Western governors meet with Trump officials on water, energy, Medicaid cuts

The governors of multiple western states touted their willingness to work across the aisle as they met with members of the Trump administration in a wealthy Phoenix suburb Thursday to discuss issues ranging from powering data centers to Congress’s Farm Bill.

“We work together in service of the region and the nation as a whole,” Utah Gov. Spencer Cox told reporters Thursday morning at a press conference prior to the start of the Western Governors Association’s winter meeting at the Omni Scottsdale Resort and Spa in Paradise Valley. “Working together actually still works.”

Cox was joined by Arizona Gov. Katie Hobbs, Hawai’i Gov. Josh Green and Montana Gov. Greg Gianforte, all of whom touted the “bipartisan” nature of the WGA gathering, which featured Trump cabinet officials Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services, and Doug Burgum, who heads up the Interior Department.

The WGA’s winter meeting also featured three panel sessions dedicated to issues impacting western states: data center energy demands, the upcoming reauthorization of the Farm Bill and the growing need for broadband internet in rural areas.

https://washingtonstatestandard.com/2025/11/21/repub/western-governors-meet-with-trump-officials-on-water-energy-medicaid-cuts/