, has not weighed in on the contest. He light-heartedly dismissed Barton’s chances to reporters in mid-November, but said he doesn’t plan to publicly back either Walden or Shimkus before the closed-door meeting on Thursday.

“I’ve publicly said that they’re both fine guys,” Upton said.

Sarah Ferris contributed.