WOODLAND, Calif. — Rep. Mike Thompson is framing his 2026 reelection campaign as part of a broader fight for control of Congress, arguing that a Democratic House majority is necessary to confront the Trump administration, restore programs that have been dismantled and place stronger safeguards around federal power.
In an interview with the Vanguard this week, Thompson described the first year and a half of the Trump administration as a period of upheaval that he believes has weakened institutions, disproportionately targeted Democratic-led states and threatened programs that millions of Americans depend upon.
“It’s been chaotic. It’s been divisive,” Thompson said. “Every day there’s something new. Just about the time you think it can’t get any worse, it gets worse.”
Thompson said he believes the consequences go beyond disagreements over individual policies.
“It’s not the United States of America in which we’ve all grown up that we have worked so hard to build and to improve on,” Thompson said. “And this guy’s just trying to come in and break things.”
Thompson said his larger concern is an effort to undermine public confidence in government and other institutions.
“My fear is that he’s engaged in this effort to discredit not only the institution of representative government, but all institutions,” Thompson said.
“And if he’s successful in doing that, I think his end plan is that the private sector, wealthy elite folks will take over,” he added. “And that just excludes regular people from having a voice in where their country goes.”
For Thompson, who is seeking reelection against Republican Eric Jones, that concern forms the backdrop of the 2026 congressional election and Democrats’ attempt to regain control of the House.
Thompson acknowledged the difficulties Democrats face as the minority party but said he has spent much of his congressional career working under those circumstances.
“As you know, I’ve been in the minority party in Congress I think 78% of the time I’ve been in Congress,” Thompson said. “So it’s never pleasant. And a lot of what you’re doing is trying to push a big boulder up a hill.”
He said he has nevertheless been able to highlight national issues and deliver results for his district.
“You don’t control elections as much as you might want to, but after the votes are counted and the elections are certified, you roll up your sleeves and you go to work,” Thompson said.
He said that work has become more difficult under the Trump administration.
“You’ve witnessed how not only California, but other blue states are being attacked,” Thompson said. “All of the institutional norms or many of the institutional norms have been ignored or manipulated. And that makes it really tough to do the work of the people.”
Thompson said some people may believe they remain insulated from federal policy changes, but he predicted that the effects will become increasingly apparent, particularly as health care cuts take effect.
“I think there are a lot of people in our district who are affected, but don’t yet know that they’re affected,” Thompson said.
He pointed specifically to Medicaid cuts, warning that reductions in health care spending can ripple throughout the medical system and affect people regardless of their income.
“A trillion dollars in Medicaid cuts. That’s going to affect everybody,” Thompson said.
He also pointed to reductions in scientific research, including impacts affecting UC Davis, arguing that even people who can afford their own medical care depend upon federally supported research.
“The research that’s not done, it might be the research that provides the cure for a disease you or your children receive,” Thompson said. “So we haven’t seen how this is going to play out.”
Thompson said constituents from across the political spectrum have raised concerns about reductions in government services.
He recalled speaking at the Rotary Club in Woodland and being approached afterward by certified public accountants who complained that they could not reach the IRS.
“There’s a reason for that,” Thompson said. “They gutted all that stuff. They cut all the funding.”
He said similar problems affect Social Security and other federal services.
“You may be really wealthy, but your accountant can’t do your taxes because the IRS is unable to participate,” Thompson said.
Asked what he believes his campaign is ultimately about, Thompson immediately pointed to control of Congress.
“I think it’s about making sure that we win the House so we can fight for democracy,” Thompson said. “We can fight to stop the chaos and the divisiveness, that we can build back everything that’s been disassembled or destroyed.”
But Thompson said he does not want Democrats merely to restore the government that existed before Trump.
“I think we need to build it back better,” Thompson said. “I don’t think it’s just like, OK, let’s do it the same way we’re doing it. This is an opportunity. We can do some good things to facilitate change that will help the American people.”
He said economic equity would be central to that agenda, criticizing health care and renewable energy cuts alongside tax reductions benefiting corporations and wealthy Americans.
“And I’m of a strong belief that if you’re making a million bucks a year, you don’t need any tax help in this environment,” Thompson said.
Thompson said his immediate electoral priority is regaining the House, although he sees a possible path for Democrats to control the Senate as well.
“My first order of business is making sure we win the House,” he said.
Asked whether Republican members of Congress are becoming concerned about the administration’s direction, Thompson said many are.
Whether they are willing to act on those concerns, however, is another matter.
“That’s the $64 million question,” Thompson said.
He argued that Republican lawmakers remain constrained by Trump’s continued support among Republican base voters.
“This guy’s losing credibility with Republicans, but his base is still pretty strong,” Thompson said. “And I don’t think Republican House members can win reelection if they lose that base. I think that’s their calculus.”
Thompson is making experience and his position in Congress a central part of his own reelection argument.
“The thing that folks seem to like about me being their new member of Congress or me continuing to be their existing member of Congress is that I know what I’m doing,” Thompson said. “I’m battle tested.”
He pointed specifically to his position as a ranking member on the House Ways and Means Committee.
“I have the experience and I have the position of being a ranking member on the Ways and Means Committee that I can really deliver for the area and I can deliver on issues that are important to their principles and values,” Thompson said.
Affordability remains another major concern.
Thompson pointed to congressional work on housing and his American Affordability Act while acknowledging that housing costs are already creating hardship.
“People are hurting right now,” Thompson said. “People are struggling. And regular people are having trouble paying their bills, buying a home, buying a car, buying gasoline.”
He returned repeatedly to health care, arguing that the full impact of Medicaid reductions has yet to become visible.
“All the healthcare providers are deathly worried about it,” Thompson said. “The nonprofits are deathly worried about it. People in government are worried about it because they know.”
He said Medicaid supports services extending beyond traditional medical treatment, including addiction programs and diversion programs that can keep people out of jail.
“If that goes away, likelihood is they go to jail,” Thompson said. “And that just costs us more, cost the jails more, costs the counties and the state more.”
He said similar concerns apply to domestic violence and anger management programs.
Immigration enforcement was another significant focus of the interview.
Thompson said fear of federal immigration enforcement can undermine relationships between immigrant communities and local law enforcement, making communities less safe when witnesses become afraid to cooperate with police.
“Our local law enforcement in every community in our district has worked overtime making sure they build a relationship with immigrant populations,” Thompson said. “And that makes us all safer.”
“Now that’s starting to erode and that’s a problem,” he added.
Thompson said he recently heard examples of people threatening victims with immigration enforcement if they reported abuse.
The congressman has a long history with the issue. Thompson said he voted against the creation of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement because he was concerned about inadequate oversight and safeguards.
“I was concerned that there wasn’t proper oversight,” Thompson said. “I was concerned there were not proper guardrails. And sadly, evidenced by the examples you gave, I was correct.”
Thompson stopped short of calling for the elimination of ICE, saying an agency performing immigration enforcement functions remains necessary.
“There’s still a need for that type of agency,” Thompson said. “I don’t know that you gain anything by changing the name. I don’t know if you get anything by moving it from where it is now to some other place.”
Instead, he called for substantially stronger restrictions on how immigration agents operate.
“I would think that there needs to be some real tight guardrails and there needs to be somebody running it with an understanding is if they’re a law enforcement agency, they need to operate as a law enforcement agency,” Thompson said.
“So that means you don’t wear a mask,” he continued. “That means you do wear a body camera. That means if you sign up for a job with them, you’re properly vetted to make sure that you’re not psychologically a danger to the public.”
Thompson also called for greater training and judicial oversight.
“It means that you get the training that you need in order to be a real law enforcement agent, not just some cowboy that they’re sending out to terrorize the communities,” he said.
“I believe before any law enforcement entity can kick down your front door and drag you out of the house, they need to have a judicial warrant,” Thompson added.
Asked whether such reforms could realistically occur during the next two years, Thompson said they could if Democrats regain the House.
“I think we win the House, you’re going to see a pretty comprehensive bill coming forward to do all of the aforementioned,” Thompson said.
Climate change and California’s high cost of living also intersect in Thompson’s policy agenda.
He said high gasoline prices place significant pressure on workers who have no practical alternative to driving, particularly when housing costs force people to live far from their jobs.
“If you need to go to work, if you’re commuting from Woodland to Chico or Woodland to Sacramento, you’re not walking every day to work,” Thompson said.
At the same time, he argued that the country must transition away from fossil fuels.
“We need to transition away from fossil fuels,” Thompson said.
Thompson said long commutes caused by the mismatch between jobs and affordable housing carry economic, environmental and personal consequences.
“It’s bad on so many levels,” Thompson said. “It’s bad for our climate and environment. It’s bad on the family pocketbook. It’s bad on family time.”
“If you’re commuting four hours a day, five hours a day, that means that’s four or five hours every day you’re not with your family,” he added.
Thompson also identified health care reform, telemedicine, mental health treatment, gun violence prevention and tax policy as priorities.
“I’m a single pay proponent on something like Medicare for all,” Thompson said.
He said federal telemedicine provisions should be made permanent rather than periodically reauthorized.
Mental health, Thompson said, requires substantially greater investment, including research into the causes of mental illness rather than relying primarily on treatment after problems have developed.
“We don’t do anywhere close to enough work on mental health,” Thompson said. “And the work we do is just treating patients.”
“We’re putting bandaids on problems,” he added. “We don’t have enough money to put enough bandaids on, let alone solve these issues.”
Thompson linked untreated mental illness with substance use and homelessness, pushing back against portrayals of unhoused people struggling with addiction as simply responsible for their circumstances.
“If you’re mentally ill and you’re not getting the treatment you need, you self-medicate,” Thompson said.
“And the fact of the matter is most folks who are using drugs, are using alcohol, are self-medicating,” he said. “They’re not getting the help they need.”
Thompson also said he wants renewed movement on gun violence prevention, an area where he has worked extensively for congressional Democrats.
“We made some real good progress during the last administration,” Thompson said. “And this guy is systematically unwinding all of that.”
Tax policy represents another priority because of Thompson’s role on the Ways and Means Committee.
He pointed to the minimum corporate tax and tax on corporate stock buybacks enacted during the previous administration and criticized subsequent changes he said created loopholes allowing corporations to avoid taxes.
“People need to pay their fair share,” Thompson said.
Ultimately, Thompson’s reelection argument rests heavily on his experience and his belief that Democrats must regain institutional power in Washington to challenge the administration.
Asked for his final message to voters, Thompson distilled his case into a few sentences.
“I’m the right guy for the job,” Thompson said. “I’ve got the experience. I’ve got the fight. I’ve got the experience in the fight. I’m able to deliver.”
“I’ll never do you a favor,” Thompson added. “I’ll always do what’s right and no one will work harder than that.”
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