Democratic frustrations play out at the National Governors Association

Colorado Springs, Colo. – A typically drama-free bipartisan meeting of the nation’s governors got off to a rocky start when The Atlantic reported ahead of the National Governors Association (NGA) summer meeting in Colorado Springs, Colorado, that some Democratic governors were considering withholding their dues, arguing that the NGA is not doing enough to reject President Donald Trump’s alleged impediment to states’ rights. 

Chair of the Democratic Governors Association (DGA) Gov. Laura Kelly of Kansas will stop paying NGA dues starting next month, a source familiar with the governor’s thinking confirmed to Fox News Digital. The Atlantic reported that former DGA chair and failed vice presidential candidate, Gov. Tim Walz of Minnesota, is also considering stepping away from the NGA. 

Gov. Wes Moore, D-Md., who became NGA vice chair this past weekend, told reporters on Saturday that some of the Democratic governors’ frustrations about the effectiveness of the bipartisan group are “justified.”

But a source familiar with the matter, who attended the summer meeting and was granted anonymity to speak more freely, told Fox News Digital, “You can’t blame a bipartisan organization for your lack of cohesive messaging.”

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Since losing the White House and Congress last year, Democrats have struggled to look to a new party leader and deliver a cohesive message. 

While it’s clear that Democrats reject Trump’s agenda, infighting at the Democratic National Committee (DNC) and within the New York City mayoral race have exposed the party’s disagreements on how to effectively combat Republicans’ current political prowess. 

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Democratic Gov. Jared Polis of Colorado led his final meeting as NGA chair this past weekend, passing the leadership baton to Republican Gov. Kevin Stitt of Oklahoma and incoming vice chair, Moore. 

During a media availability to conclude the weekend, Moore, considered a potential 2028 presidential candidate, confirmed that he spoke with both of the Democratic governors who are casting doubt on the effectiveness of the NGA. 

“They’ve expressed some of their frustrations, and frankly, I think some of the frustrations they have expressed are justified, because I do think it is important that this organization is never going to be either the cheerleader nor the heckler of a federal administration, no matter what the federal administration is,” Moore said.

President Donald Trump arrives on the South Lawn of the White House from Camp David on Monday, June 9, 2025.  (Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc)

While he said it is not the job of the bipartisan NGA to support or reject the Trump administration, Moore said there are “certain things we want to make sure that the organization continues to uphold.”

Walz has not responded to Fox News Digital’s requests for comment on the reporting and has not issued a public statement explaining his disagreement with the bipartisan group.

A source familiar with Kelly’s thinking said the Kansas governor won’t renew her dues at the NGA this year because the organization hasn’t been upholding its mission statement to advance and protect states’ rights.

The source said Kelly doesn’t think the NGA is doing enough to stand up against the “dismantling of solutions-based governance, which is what the NGA claims to advance and push for.” 

Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly enters the House chamber for the State of the State address at the Kansas State Capitol on Jan. 10, 2024, in Topeka, Kansas. (Emily Curiel/The Kansas City Star/Tribune News Service via Getty Images)

However, if the NGA were to demonstrate that “they are willing to stand up for states’ rights in this moment and show that it’s worth the use of taxpayer dollars,” then Kelly would be interested in reassessing Kansas’ membership, according to the source familiar with the governor’s thinking. 

According to The Atlantic report, citing unnamed sources, Kelly and Walz thought the NGA “did not respond forcefully enough” when the Trump administration paused federal funding earlier this year, as Gov. Janet Mills of Maine clashed with Trump over biological men playing in women’s sports and, more recently, when Trump authorized the National Guard to California amid the anti-ICE protests. 

But Eric Wohlschlegel, NGA communications director, countered, “Every public statement NGA issues reflects bipartisan consensus. So far this year, all but one statement has had that consensus, and when governors don’t agree, we simply don’t issue one. That’s how we preserve our role as a bipartisan convener, a principle we won’t compromise.”

National Governors Association (NGA) outgoing chair Gov. Jared Polis discusses American education with Education Secretary Linda McMahon at the NGA Summer meeting in Colorado Springs, Colo., on Friday, July 25, 2025.  (Fox News Digital / Deirdre Heavey)

The summer meeting featured discussions with two of Trump’s most controversial cabinet picks, Education Secretary Linda McMahon and Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr.

Polis told reporters on Saturday that governors were most concerned about education and healthcare, so the cabinet members’ participation created an effective forum for the executives to address their questions and deliver for their states. 

Wohlschlegel highlighted the bipartisanship on display at the summer meeting in a statement to Fox News Digital. 

“After days of one-on-one meetings between governors and Education Secretary Linda McMahon during the conference, the department released over $5.5 billion it had been withholding from states. That’s not a coincidence, but the power of bipartisan leadership coming together to deliver real results,” he said. 

Moore told reporters on Saturday that the NGA will continue to “show all of our colleagues the value add for them to be a part of the NGA” and the “hopeful goal for the NGA is also one where we can bring our friends back into the fold.”

Polis also confirmed he had spoken with the Democratic governors about their departure from the NGA, but he did not affirm their frustrations to reporters as Moore did. 

“I think that it’s incumbent on the organization to show the value to the governors,” Polis added. “For me, it’s an easy decision. We get our value for our dues, and I am a more effective governor because of it, and that’s the way the vast majority of governors feel. Of course, there’s going to be a few on both sides of the aisle that don’t, and there always have been.”

The NGA has existed as a forum for bipartisan collaboration among governors since 1908.

“We shouldn’t be playing politics like they do in Washington, D.C.,” Stitt told Fox News Digital in an exclusive interview at the summer meeting. “But sometimes, if you’re a governor running for president or a higher office, you make it political.”

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“I would tell anybody, listen, do you want your leaders to take their ball and go home just because they get mad at something? That’s not the way to solve problems,” Stitt said, before adding, “Listen, this isn’t the time to take our ball and go home. Let’s sit down and debate what the best policies [are] going forward.”

Fox News Digital’s Peter Pinedo contributed to this report.