Lauren Boebert, the controversial pro-gun, Covid-skeptical freshman congresswoman who represents Pueblo, has credited working-class voters for her improbable 2020 victory. But it’s not clear her version of “working-class” includes the steel workers here. Perko didn’t vote for her. And, based on her opposition to President Joe Biden’s $2 trillion infrastructure plan, which Perko sees as a lifeline for his struggling industry, he doesn’t think Boebert cares all that much about his union members. He has tried to schedule a meeting with her to discuss these issues, he says. But the door to her local office is often locked, and her staff doesn’t return his calls.
“One of the key parts of that [infrastructure] plan is Amtrak expansion. Ours is one of only three mills in the country that makes rail,” Perko said on a breezy afternoon in April, as he turned to face the manufacturing complex, now owned by the multinational company Evraz Group. “If we can get just that part of the infrastructure plan alone passed, that will be business that would keep us in jobs for many years.”
“From what I’ve seen on Twitter,” he added, “I don’t think Boebert’s a supporter.”
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