RFD-TV AUCTION BARN STUDIOS, FORT WORTH, Texas (RFD News) — In this week’s Champions of Rural America, RFD-TV introduces viewers to the new chair of the Congressional Western Caucus.
Rep. Celeste Maloy of Utah was unanimously elected chair following the passing of Congressman Doug LaMalfa earlier this year. During a recent Rural Town Hall, Maloy reflected on her relationship with LaMalfa and the role he played in helping her navigate Congress.
“I’m still pretty new in Congress. I’m in the middle of my first term still. I came in a special election last Congress, and Doug LaMalfa was one of the first people who reached out and befriended me, and he was just so sweet about making sure I knew where I needed to be and what was going on. And then when he ran for chair of the Western Caucus, he asked me to be his vice chair. And he always referred to me as his celestial vice chair. That was my nickname, which is better than some of the others.”
Maloy said her connection to the Western Caucus predates her time in Congress. As a deputy county attorney in southern Utah, she regularly attended caucus events focused on public lands, water policy, and rural economic issues.
“When I was a deputy county attorney in southern Utah, I worked on a lot of public lands issues and water issues, and I would go to the Western Caucus event in Vegas in December. I would see all these senators and members of Congress and people who worked in the administration, and they’d all show up and they’d be talking policy. They were talking about the things that mattered to me, the things that I was working on, the things that my friends and neighbors cared about.”
She said those discussions inspired her long before she ever considered running for office.
“I never dreamed that I would ever be in Congress or be in Congress and chairing the Western Caucus. But I wanted to see this organization thrive.”
Maloy also shared how her involvement in FFA helped shape her future.
“I was an FFA kid. So I did FFA in high school. And when I talk to FFA groups, I always say this because it’s true. I think I mostly joined FFA so I could meet boys from other schools because I went to a really small school, and the dating pool was not that deep.”
While she joked about her initial motivation, Maloy said the organization had a lasting impact on her life.
“My senior year of high school, I won a soil judging contest that paid for me to go to college. So I have a soft spot for FFA. It paid for my education. I have an agriculture degree, and just as a 14-year-old when I decided to do high school FFA, I know I did not have a master plan of how this was going to launch me into a career. But it’s the little decisions in life that end up making a big difference.”
Maloy said the influence of FFA followed her all the way to Washington. On the night she was sworn into Congress, she used her first speech on the House floor to reference the FFA Creed.
“I quoted the FFA Creed. I kind of paraphrased it. I said, ‘I believe in the promise of better days through better ways, even as the better things we now enjoy have come to us through the struggles of former years.’ That’s how I felt about being part of Congress at this really pivotal time. So FFA is still shaping how I view the world and the decisions I’m making and the opportunities I have.”
The conversation with Maloy was part of RFD-TV’s Rural Town Hall presented by the Western Caucus Foundation, which will premiere July 1 only on RFD-TV. In next week’s Champions of Rural America segment, she will discuss legislation to reduce regulatory hurdles for geothermal energy projects on federal lands.
LEARN MORE: Rural Town Hall presented by the Western Caucus Foundation
