Democratic Senator Patty Murray sat down with KING 5 News for an exclusive interview following the midterm elections.
She opened up about everything from her priorities in Washington state, to her hopes for progress in Congress following the Republican takeover of the Senate, and her plans for 2016.
"In the minority, absolutely you can make a difference," said Murray. "You set your priorities a little bit smaller because you can't achieve as much, but you work hard to do it. And that is what I intend to do."
Nationally, Republicans have made an issue of immigration reform. President Obama has threatened to use executive action in the absence of a reform bill from Congress. Republicans are warning the President against using his executive powers.
"I think it is important to remember the President said he would wait to see if Republicans could pass immigration in this last year and if they didn't he would act to do what he could within his capability to fix the problems we have," Murray said. "He waited. They did not do anything, and now they are coming out and saying if you do anything we are going to hold that hostage to us accomplishing anything else in the new Congress. I think that is not fair, not right, especially for those families who are struggling today. It's also important to note that if the President does take executive action, Congress can write new laws and overwrite that so he is not doing something that can't be undone if people don't agree with it. I do think it's important to act."
Seattle is plagued by terrible traffic and needs ongoing financial support to mitigate the congestion and improve roads, bridges and highways.
Statewide, Washington is struggling to fund education and reduce class sizes. The landmark McCleary school funding case found the Washington Legislature wasn't meeting it's constitutional duty to fund public education and ordered improvements. Then this year, the Legislature was held in contempt for not making enough progress.
Murray says she'll need the help of state legislators to secure significant federal funding for both transportation and education.
"Obviously, if they can pass a transportation bill, and I can match that at the federal side, it makes a big difference," Murray said. "Back at federal level, we are trying to re-authorize the 'No Child Left Behind Law' so it works for people in Washington state. If it's an upheaval there (in Washington) it's hard for me to advocate for what they need in Washington D.C." Murray said.
Congress must pass a new spending plan. The big budget compromise Murray reached with House Republican Paul Ryan expires next year. Without a new deal, those drastic cuts, known as sequestration, that primarily hurt military families, federal workers and low income individuals could return.
"I think what scares me is if we don't work together to replaces sequestration in a smart way, it is going to impact lots of families here in a lot of different ways," Murray said.
She's cautious about touching the tax code and entitlements like Social Security and Medicare in the next budget deal.
"Do we need to look at tax code, do we need to look at entitlements, yes. But if we do, we need to make sure we are not impacting people in a negative way," Murray said.
Murray also commented on the recent release of Kenneth Bae, the Lynnwood man who had been imprisoned in North Korea.
"I have been working with Kenneth Bae's family for a very long time to secure the release of Kenneth Bae," Murray said. "I really applaud everyone who didn't give up, particularly his sister, Terry who was a stalwart champion who set the right tone who never let any of us forget, for us to get to this moment where Jim Clapper was able to go over and secure a release. But I think North Korea is very hard to predict, and I would not predict any further action based on what they did with Kenneth Bae."
Her interview with KING 5 came on the same day the Department of Veterans Affairs announced plans to improve customer service through a massive reorganization.
Murray expressed cautious optimism.
"I have been around a long time, and I have watched the VA make a lot of promises, I welcome the announcement today, to revamp how they provide services, to focus on making sure veterans are taken care of, but I am going to monitor it every step of the way. I have been told time and time again we are taking care of wait times. I have been told time and time again we have enough personnel and time, and time again they have not pulled through the way we expect them to. So, this is a day of relief, this is a day of thank you. Now, we are going to make sure you do that."
Murray said Congress will continue to hold hearings to monitor the VA's progress. She said she relies heavily on feedback from Washington veterans about whether conditions are improving, wait times for appointments are diminishing and mental health care is expanding.
Murray confirmed she will run for reelection in 2016.
"Absolutely, I love my job. I love the fact that I get to get up everyday and fight for a state that is so diverse and has so much to offer," Murray said.
Murray said she would serve in whatever capacity the party asked her to serve, but resisted committing to whether she would be eyeing a leadership position in the future.
"You know being a leader of the Senate Democrats is not an easy position. You have to represent a lot of values across the country," Murray said. "And I think Sen. Reid has done that in a challenging environment and he is going to continue to do that."
