Democrat Govs. Tim Walz of Minnesota and Laura Kelly of Kansas are planning to step away from the National Governors Association in protest of what they say is the organization's tepid response to President Donald Trump, The Atlantic reported Thursday.
The NGA is bipartisan, composed of all 50 governors in addition to leaders from five other territories and commonwealths.
The report comes ahead of this weekend's summer meeting of the NGA at a swanky resort in Colorado Springs, Colorado.
Walz and Kelly are expected to stop paying the annual $100,000 dues when they're asked to renew their membership, according to the report. The pair are among several Democrat governors who don't see the usefulness of the NGA anymore in the second Trump administration, according to the report.
"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. Right now they are not doing that," one source told The Atlantic. "There have been ongoing concerns about the NGA among the Democratic governors and staff, off and on, for years."
Democrats are fuming that the NGA hasn't pushed back on Trump on any number of issues; Trump federalizing the California National Guard, for one, according to the report.
However, the NGA's communications director pushed back on the complaints, saying the organization focuses on "policy, not politics," and that it works off consensus of both Democrats and Republicans.
"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," Eric Wohlschlegel, communications director for the organization, told The Atlantic. "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."
Walz was the 2024 Democrat vice-presidential candidate alongside former Vice President Kamala Harris. The pair were soundly defeated by Trump in November's election.
The NGA was established in 1908.
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Mark Swanson, a Newsmax writer and editor, has nearly three decades of experience covering news, culture and politics.
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