Where’s David Rouzer? Not fighting for North Carolina. Not standing up for clean air and water. Not protecting farmers struggling against corporate agribusiness. Not ensuring infrastructure spending actually serves the people who use it. Maybe try checking in with his biggest campaign donors—because that’s who he’s really working for.
Rouzer sits on powerful congressional committees that oversee transportation, agriculture, and environmental policy. He’s in a position to make a real difference, to advocate for policies that improve infrastructure, protect natural resources, and support local businesses. Instead, he’s busy rubber-stamping industry-backed deregulation, gutting environmental protections, and ensuring the corporate money keeps flowing.
Take his deep ties to fossil fuel interests. Duke Energy, Koch Inc., and Phillips 66 are all on his donor list, and wouldn’t you know it—Rouzer votes their way every time. When he backed the repeal of methane regulations, it wasn’t about energy independence or job creation. It was about making sure fossil fuel companies faced zero consequences for polluting the air. That’s great news for the industry executives padding their pockets. It’s terrible news for North Carolina’s coastal communities already dealing with rising sea levels and intensifying storms fueled by climate change. But Rouzer doesn’t have to worry about flood damage in Wilmington—he’s got donor cash to keep him afloat.
Then there’s his position on agriculture. He claims to fight for farmers, but his biggest backers aren’t small, independent growers. They’re major agribusiness players like the National Cotton Council, National Cattlemen’s Beef Association, and the Pork Producers Council—groups that push policies benefiting corporate farms while squeezing out local producers. Meanwhile, runoff from industrial farms continues to poison North Carolina’s waterways, including the Cape Fear River. Who’s paying the price? The residents of his district, the people who rely on clean water and sustainable farming practices—not the agribusiness giants funding his campaigns.
Infrastructure is another disaster. As Chairman of the Subcommittee on Highways and Transit, Rouzer has a direct hand in how federal transportation dollars are spent. He could be pushing for projects that alleviate traffic congestion, improve public transit, and build climate-resilient infrastructure. Instead, his donors in the trucking, construction, and real estate industries are the ones reaping the benefits. More highways, more unchecked development, more policies that prioritize industry profit over community needs. Wilmington’s roads get more clogged, coastal erosion accelerates, and the cycle continues.
Rouzer’s campaign cash tells you everything you need to know about who he’s really working for. Fossil fuel money gets him voting to dismantle environmental regulations. Agribusiness money keeps him pushing policies that favor corporate farms over small growers. Real estate and construction money make sure he prioritizes industry-friendly infrastructure spending over projects that actually help his constituents. Every vote he casts serves the people who write the biggest checks—not the people who elected him.
New Hanover County deserves better. It deserves a representative who fights for clean air and water, for infrastructure that serves the community, for policies that protect local businesses instead of selling them out to corporate interests. Rouzer isn’t that representative. He’s just another politician cashing in while his district pays the price.
It’s time to hold Rouzer accountable. Call 910-395-0202 and DEMAND ANSWERS!