by | Apr 1, 2026
Emanuel Cleaver testifying before senate committee on congressional redistricting. Photo by Missourinet news reporter Matt Pilger.
U.S. Rep. Emanuel Cleaver, D-Mo. 5th District, has high praise for fellow Congressman Sam Graves, R-Mo. 6th District, who announced last week he was not seeking re-election.
Cleaver told Missourinet that he and Graves are friends.
“And I don’t mean the fake Washington stuff about, ‘Well, the gentleman is my friend.’ Sam Graves is my friend,” Cleaver said. “And people in Missouri are going to realize that we are losing a significant part of our delegation.”
He credits Graves for improvements to Missouri’s transportation infrastructure due to his chairmanship of the U.S. House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee.
“You drive up and down the highway and you…see all the construction going on? Get mad at Sam Graves, because he’s the one who made it possible for all these federal roads to be receiving attention right now,” Cleaver said.
Missouri Congressman Sam Graves (Photo taken from livestream during July 2022 U.S. House Infrastructure Committee hearing
He also told Missourinet something that he said might get both him and Graves “in trouble.”
“I have never, ever, ever, ever actively supported somebody running against Sam Graves, and I can tell you (it is) the same thing (with Graves),” Cleaver said. “And this will drive some Democrats crazy, but I hate to see him go.”
Sam Graves is the dean of Missouri’s congressional delegation. He was first elected to the U.S. House in 2000 and has won re-election every two years since then.
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Democrat Emanuel Cleaver praises Republican Sam Graves’ job performance in Congress – Missourinet
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