Will Hurd says he’s leaving Congress to help GOP become more diverse

Texas Rep. Will Hurd denied his bombshell announcement last week that he plans to retire is a sign he is concerned about his reelection prospects in an increasingly competitive district thanks to President Donald Trump.

The GOP has been rocked by an wave of early retirement announcements in recent weeks, including several in Texas. And Hurd, who won reelection last fall by less than a thousand votes, is the only black Republican in the House. The party has been hammered for its stark lack of diversity, especially in light of Democrats sending their most diverse caucus in history to Congress via the 2018 midterms.

But Hurd asserted in an interview on CBS’ “Face the Nation” that, contrary to popular belief, he would be better positioned to help elect a more diverse crop of Republicans from outside Congress than from within.

“I am interested in helping other candidates like me. I think I want to see a Republican Party that has more folks that look and sound and operate like I do,” he told anchor Major Garrett. Asked if he might have sent a better message by staying and trying to get newcomers to join him, Hurd worked around the question.

“Everybody thinks the end all or be all is actually being in Congress. The party is defined by the people that are in it, not necessarily the politicians. And so this gives me the freedom and flexibility to operate in other parts of the country,” he said.

Hurd’s seat represents a prime pickup opportunity for Democrats — after Hurd's announcement, the Cook Political Report moved his seat from "Toss Up" to "Lean Democratic." The 23rd District sits along the U.S.-Mexico border near El Paso and is highly diverse and has a significant Latino population.

Though Hurd was narrowly reelected last year, Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton won the district in 2016, and recent polling has shown red flags for Trump in the state, raising the possibility that Trump could drag down-ballot candidates with him even in the likely event that the state stays red.

The former CIA undercover officer has also said he intends to continue working at the “nexus of technology and law enforcement,” raising warnings about the scramble to master artificial intelligence.

“I left that job in order to help the national security community in a different way by bringing my skills to Congress, and I am going to leave the halls of Congress to help our country in a different way as well,” he said.

Hurd also discussed the Saturday's mass shooting, which took place just outside his district. He criticized the political blame game taking place and urged people to let the investigative process take place.

He rejected criticisms from Democrats who have blamed Trump's divisive rhetoric, noting that the president had condemned the attack, which left 20 dead and more than two dozen wounded.

"I think divisive rhetoric is not the way to go. I think he denounced these attacks and has an opportunity to be the uniter in chief, and I hope that's the way to go but we can't just focus on just one person or just one entity," he said, noting that he'd voted for a background check bill in the House but that "every element of society can work on on dealing with this challenge."