Democratic Govs. Tim Walz, Laura Kelly plan split from NGA over Trump response: Report

Democratic Govs. Laura Kelly of Kansas and Tim Walz of Minnesota are reportedly splitting from the bipartisan National Governors Association (NGA) over how the group has responded to President Trump's policies impacting their states.

The Atlantic reported Thursday that Kelly and Walz will not be paying NGA dues as the group gathers for its summer meeting in Colorado this week.

The offices of Kelly and Walz, the latter of whom was the Democratic vice presidential nominee last fall, didn't immediately respond to The Hill's requests for comment on Thursday. The NGA, which is preparing for this weekend's conference, also didn't comment in response to The Hill's inquiries.

"There have been ongoing concerns about the NGA among the Democratic governors and staff, off and on, for years," a source familiar with Kelly and Walz's decisions told The Atlantic.

The Atlantic's sources cited concerns specifically about how the NGA handled Trump's efforts to withhold federal funding from states earlier this year, including his clash with Maine Gov. Janet Mills (D) as he fought with the Pine Tree State over transgender athletes; and Trump's deployment of the California National Guard over Gov. Gavin Newsom's (D) objections in response to immigration protests in Los Angeles.

The NGA doesn't publicly disclose which states pay annual dues of nearly $100,000 for their governors to be part of the bipartisan group, and the nonprofit didn't respond to The Hill's request for the financial information.

"When you are also paying dues with taxpayer dollars, it has got to be worth it, and they are going to have to demonstrate that," The Atlantic's source said. "Right now, they are not doing that."

About two dozen governors from both parties are expected to gather in Colorado Springs this weekend for golf, meals and panel discussions with Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., investor Mark Cuban and former Obama administration economist Jason Furman, among others.

Colorado Gov. Jared Polis, a Democrat who is the current chair of the NGA, didn't respond to The Hill's request for comment.

The Atlantic reported that NGA spokesperson Eric Wohlschlegel pushed back on the Democrats' complaints.

"The National Governors Association exists to bring governors from both parties together around shared priorities, and that mission hasn’t changed. Every public statement NGA issues reflects bipartisan consensus," Wohlschlegel told the outlet. "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," he added.

Leaders in some Republican states, including Texas and Florida, stopped paying NGA dues during the Obama administration, citing the cost to taxpayers, but they have remained active members of the bipartisan group and attended events.

The NGA's chair position rotates between a Democratic and Republican leader every year, giving that state's leader the ability to push statements and other actions from the nonpartisan body.

The NGA held its winter meeting in Washington, D.C., earlier this year.

"Governors are ready and willing to work together, and with the administration and Congress, to evaluate and improve the efficiency of these services," Polis said in a statement at the time. "We are open to bipartisan conversations with anyone from state and local governments, fellow Governors, Congress and the federal government."