After a primetime State of the Union response, Virginia Democratic Gov. Abigail Spanberger will head to Leesburg, Va., on Wednesday evening to address House Democrats at their yearly retreat.
Spanberger served three terms in the House before decisively winning her gubernatorial race in November. A Frontliner who consistently triumphed in a swing district, Spanberger is being touted as a top Democratic messenger as the party seeks to win back the House.
This year’s House Democratic retreat, held at the Lansdowne Resort from Wednesday to Friday, will focus on affordability, the top concern of voters heading into the midterms. Programming at the event — promoted with the slogan “fighting for an affordable America” — will feature sessions on how to lower the costs of groceries, housing, health care and utilities.
The speakers. Here’s a rundown of some of the panelists slated to speak on affordability:
Biden administration officials: Former CFPB Director Rohit Chopra, former OMB Director Shalanda Young and former Deputy Agriculture Secretary Xochitl Torres Small.
Union leaders: AFSCME President Lee Saunders, LIUNA General President Brent Booker, SEIU EVP Leslie Frane and International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers International Representative Matt Warren.
Nonprofit executives: Planned Parenthood Action Fund President Alexis McGill Johnson and National Alliance for Caregiving President Jason Resendez.
More details. On Thursday evening, author Ron Chernow and Subtack star Heather Cox Richardson will “reflect on America’s 250th anniversary and ground ourselves in this moment in American politics.”
House Democrats will view the latest immigration polling compiled by Blue Rose Research, Global Strategy Group, Navigator Research and FWD.us.
The DCCC will host a panel with Lakshya Jain of Split Ticket and Stephanie Valencia of Equis Research on the route to winning the majority.
House Democrats will also hear from representatives from the Black Economic Alliance, Center for American Progress, Groundwork Collaborative, National Low Income Housing Coalition, Protect Our Care, Third Way and Urban Institute.
We’ll note this is far from an A-list cast and Spanberger is the only top political leader speaking. This isn’t surprising, given Democrats are in the House minority.
We’ll be on the ground this week in Virginia and will have plenty of coverage in all our editions in the days to come.
