Rep. Chris Collins says he has no plans to join the new administration, despite being the first member of Congress to declare support for Donald Trump’s successful presidential bid, but instead said he could see himself as a “go-between” for the executive and legislative branches.
“I think we’ve got an opening here where I could maybe be a go-between between Mr. Ryan and Mr. Trump and, you know, I think that’s a role that I would do very well at,” Collins told CNN’s Wolf Blitzer on “The Situation Room,” Wednesday evening. Collins also noted that he had “floated” the idea past House Speaker Paul Ryan earlier in the day.
Collins was the first member of Congress to endorse Trump, and told Blitzer the President-elect, along with his eldest daughter, Ivanka Trump, called him Wednesday to thank him.
“We reminisced about the campaign from February 24 when I endorsed him, to you know, some spots where you and other really put me on the hot seat from time to time,” Collins said of his phone call with the Trumps.
Collins said that he has thought “long and hard” about the idea of potentially joining the new administration.
“I’m in a job now on the (House) Energy and Commerce Committee in Congress at a stage in my career, that’s where I want to end my career,” Collins said.
Trump was announced the winner of the 2016 election early Wednesday morning after Democratic rival Hillary Clinton conceded. He will be the 45th president of the United States.