With 83 days to go until the November ballot, state Sen. Cleo Fields of Baton Rouge remains the favorite to capture the new 6th Congressional District. A former member of the U.S. House from 1993 to 1997, Fields has more direct experience on the Hill than anyone else running. And he’s ready to put it to work on day one. In an interview with Beltway Beat last week, Fields discussed what his first days would look like, his upcoming ad campaigns, scheduled (or rather not-scheduled) debates and what he would do if the courts fail to uphold current district lines.
1.) Beltway Beat: If you do get back to Congress, do you get to bank those four previous years of seniority from the first time around?
Fields: Yes, I keep my four years of seniority. So I don’t go in as a true freshman. I go in with four years, and I can get up there and work right away with maybe the speaker or majority leader or minority leader steering policy and trying to work for meaningful committees. If elected, I’m positioned very well to make some legitimate requests.
2.) What committees are you most interested in?
Everybody wants to be on Appropriations, so that’s the only one I feel comfortable publicly talking about. It’s going to be my first ask, but at the end of the day, you know, I want to serve on committees that impact the district. The last four years, I served on (the House Small Business Committee and the House Banking, Finance and Urban Affairs Committee) and we made an impact in the district on those two committees. But we’ll have to wait and see. I’m going to have a team helping me to make those kind of requests the day we’re elected.
3.) Do you have ideas about what some of your early legislation might be?
I really want to build a larger coalition to raise the minimum wage. I mean, it’s been 15 years, and I think it’s way overdue. You know, I think the Congress needs to pass a minimum wage bill, and that’s going to take me getting there, working with members who’ve been fighting for it over the years and trying to broaden that coalition and trying to get that bill passed. There are a number of bills that are going to be important to me. But you’ve got to be in the majority. Otherwise, the likelihood of you passing a bill is not great. Or you can amend one.
4.) Do you have some new campaign ads coming out? What issues will they focus on?
We’re talking about, obviously, the minimum wage. We’re talking about health care. We’re talking about those people who’ve invested in their social security. It should not be denied. It should be honored. You know, it’s just about communicating a message to the voters that we believe. And it’s a result of talking to them on a day-to-day basis.
5.) Do you expect to participate in any 6th District debates?
I haven’t made that decision yet. We’re going to make that decision sometimes after Labor Day. Touching these voters are important to me, and that’s what we have spent most of our time doing.
6.) You’re not participating in the KALB debate that they announced, right?
No, we’re not. And they knew we weren’t when they first made the request. I think it was before qualifying, which I thought was weird, quite frankly. You know, for someone to call and ask, would you participate in a debate, and you don’t even know who the candidates are… It’s partly a timing issue, too. We have other commitments.
7.) I know you can’t take anything for granted, but do you feel like the favorite in this race?
No, you know, I don’t. I don’t. I’m doing it one vote at a time. I have to reach every single voter. That’s my first and foremost interest. The only day that really counts is Election Day. We’re counting down Election Day backwards. And right now, not a single person in this race has a vote. And the last thing we need is for people to take the election for granted. We just got to motivate people to get out and vote, and get out and vote in record numbers.
8.) What are your expectations for the future of the district itself, in terms of the legal challenge? Will the current lines hold?
I think so. The district was created to make sure Louisiana afforded every voter an opportunity to elect a candidate of their choice. And I think at the end of the day, it will hold. The Red River, all of those constituencies, have something in common. But that’s going to be up to the courts. This is nothing new to me. When I was elected to Congress, the district was challenged. Every single day I walked into my office, and I said to my staff, “Listen, our job is to take care of the people of the 4th Congressional District. Each day you walk into your office, I want you to take care of the needs and the concerns of the people of the 4th Congressional District.” And we did that. We had a record number of town hall meetings. Our four years in Congress, I had more town hall meetings than any other member of Congress in the country. And that’s what we plan to do when and if I’m elected in the new 6th District on Nov. 5. I tell everyone not to worry about the legal challenge. There are enough lawyers to worry about that. Let us worry about representing the people.
9.) Even if this particular district doesn’t endure, would it be fair to say there would still be a second majority-minority district somewhere?
I’m fairly confident that Louisiana has a large enough African-American population that’s compact enough to draw a second minority district. Even if it doesn’t look like the present one, there are other ways to draw it. But you can’t take the politics out of politics.
10.) Would it also be fair to assume that as long as there is a second majority-minority district, even if it’s a little different than this one, that you would still stand as a candidate for that new district?
Absolutely. Absolutely. That’s a very fair assumption.