WASHINGTON — A Texan in Congress is climbing the ranks. With no one running against him, Rep. Greg Casar, D-Austin, will lead the Congressional Progressive Caucus, which is composed of more than 100 Democrats from across the country. 

This comes as the party is still reeling from its defeat in the 2024 election and as they await another Trump administration.

Spectrum News recently sat down with Casar and also joined him for an activity that keeps him level-headed amid a rocky profession.

What You Need To Know

  • Rep. Greg Casar, D-Austin, is set to lead the Congressional Progressive Caucus, emphasizing the need for Democrats to focus on delivering for working people and addressing economic issues in the wake of their election losses in November

  • As a former labor organizer and former Austin City Council member, Casar draws on his experiences fighting in a red state and plans to advocate for policies including higher wages, expanded Medicare and restored abortion rights

  • Casar is a former track athlete and an avid rock climber who believes sports help him stay focused and represents the teamwork required in Congress

Plenty of folks hit the gym ahead of work, but what you might not always see is a U.S. congressman bouldering indoors before he heads to the Capitol. 

“This is good for for training, but what I really love is being able to go outside, touch rocks, see the sun, and sort of get my head out of my phone or thinking about work all the time,” Casar said. 

When he is not running or lifting weights as a workout, Casar is climbing. As much as the 35-year-old spends time hanging around, he says the sport—which he has been doing since high school—keeps him grounded. 

On why he makes time to go every week, Casar said, “There’s a Dalai Lama quote where he said, ‘People ask me, how do I make time to meditate every day?’ And he said, ‘I don’t have time not to.’” 

“It’s really useful to me, so that I can sort of get my mind right at the beginning of the day,” Casar said. “Keep myself focused on why I’m there and who I’m fighting for.” 

As a Texas Democrat, Casar says he knows what it means to fight, and he expects a big one next year. 

Casar was just elected the new chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus. He is taking the reins from Rep. Pramila Jayapal, D-WA, and preparing for the Republican trifecta in the nation’s capital, where the GOP controls the White House and both chambers of Congress.

During a press conference at the Capitol, Casar said, “If the Democratic party was a little bit more like Chairwoman Jayapal, and a little less like Joe Machin, I think we would have won this election.” 

Manchin, D-West Virginia, opposed President Joe Biden’s sweeping social and environmental bill that would have, in part, extended the child tax credit and expanded child care assistance. Manchin and Biden ended up working and passing on a pared-down version called the Inflation Reduction Act.

“Imagine if Kamala Harris had been able to campaign on not just that she wanted to work on child care, but that we had done it,” Casar told Spectrum News. 

“I think the Joe Manchins of the world — the big problem wasn’t that they were too liberal or too conservative, it’s that they stopped progress, that they stopped our government from delivering from people. So then people say, ‘Well, what is this whole Congress thing even for?’ And that opens up a window for sort of the narcissism of a Donald Trump,” Casar continued. “So, we’ve got to have a Democratic Party that doesn’t necessarily run for the left or necessarily run further right, but runs directly at the needs of working people and delivers for them.”

Casar will be the first progressive caucus chair from red state. A native Texan and son of Mexican immigrants, he often draws from his roots as a labor organizer. After his time on the Austin City Council, Casar became the first Latino to represent Texas’ capital city in Congress. 

“I learned as an Austin City Council member that you’ve got to be bold, that you’ve got to take risks, that you’ve got to be willing to stand up to the powerful, but that also you’ve got to bring people along with you,” Casar said. 

During his freshman term, he staged a thirst strike and wrote a bill to get Texas’ currently independent grid connected to the rest of the country, in the wake of the deadly winter storm in 2021. In November, Casar secured his second term.  

When asked how being a Democrat in a Republican-dominated state like Texas prepared him for the incoming administration and the Republican majority in Congress, Casar said, “One, I know what a political beating it feels like, and I’ve learned that we actually have to bring people along with us if we want to win long term. And two, I know that the cost of losing is so high.” 

If Democrats can win back the majority during the midterm elections, Casar says his priorities would be to raise wages and lower people’s costs, as well as expand Social Security, get more people covered under Medicare and restore abortion rights. 

“We’re not just showing up just to defend the vulnerable. We’re defending the vulnerable and pointing out the Republicans are starting these culture wars because they want to avoid economic issues, and I think we have to make that connection for people, because that connection doesn’t make itself,” Casar said. 

Like most things in Congress, that would take teamwork. While climbing may seem like you go at it solo, Casar said he enjoys how it can be community-oriented. He wanted to be progressive caucus chair because of what members can accomplish as a group. Casar said rock climbing represents what he believes “everybody deserves.”

“Some time to hang out with their friends, do something silly, be healthy, take a break. I think it’s a bit of, like, what we’re fighting for,” he said.