{"id":21679,"date":"2025-06-26T00:04:48","date_gmt":"2025-06-26T00:04:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/ill-side-with-my-district-every-single-time-u-s-rep-jeff-hurd-hosts-meeting\/"},"modified":"2026-03-31T04:08:25","modified_gmt":"2026-03-31T04:08:25","slug":"ill-side-with-my-district-every-single-time-u-s-rep-jeff-hurd-hosts-meeting","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/ill-side-with-my-district-every-single-time-u-s-rep-jeff-hurd-hosts-meeting\/","title":{"rendered":"\u2018I\u2019ll side with my district every single time\u2019: U.S. Rep. Jeff Hurd hosts meeting"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"U.S.
U.S. Rep. Jeff Hurd meets Wednesday with La Plata County commissioners. (Reuben M. Schafir\/Durango Herald)<\/span>cca<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>\n

About 7,000 people from Colorado\u2019s 3rd Congressional District tuned in Tuesday evening to U.S. Rep. Jeff Hurd\u2019s call-in town hall meeting to ask questions and hear his answers.<\/p>\n

The call, which started at 6 p.m., was one hour long. No two questions were the same.<\/p>\n

Veteran\u2019s benefits<\/div>\n

The first caller had concerns for her husband, a decorated Vietnam veteran.<\/p>\n

With threats of cuts to the Veterans Affairs, she said, \u201cI don\u2019t think that was Congress\u2019s intention\u201d when they passe<\/a>d the PACT Act in 2022 to expand veterans\u2019 health care.<\/p>\n

Hurd said, \u201cMy understanding is that care in Western Colorado is good,\u201d specifically at the Grand Junction VA Medical Center.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt is,\u201d the veteran intervened.<\/p>\n

Hurd then encouraged him to reach out to his office in person, over the phone or online to \u201chelp us identify what the issues are (with receiving care) and let us know how we can help.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sales of public lands<\/div>\n

The next call concerned the threat of selling 250 million acres of public land across America, 14 million of which are eligible acres in Colorado.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat\u2019s your position on the sale of public lands?\u201d the caller asked of Hurd.<\/p>\n

The land sale provision was removed from the Republican budget bill Tuesday after it was found to violate Senate rules. However, Utah Republican Sen. Mike Lee \u201cstill has a movement afoot\u201d and is pushing for it in the name of affordable housing, which \u201cgives me some concern,\u201d said Hurd.<\/p>\n

Hurd said he was the only Republican who voted against the last-minute midnight provision that added the sale of public lands to the budget bill.<\/p>\n

\u201cNo one in the 3rd Congressional District asked for this land sale,\u201d Hurd said.<\/p>\n

Plus, the language was unclear, meaning \u201cthe land sale could possibly be all from one state.\u201d Montana was excluded, which \u201cundermines fairness,\u201d and public access would be prohibited to those lands, said Hurd.<\/p>\n

\u201cAm I going to listen to the 3rd Congressional District or bureaucrats in Denver and D.C.? I\u2019ll side with my district every single time,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Wolves<\/div>\n

The next caller, who said he has raised livestock all his life, spoke against Colorado\u2019s reintroduction of Canadian gray wolves.<\/p>\n

Hurd said that the \u201cforced introduction of Canada gray wolves\u201d is \u201ca concern I\u2019ve heard loud and clear\u201d from several groups \u2013 farmers, ranchers, hunters and outfitters.<\/p>\n

Front Range rules continue to impact the Western Slope, he said, and the program is not fair to producers or wolves.<\/p>\n

In January, Hurd signed onto a joint statement<\/a> alongside Colorado Republican Rep. Lauren Boebert and two other members of Congress condemning wolf introduction in the state.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe need to delist them from the endangered species act so we can more effectively manage them,\u201d he said Tuesday night. \u201cWe\u2019re working to do everything we can\u201d to fight introducing foreign wolves into the state.<\/p>\n

\"Rep.
Rep. Jeff Hurd, a Grand Junction Republican, met with the La Plata County Board of County Commissioners in April. (Durango Herald file photo)<\/span>cca<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>
Crime<\/div>\n

A caller from Pueblo and retired law enforcement officer said the crime rate and how its risen is \u201cunbelievable.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cCrime has just gotten out of control,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Hurd said that\u2019s why it\u2019s so important to secure the border.<\/p>\n

Over the last six months, there are less people coming in across the border, thanks to President Donald Trump, he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn part, it\u2019s a state problem,\u201d Hurd said. \u201cCriminals are getting out on bail too quickly.\u201d<\/p>\n

He called for \u201cmore law and order representatives,\u201d and said, \u201cI am a law and order representative, and that\u2019s essential to me.\u201d<\/p>\n

Second Amendment rights<\/div>\n

Another retired law enforcement officer said they\u2019re \u201ca strong advocate for the Second Amendment.\u201d<\/p>\n

But since the population majority is in the Denver Metro area, he said he\u2019s concerned about his right to bear arms since that majority is largely left-leaning and looking to minimize those rights.<\/p>\n

Living in a rural area where law enforcement isn\u2019t always nearby, \u201cI need to protect myself,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Hurd agreed.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe rural nature of the district reinforces the need of fundamental Second Amendment rights,\u201d said Hurd, adding that it\u2019s just another example of people in Denver making decisions that impact folks on the Western Slope.<\/p>\n

He said he feels that any gun control legislation that\u2019s passed will ultimately fail, since those rights are protected.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn the meantime, help colleagues in the city understand rights in rural Colorado,\u201d he said. Those rights are not just fundamental, it\u2019s \u201cpart of the independence of rural Coloradans,\u201d said Hurd.<\/p>\n

Homegrown energy<\/div>\n

A caller from Mesa County said her family has oil and gas wells. She asked, \u201cWhen will they start using local gas to build up reserves?\u201d<\/p>\n

Hurd said that America is \u201cproducing more energy than we ever have before,\u201d and he underscored the importance of energy independence and dominance overseas so that our allies don\u2019t have to rely on Russian or Iranian gas.<\/p>\n

He added that if one cares about lowering global greenhouse gases, they ought to support energy coming from west and southwest Colorado.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe can do it better than anyone else right here,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Bipartisan legislation<\/div>\n

Aside from the Gunnison Outdoor Resources Protection Act,<\/a> which protects 730,000 acres of public land in the Gunnison Basin and was timely enacted this most recent Public Lands Day, this caller asked what other bipartisan legislation Hurd is working on.<\/p>\n

He said he\u2019s sponsoring a bill<\/a> to ensure the accurate measure of snowpack since \u201cwater is our lifeblood\u201d and there 40 million that rely on it from the Colorado River Basin.<\/p>\n

Another bill he\u2019s sponsoring<\/a> alongside Sens. John Hickenlooper and Michael Bennett compensates Four Corners communities impacted by the Gold King Mine disaster.<\/p>\n

Medicaid<\/div>\n

A caller from Montrose County concerned with potential cuts to Medicaid and what that means for their rural hospital called in, a concern Hurd echoed since 31% of individuals in the 3rd Congressional District rely on it.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s the highest percentage of any district in Colorado, and among the highest in the United States,\u201d said Hurd.<\/p>\n

Earlier on Tuesday, he signed onto a letter<\/a> to Senate Majority Leader John Thune and Speaker of the House Mike Johnson with 15 other Republicans highlighting the importance of preserving Medicaid \u201cfor those who need it most.\u201d<\/p>\n

Over the years, however, there\u2019s \u201cbeen an explosion of Medicaid spending,\u201d and \u201cwe need to make sure we have a strong, sustainable system,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Essentially, Hurd wants to make sure they\u2019re making good use of Medicaid dollars.<\/p>\n

\u201cHopefully, we\u2019ll create a strong, more robust system,\u201d he said. \u201cWe have to, otherwise it risks collapse entirely.\u201d<\/p>\n

Immigration<\/div>\n

The penultimate caller expressed concerns of heightened activity by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement activity.<\/p>\n

\u201cI understand the need for safe and legal ways for people to enter the country,\u201d she said, but people are now afraid to go to work and are being taken from their families, which \u201cis not OK.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat can you do?\u201d she asked Hurd.<\/p>\n

\u201cAmerica is a nation of immigrants,\u201d Hurd said. \u201cBut we\u2019re also a nation of laws.\u201d<\/p>\n

Again, Hurd spoke of the necessity of securing the border, and welcoming legal immigrants and encouraging them to be part of America.<\/p>\n

He spoke in favor of Trump\u2019s crackdown on drugs and trafficking in an effort to make the country safer, and removing \u201ccriminal\u201d illegal immigrants\u201d from the U.S.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe need to fix the system,\u201d he said, which will be a bipartisan effort.<\/p>\n

The final caller called for fixing roads, and Hurd said infrastructure improvements are \u201ca core function of government.\u201d<\/p>\n

Just before 7 p.m., Hurd thanked everyone for tuning in and said that it\u2019s \u201can honor to represent you and a privilege to represent the district I was raised in.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI will never forget where I came from,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Conversation covered everything from public land sales to wolves<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":21680,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[981,28,29,1125],"naviga_topic":[],"class_list":["post-21679","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","tag-colorado-3rd-congressional-district","tag-headlines","tag-newsletter","tag-u-s-house-rep-jeff-hurd"],"acf":[],"author_name":"dh_admin","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21679","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=21679"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21679\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":77414,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21679\/revisions\/77414"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/21680"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=21679"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=21679"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=21679"},{"taxonomy":"naviga_topic","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/naviga_topic?post=21679"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}