8th District candidate: Dave Reichert’s refusal to stand up to Trump pushed me to run

One of several candidates vying to replace Congress member Dave Reichert says it was Reichert’s refusal to stand up to the Trump administration that led her to run.

Dave Reichert: ‘We missed the boat’ on health care

Dr. Kim Schrier is running for Washington’s 8th Congressional District seat. The pediatrician is already endorsed by Emily’s List.

Redrawn in 2012, the district has leaned conservative. The district spans parts of King, Pierce, Kittitas, and Chelan counties.

“I’m excited about this race and the prospect of flipping this seat from red to blue,” she told Seattle’s Morning News.

Schrier says she’s had a “fire in her belly” since the 2016 presidential election. The Trump administration, she says, poses threats to children and families if left unchecked. And Reichert’s unwillingness to demand Trump’s tax returns and vote from Trumpcare while in committee just pushed her further.

Congress is not working well, Schrier says. She can’t believe Congress and the Trump administration put more than 700,000 lives in limbo after Congress couldn’t quickly come up with an alternative plan to the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program.

“It’s hard for me to believe we’re that polarized,” she said.

Reichert disagreed with the move by Trump on DACA.

Listen to the entire conversation here.

Reichert maintained his seat in Congress since 2004. He chose not to seek re-election this year. The former King County sheriff announced he will “pursue new opportunities to serve the country and the American people.”

Last year, Reichert took heat for ending public town hall meetings. Someone even posted a fake missing persons ad on Craigslist.

Several Democrats are in the running for the seat that has been filled by a Republican since its creation following the 1980 Census. However, a Republican House leadership-backed super PAC has opened an office in the district as part of an effort to defend House seats from Democrats. And Democrats have to compete with Republican Dino Rossi in the upcoming election.

RELATED: Rossi doesn’t mind being Sound Transit’s public enemy

There may be an internal struggle going on within the Democratic party as well. The Stranger reports there are accusations that officials within the party are working to “ensure that Kim Schrier will be the party’s sole candidate in the race.”

Schrier has denied preferential treatment.