To say Congresswoman Jaime Herrera Beutler's political career has taken off
during the past five years might be an understatement.
In five years' time -- the amount of time it takes most college students
to earn a bachelor's degree -- the Camas Republican became a legislator in the
state House of Representatives, successfully ran for Congress twice and
recently was named to the U.S. House's coveted federal-spending committee.
That appointment gives her more authority over the Columbia River Crossing
project.
Part of the 34-year-old's success might come from the fact that her
diverse background is seen as advantageous for the Republican Party,
especially in a time when the party is working to re-brand itself. But a more
important key to her success, her supporters and colleagues say, is that
Herrera Beutler is an energetic and practical leader who balances party
loyalty with the needs of an often independently minded district.
"People have recognized her as the talent that she is," Herrera Beutler's
former boss, U.S. Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers, R-Spokane, said recently. "I'm
always impressed that Jaime is quick to speak up, and she recognizes that it's
her responsibility to speak up on behalf of the people she represents."
Although Southwest Washington's 3rd Congressional District became more
conservative following last year's redrawing of voter boundaries, those across
the aisle from Herrera Beutler say her ability to stay in office will depend
on whether she's able to distance herself from the rigid conservative ideology
that sometimes exists within her party.
Critics from both sides
When Herrera Beutler embarked on her first term in Congress, she thought
she'd found a rubric to make all of her voting decisions easier.
In order to vote in favor of a bill, she said, that bill would have to
pass this three-pronged test: "Do the people of Southwest Washington benefit,
am I breaking any personal values, and am I in line with the Constitution?"
Since then, she's learned her lawmaking decisions are never that black
and white.
She's come under fire by those to her left and her right. As Democrats in
the 3rd District began organizing to find a candidate to pit against her in
2014, the congresswoman was chastised by Tea Party activists over her vote to
avert the so-called fiscal cliff.
Herrera Beutler was one of 85 Republicans to vote "yes" on a plan to keep
tax cuts from expiring on nearly all Americans and to delay the fiscal cliff
debate on government cuts. In the House, 151 Republicans voted against the
deal, which was put forward by the Democratic-majority Senate.
Within hours, the libertarian group Americans for Limited Government
issued a statement saying her vote "may engender a primary challenge in 2014
-- and Rep. Herrera Beutler will have nobody to blame but herself."
Before the fiscal cliff vote, Herrera Beutler said she talked to other
Republicans who said voting "yes" would be best for their districts, but that
they still planned to vote "no."
"They didn't want to vote yes because they were too afraid about how it
would be mischaracterized," she said. "That's not courage. ... We need to
govern."
Herrera Beutler votes with her party 91 percent of the time, according to
