Despite the ongoing erosion of support for President Donald Trump and his governing agenda, Colorado Congressman Gabe Evans continues to embrace the president’s core accomplishments.
In fact, on right-wing KHOW radio this month, Evans went so far as to boast that his congressional seat, which flipped from Democrat to Republican in 2024, has enabled Republicans to enact “all of the reforms that we’re doing” and gave Republicans the “platform to be able to highlight Democrats’ absolutely disastrous and insane policies that are raising costs and making life more dangerous and more difficult for everyday Coloradans.”
As an example, Evans told KHOW that he was “100%” of the majority that passed the One Big Beautiful Bill (OBBB), the first version of which passed by a single vote in the U.S. House of Representatives.
“So on any given day, you know, I’m potentially 50 to 100% of that majority,” Evans told KHOW host Ryan Schuiling, referring to the one or two votes that have been the margin of victory for House Republicans on key legislation. “Probably the biggest piece of legislation was the One Big Beautiful bill, the Working Families Tax Cut Act. That passed through the United States House of Representatives by one vote. And so all of the reforms that we’re doing, things like making sure that we have the resources to secure the border, making sure that we’re being good stewards of taxpayer money, and we’re not letting the Democrats peel off billions of dollars in fraud, waste and abuse like we’re seeing up in Minnesota right now, with the scandal that’s happening up there. All of those reforms the Republicans did, $3,000, on average, going back to every taxpayer in the 8th Congressional District. No tax on Social Security for the bottom 88% of retirees. All of those things, that passed by one vote through the U.S. House of Representatives.”
“Every other seat the Republicans picked up around the nation last fall happened in red states that Trump carried,” Evans said on air, explaining his rationale for believing his vote is responsible for Trump’s legislative victories. “This was the only one that happened in a blue state.” Evans made the same point today on KNUS, also a right-wing station.
Political observers say Evans’ chest-thumping about his votes and his district is aimed at motivating hard-core Republican activists, voters, and donors, all of whom he will need to win next year’s midterm election.
“As he faces a difficult re-election race in 2026, it is likely that Congressman Gabe Evans is trying to segment his audience,” said Paul Teske, distinguished professor at the University of Colorado Denver, via email. “So, he is talking very positively on a conservative radio show about his votes for Trump’s agenda, including the OBBBA. About two-thirds of Republican voters are supportive of OBBBA.
“But, it is hard to segment audiences in today’s overlapping media world. And, since 64% of all voters are not positive about the OBBBA, it seems like a questionable political strategy for the Congressman, heading into a tough race next fall.”
Phillip Chen, associate professor of political science at the University of Denver, added that Evans’ comments shouldn’t be taken as “particularly indicative of his strategy” in next year’s election.
“Essentially, what Representative Evans is doing is showing an already sympathetic audience that he is loyal to President Trump,” wrote Chen in an email. “As candidates ramp up fundraising and volunteer appeals in the coming months, the people who listen to partisan political podcasts are likely among the voters that somebody would want to target for these appeals, and in a highly competitive election in a year when Republicans are expected to underperform their 2024 results, Representative Evans needs to shore up this type of support.”
“What will be interesting, however, is if we start to see these types of appeals in more mainstream media interviews or in public-facing comments. This would tell us something more about his general election strategy for 2026, but until we see this, I wouldn’t expect this to be particularly indicative of his strategy for next year.”
While agreeing that Evans is “rallying” his base, Prof. Robert Preuhs, the chair of the Political Science Department at Metropolitan State University of Denver, believes Evans’ interview holds clues about his strategy for next year.
“The interview suggests a messaging strategy going forward,” wrote Preuhs. “Focus on policies supported by Democrats in Colorado. Rally the base with attacks on those policies. And finally, underscore how his vote is pivotal to ensuring that Congress and the federal government do not pursue Colorado’s liberal policies. That ultimately resonates with his base, but potentially also mediates some of the hesitancy independents have given dropping approval ratings of President Trump and his administration’s policies.”
Evans Flips the Script by Taking Sole Credit for an Unpopular Law
Political campaigns are known for trying to pin sole responsibility for an unpopular bill, like the BBB, on an opponent who voted for it as part of a governing majority, particularly if the margin of passage was narrow.
In 2014, Colorado Sen. Cory Gardner, for example, blamed former U.S. Sen. Mark Udall for casting the vote that “decided Obamacare,” which was unpopular at the time. The ACA cleared the U.S. Senate by a single vote.
“He passed Obamacare with his vote,” said Gardner during the campaign. Gardner defeated Udall, who stood behind the ACA but didn’t say he was the deciding vote for the bill. Gardner was later trounced after serving one term by Sen. John Hickenlooper (D-CO). In 2010, Republicans also accused U.S. Sen. Michael Bennet of being the “deciding vote” on Obamacare and the stimulus bill. Bennet won the race anyway.
Evans, on the other hand, is openly accepting singular responsibility for the OBBB, despite its unpopularity, the first version of which passed the House by one vote and then the amended version by just a handful of votes.
Fact checkers have given high Pinocchio ratings to candidates who’ve said their opponents’ single vote, among many, was the decisive factor in the passage of a law, just as they would to Evans’ claim to be responsible for the OBBB.
“Regarding [EVANS’] claim to be the deciding vote for OBBBA, it is true that all Republican votes were needed, to pass the bill, 218-214, with zero Democratic supporters,” wrote Teske. “This makes votes from Hurd, Crank and Boebert no less important than Evan’s vote, as well as the other 214 Republican votes. As such, it is kind of silly claim.”
Silly or not, news of Evans’ bear hug of the OBBB was received with delight by Democratic Pollster Andrew Baumann of the Global Strategy Group.
“Gabe Evans is utterly disconnected from political reality,” said Baumann. “Donald Trump’s ratings are tanking in large part because voters blame him, and his allies like Evans, for rising prices and a slowing economy.
“The so-called ‘Big Beautiful Bill’ is one of the most unpopular pieces of legislation in recent decades and its Medicaid cuts are going be particularly salient in the 8th, where 29% of the population are covered by Medicaid. As a Democrat, I’m delighted to see Gave Evans stick his head in the sand. It’s almost as if he is trying to lose next November.”
Listen to Evans’ comments below:
