James P. McGovern
Representative for Massachusetts · Democratic · United States
“The cost of everything is up, thanks to Republicans' awful economic policies. We have technology moving faster than our government's ability to protect people. We have an illegal war that is escalating overseas.”
House of Representatives15 September 2026Source ↗
“A few weeks ago, I visited with Jeni and her incredible team at their kitchen, where they prepare meals from scratch each week using recovered surplus food that is perfectly good to eat but would otherwise have gone to waste. These nourishing meals go directly to people in need and are customized to meet specific dietary needs.”
House of Representatives15 September 2026Source ↗
“Trump's trade war with Canada is killing tourism. It is killing our farmers and our small businesses, including in the gentlewoman's district in Minnesota right now. Why isn't she worried about that? Where is the Republican bill to lower costs?”
House of Representatives15 September 2026Source ↗
“10032, the No Payoffs for Pardons Act, which would prevent President Trump, or any future President, from giving out pardons in exchange for money, bribes, or political favors. Mr.”
House of Representatives15 September 2026Source ↗
“Anthropic's CEO, OpenAI's CEO, and even Grok's CEO, Elon Musk, agree that the government must step up to increase oversight of their companies. I don't necessarily trust these guys as far as I can throw them. Maybe they are calling our bluff. Either way, we clearly need to act.”
House of Representatives15 September 2026Source ↗
“Nearly 50 million people don't know where their next meal will come from in this country, and inflation is running at 3.4 percent, though I personally believe the rate is probably higher than this administration is willing to admit. That is what people are dealing with right now. Americans know that this economy is lousy.”
House of Representatives15 September 2026Source ↗
The complete record
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“In fact, it is the only thing that matters, really. Is it easier to fill up your gas tank? Are your rent bills more affordable? Are your groceries cheaper? Have your prescription medicine costs gone down? Does your paycheck go further? In short, Mr. Speaker, has life gotten easier for anybody over these last 18 months, or has it gotten harder? I think most people, including most Republicans, if they are being honest with themselves, know the answer. They don't need a politician or a fancy economics degree to say that things are not better. They are not better. In fact, they will tell you that things are worse--much, much worse. They see it every time they tap their credit card at the gas station. They see it every time they check out at a grocery store.”
House of Representatives21 July 2026Source ↗
“Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman from North Carolina for yielding me the customary time, and I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, this Congress is an absolute mess. The gentlewoman from North Carolina says that our rhetoric doesn't carry a bit of substance. But let me begin by asking a question of the American people, a very simple question: Are you better off today than you were 1\1/2\ years ago? It has been 18 months since Donald Trump returned to the White House. Republicans have controlled every lever of power in Washington for over 1\1/2\ years. They control the House. They control the Senate. They control the White House. They even control the Supreme Court. {time} 1230 That is the one simple question to me that matters more than anything else that we will debate today.”
House of Representatives21 July 2026Source ↗
“Mr. Speaker, last week I spoke with 160 incredible anti-hunger advocates as part of the fourth Gen Z Food and Hunger Summit. Shocking research from Purdue University shows that nearly one in three members of Gen Z have experienced food insecurity--one in three. Let that sink in. In fact, many of the young people I met experienced hunger firsthand. Congress ought to listen to them.”
House of Representatives21 July 2026Source ↗
“Political prisoners remain in jail. Oil revenues go to the elites. The people of Venezuela deserve better, and the people of Cuba do not deserve to be screwed over in the same undignified and illegal manner. Cubans deserve to shape their own future, not have it selected for them by arrogant politicians in Washington. There is a better way. Ten years ago, the U.S. tried a better approach. We tried diplomacy. We tried engagement. We tried talking to each other, working through our differences, and guess what. It started working. American tourists went to Cuba. We dropped barriers. We opened up relations. Things started getting better for the Cuban people, and there was hope that some day they could shape their own future. My U.S.-Cuba Trade Act, H.R. 7521, would reverse our decades of failed policies toward Cuba.”
House of Representatives21 July 2026Source ↗
“Congress has approved no declaration of war, no Authorization for Use of Military Force. Military action against Cuba would make America a rogue State, aligning us with Russia, China, Iran, and others that believe that international rules don't matter. If we want to know why invading Cuba would be such a disaster, look no further than Venezuela. Meet the new boss; same as the old boss. The Venezuelan people still have no democracy or human rights, while listening to Marco Rubio lecture them with empty promises about freedom and self-determination. Their economy was still in shambles even before the earthquake. Trump and Rubio are pals with the new President. The U.S. has immense leverage, but we are not using it to restore democracy, improve human rights, or fight hunger. The security apparatus remains in place.”
House of Representatives21 July 2026Source ↗
“What we are witnessing in Cuba, as some have characterized it, is basically Gaza in slow motion: man-made starvation with the help and complicity of the United States of America. Meanwhile, arrogant politicians in Washington tell Cubans on the island that they must suffer violations of their economic and social rights as the only way to restore their civil and political rights. This is an insult to their dignity, and it is wrong. The six-decade embargo has been a miserable failure. Over and over we see that it does not work. It only emboldens hard-liners and makes things worse for regular people. Now, we hear that the administration is plotting military action against Cuba. This would be horrible, wasteful, inhumane, and illegal. Cuba is not doing anything that would legitimize a war.”
House of Representatives21 July 2026Source ↗
“Mr. Speaker, I rise today to talk about United States policy toward Cuba, or rather our lack of a coherent policy and our decades-long failure to help the people of Cuba. Cuba is our neighbor. We have lived side by side for centuries. Our histories are intertwined. Our futures are, too. Almost 10 million people live on the island of Cuba.”
House of Representatives21 July 2026Source ↗
“Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays. The yeas and nays were ordered.”
House of Representatives14 July 2026Source ↗
“Let us end the chaos and get back to work for the American people. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time. {time} 1310”
House of Representatives14 July 2026Source ↗
“We would not pit one generation of disabled veterans against another, and that is what my Republican colleagues are doing. It is really not only frustrating; it is unconscionable. That should not be a partisan statement, by the way, in terms of helping our veterans. That is basic decency. The American people deserve a Congress that is focused on affordability, not on Donald Trump's long list of petty grievances and attempts to rehash old conspiracy theories from 6 years ago. They deserve a majority that understands that power is not about controlling the floor. It is about using the floor to help people, to improve the quality of life for the people that we represent. Republicans have had their chance. They blew it. They have wasted it. I urge my colleagues, vote ``no'' on the previous question. Vote ``no'' on this rule.”
House of Representatives14 July 2026Source ↗
“We would lower utility bills and end these stupid tariff taxes that show up in the price of nearly everything that people buy. In addition, we would stay here and we would keep working until the job was done. Now, I am not saying that every problem would be solved overnight, but we would put real solutions on this floor. We would allow debate. I mean, we don't debate anything anymore. Most of the bills that come to this floor are completely closed, where nobody can offer an amendment, take it or leave it. I mean, you know, and when something did not pass, we would keep trying. We would keep trying until we got it right, until we helped people in this country. I mean, that is our job. That's what we are supposed to do. When it comes to veterans, Democrats would fund the benefits that these veterans earned.”
House of Representatives14 July 2026Source ↗
“They know that threatening the VFW will not improve veterans' care. They know that changing or not changing the clocks will not change what is in their bank account. Mr. Speaker, if Democrats were in the majority, we would begin every day with one simple question: How do we make life more affordable for working people in this country? We would work to build more housing. We would work to lower rents and stop giant Wall Street firms from bidding families out of the market. We would take on corporate consolidation and price gouging that are driving up the cost of food. We would lower health insurance premiums and prescription drug prices instead of ripping coverage away to pay for more billionaire tax breaks. We would make childcare more affordable.”
House of Representatives14 July 2026Source ↗
“Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time. Mr. Speaker, this debate has made one thing very clear. Republicans are not the victims of this chaos. They are the perpetrators of this chaos. There is only one party that controls this floor and all three branches of government. Republicans set the agenda. Republicans write these awful rules. Republicans control the schedule, and Republicans have chosen to spend week after week fighting with one another while regular working people are getting squeezed. News flash to my Republican colleagues: The American people know the difference between working and pretending to work. They know that passing the same voter suppression bill again and again will not lower their rent. They know that stapling the SAVE Act onto yet another piece of legislation will not bring down the price of groceries.”
House of Representatives14 July 2026Source ↗
“She may not know this, but as we speak, The American Legion in Texas, representing one of the largest memberships of The American Legion, has come out against this bill and is urging The American Legion nationally to now follow its lead and come out against this bill. The bottom line is, the more veterans' organizations know that they are getting screwed, the more and more they are coming out against this bill. They are in favor of the Major Richard Star bill, which would provide and expand veterans' benefits without taking away other veterans' benefits. It is that simple. This is a bad bill and, quite frankly, the more people realize what is in this bill, the more they realize the cuts in this bill that will adversely affect the veterans' community, the more and more people will come out against this. Mr.”
House of Representatives14 July 2026Source ↗
“Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. I am glad the gentlewoman decided to go down this pathway because it is not only the Veterans of Foreign Wars that oppose this, but the Disabled American Veterans, the Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America, the Hispanic Veterans Leadership Alliance, the Black Veterans Project, Reserve Organization of America, Veterans Education Success, Student Veterans of America, Marine Corps League, Marine Corps Reserve Association, Minority Veterans of America, Common Defense, Vet Voice Foundation, National Security Leaders for America, Swords to Plowshares, The Chamberlain Network, Unite for Veterans Coalition, Veterans for Common Sense, Veterans for Responsible Leadership. I could go on and on and on. The gentlewoman began by mentioning The American Legion.”
House of Representatives14 July 2026Source ↗
“Republicans could provide veterans with the benefits they need without robbing other benefits that veterans need. It is that simple. This is outrageous. This is outrageous what is going on, and people should not be fooled. Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentlewoman from Pennsylvania (Ms. Scanlon), a distinguished member of the Rules Committee.”
House of Representatives14 July 2026Source ↗
“By the way, just for the record, there is a discharge petition that has been filed to basically bring the Major Richard Star Act to the floor without cutting other benefits for veterans. Every Democrat is on that, every Democrat. We can bring this to the floor. We can have this debate. We can vote on providing veterans additional benefits without cutting other veterans' benefits. That is the choice. When I hear these speeches about, oh, we really are doing all that we can, and we are on the side of veterans, again, the VFW opposes this strongly. They showed up in the Rules Committee, filled up the Rules Committee hearing room yesterday to show their protest, their outrage, over what Republicans were doing. Republicans don't have to do this.”
House of Representatives14 July 2026Source ↗
“Mr. Speaker, I trust the VFW more than I trust the Republican millionaires' club that basically populate the United States Congress on their side in this Chamber. The VFW is saying we can do these benefits without punishing other veterans. I find it amusing because the gentlewoman says we need to find offsets. Well, she voted basically to increase the debt by $4.7 trillion in the big, ugly bill, adding $4.7 trillion to the debt. Included in that, by the way, is $70 billion, again, unpaid for, for ICE and CBP. Again, they have no problem with doing that. They have no problem with tax cuts for millionaires and billionaires and now America's trillionaire, and no problem with tax cuts for them that are not paid for, but when it comes to providing veterans' benefits, all of a sudden they have a problem?”
House of Representatives14 July 2026Source ↗
“``The VFW strongly opposes the Take Care of America's Veterans Act as currently drafted because it asks future disabled veterans to bear the cost of expanding benefits through changing the VA rating schedule for tinnitus and obstructive sleep apnea which are common conditions associated with combat poly trauma,'' said VFW National Commander Carol Whitmore. ``We have long maintained that veterans' benefits are an earned obligation of the nation, a promise made through the military service contract and should not be financed through offsets, fee increases or reductions that place additional burdens on veterans, military families and 99 survivors.'' According to VA estimates, these changes could reduce disability compensation payments by approximately $57 billion over ten years and affect up to 1.5 million veterans.”
House of Representatives14 July 2026Source ↗
“Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. If there were people watching these proceedings and listening to my Republican friends, they may conclude that they sound a little defensive because they are, and they should be, especially on these veterans issues. The bottom line is that the VFW, the Veterans of Foreign Wars, strongly opposes the disability benefit cuts that are included in the proposed Take Care of America's Veterans Act. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent to include in the Record the entire statement of the VFW and their strong, strong opposition to these cuts.”
House of Representatives14 July 2026Source ↗
“One of the programs that Trump cut was called FoodNet, and it helped Federal and State public officials monitor and prevent outbreaks for eight different foodborne illnesses, including cyclospora. Yet, after Trump and his DOGE goons got their hands on this lifesaving program, the government stopped monitoring cyclospora. That was stupid. It was dumb. Our country is now experiencing a full- blown outbreak of, you guessed it, cyclospora. For the sake of everyone's health, I urge my colleagues to defeat the previous question so we can reverse these dangerous cuts. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent to insert the text of my amendment into the Record along with any extraneous material immediately prior to the vote on the previous question.”
House of Representatives14 July 2026Source ↗
“Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, I ask that we defeat the previous question. If we defeat the previous question, I will offer an amendment to allow the House to take an up-or-down vote on an amendment to H.R. 8595, sponsored by Representative Schrier, which would reverse the cuts to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention that were imposed by the Trump administration that could have prevented the ongoing outbreak of cyclospora, a parasite that has already infected thousands of Americans. Last year, the Trump administration began illegally defunding Federal health and science agencies, firing scientists and researchers, and cutting programs that keep us healthy and safe.”
House of Representatives14 July 2026Source ↗
“That is wrong, and everybody should vote ``no'' on that bill. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentlewoman from Pennsylvania (Ms. Dean).”
House of Representatives14 July 2026Source ↗
“Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, let me just respond to the gentleman by saying that whatever good is in this veterans bill is offset by the bad. Basically, they are saying we are providing veterans' benefits by cutting other veterans' benefits. I mean, this is a shell game. That is why the VFW is furious, why they are pissed over this bill, why they have told their membership to contact Members of Congress, Democrats and Republicans, to oppose it. If this were a tax cut for billionaires, my Republican friends don't care about an offset. If it is an illegal war in Iran, they don't care about offsets. When it comes to providing veterans' benefits, all of a sudden, we have to find offsets. Those offsets that they have found to pay for this are by cutting other veterans' benefits. That is unconscionable.”
House of Representatives14 July 2026Source ↗
“Families cannot afford to buy a home, rents keep climbing, and the President of the United States used a bipartisan housing bill as leverage in his fight over election lies. That tells us everything we need to know about this party's priorities. They will move heaven and Earth to protect Donald Trump's political power, but when it comes to making life more affordable for regular people, suddenly, they can't find the time. They can't be bothered. Republicans control the House. They control the Senate. They control the White House. They control the Supreme Court. They still can barely keep the House floor open long enough to do the people's work. Mr. Speaker, the American people deserve a hell of a lot better than this chaos, and I reserve the balance of my time.”
House of Representatives14 July 2026Source ↗
“They should not be threatened by their own government for exercising it, but this is what happens when a majority becomes completely consumed by its own dysfunction. Meanwhile, Americans are working hard. They are doing everything they have been told that they are supposed to do. Yet, somehow, they can't get ahead. What is this Republican majority doing about any of it? Next to nothing. One of the bipartisan things that we actually did do to try and bring down housing costs, Donald Trump refused to sign it. He let it become law without his signature because he was angry that the Senate had not passed his voter suppression bill. I mean, imagine that. Think about how screwed up all of that is.”
House of Representatives14 July 2026Source ↗
“The VFW strongly opposes this bill on behalf of the veterans it represents, and it published a political cartoon to protest the cuts. What did the Republican chairman of the Committee on Veterans' Affairs do? He and other Republican Members sent a letter to the Department of Veterans Affairs, asking the agency to review the VFW's accreditation. That accreditation is what allows the VFW to represent veterans before the VA and help them navigate the benefits system. Disagree with the cartoon, fine, say so, but do not use the Federal Government to threaten the VFW's ability to help hundreds of thousands of vets. That sure as hell looks like retaliation to me. Veterans fought for the right to speak their minds.”
House of Representatives14 July 2026Source ↗
“One is the Department of State funding bill that cuts funding for American diplomacy and foreign assistance. Another would block the use of a merchant code for gun stores, making it harder to flag suspicious purchasing patterns. Then, there is the so-called Take Care of America's Veterans Act. That title is doing a lot of work. That bill expands some benefits by putting the disability compensation of future veterans on the chopping block, particularly veterans suffering from tinnitus and sleep apnea. In other words--get this--Republicans want disabled veterans to pick up the tab for other veterans' benefits. That is just plain wrong. How hard is it to understand that we shouldn't rob Private Peter to pay Sergeant Paul? The Veterans of Foreign Wars agrees. They were in the Committee on Rules last night.”
House of Representatives14 July 2026Source ↗
“{time} 1230 What Republicans are doing here with this procedural move is not some master strategy. It is merely political theater, designed to settle another Republican family feud. If that is enough to flip Members who have held up business for weeks, boy, they are cheap dates. What this rule does is bring to the floor four bills. The first would make daylight saving time permanent. Look, everybody has an opinion about changing the clocks. I actually support this bill, but for folks getting crushed by rent, groceries, utility bills, and healthcare costs, is this really the best the majority can do? Is this really the most pressing issue before the American people at this moment? Then, there are three bills Republicans tried to bring up weeks ago, before their own chaos brought the House to a standstill.”
House of Representatives14 July 2026Source ↗
“Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman from North Carolina for yielding me the customary time, and I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, to all my friends on the other side who have held this floor hostage for weeks on end, let me save them the suspense: Nothing changes with this rule. There is nothing in this rule that forces the Senate to take up the awful SAVE America Act. Nothing. The majority is simply attaching the SAVE America Act on to an unrelated State Department funding bill and sending it across the Capitol. The Senate can and will strip it right back out. Everybody here knows that. The fact of the matter is that the SAVE Act is never going to become law because even Republicans know it is a disaster that will make it more difficult, if not impossible, for American citizens to vote.”
House of Representatives14 July 2026Source ↗
“Mr. Speaker, when schools are closed for the summer, far too many kids in America go hungry because they don't have access to nutritious breakfasts or lunches. That is where the incredible Summer Eats program comes in. Funded by USDA and in partnership with States, local schools, and community organizations, Summer Eats provides free, nutritious summer meals to kids across the country.”
House of Representatives14 July 2026Source ↗
“Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays. The yeas and nays were ordered.”
House of Representatives9 April 2025Source ↗
“This is an immoral budget, and I want the American people to know I do not share these values. Democrats do not share these values. I reject this budget. Democrats reject this budget. Mr. Speaker, I urge a ``no'' vote, and I yield back the balance of my time.”
House of Representatives9 April 2025Source ↗
“I reject it not just mathematically, but I reject it morally. I am reminded here of the Book of Matthew, where Jesus says: ``Truly I tell you, whatever you did to the least of these, you did to me.'' This budget steals from those with the least. Let me repeat that. This budget steals from those with the least. It is all so the rich can get richer. I just find that awful. I find that awful. We don't share the same values if you embrace this budget. Years from now, Mr. Speaker, when we are all gone, we won't be judged by the size of our bank accounts. We won't be judged by how many tax breaks we gave to billionaires. We will be judged by our decency. We will be judged by our compassion. We will be judged by our kindness, and, yes, we will be judged by our work to build a society where everybody has a chance and nobody is left behind.”
House of Representatives9 April 2025Source ↗
“They are making a conscious decision to betray their constituents and sell out their best interests to MAGA billionaires. At the end of the day, no matter what my Republican friends say, because of this budget, more kids will go without food. More kids will be malnourished. Because of this budget, parents and grandparents will have to sell their houses to afford medical care. Because of this budget, more consumers will get ripped off. Because of this budget, our air and water will have more toxic chemicals. That is the truth. That is the reality. Most people in this country feel like the economy doesn't work for them, and it hasn't for a long time. Do you know why? It is because of budgets like this which were written for billionaires and not for regular people. I think plain and simple, that is wrong. {time} 1500 I reject this budget.”
House of Representatives9 April 2025Source ↗
“Pass this quickly and move on so he doesn't get blamed for how much it is going to screw people. My answer to that is: We are going to fight back. If you support this budget, we simply do not share the same values. I believe it is fundamentally wrong to gut Medicaid. I don't want to kick moms and dads and kids off their long-term healthcare. I think it is rotten to kick kids and Americans with disabilities and veterans off of food assistance. I think it is evil to give tax cuts to billionaires while middle America struggles to get ahead. I think that those are awful, mean, nasty things to do. We are the richest country on Earth. Republicans don't have to hurt poor people to help the rich. They are deciding to do that. They are deciding to steal from the poor.”
House of Representatives9 April 2025Source ↗
“Mr. Speaker, can I inquire of the gentlewoman whether she has any Republicans that want to come down here and defend these tariffs and the tax hikes on average people? Does she have any other speakers?”
House of Representatives9 April 2025Source ↗
“Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentlewoman from Minnesota (Ms. Craig), the distinguished ranking member of the Committee on Agriculture, to discuss our proposal.”
House of Representatives9 April 2025Source ↗
“Represent your constituents, the people who elected you and the ones who are getting hurt by these tariffs and strike this provision blocking a vote on tariffs. If you don't adopt my amendment, then a ``yes'' vote on this rule is a ``yes'' vote for Trump's tariffs. A ``yes'' vote is for more chaos and uncertainty in the market. With a ``yes'' vote, you will own the pain that comes with these tariffs, the chaos and the uncertainty, and you will have no one to blame but yourselves. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent to insert the text of my amendment in the Record, along with any extraneous material immediately prior to the vote on the previous question.”
House of Representatives9 April 2025Source ↗
“Let's set aside that the business community--you know, where people work--don't know where to buy supplies, where to build plants, where to hire, or anything else with any certainty now. These tariffs affect the cost of everything: the food at the grocery store, electronics, the goods that are in most demand by our constituents. We are in a trade war not just with China but with our own allies and friends. These tariffs are harmful and they will lead to a recession, one caused not by any outside calamitous event, but by the ego of one man: Donald Trump. We could stop this uncertainty. We could stop this chaos, but Republicans are literally stopping us and themselves from even having a vote on these tariffs. I say to my Republican colleagues, stop hiding. Open your eyes despite the President telling you to close them.”
House of Representatives9 April 2025Source ↗
“Are we going to treat them like China and punch back as the White House Press Secretary says that we are doing? I guess we don't have any clarity on that question. Here is the worst part, Mr. Speaker. The Congress could stop this madness and provide the certainty that is needed by voting on these tariffs, but it seems like Republicans are fighting tooth and nail not to stop the insanity but to keep Congress from having a say about these tariffs, to hide from doing their jobs. With this provision hidden in the rule, they are stopping the entire House from bringing up legislation to put an end to these tariffs, not pause them, end them, legislation which, under the law, any Member should be able to bring to the floor 14 days from now. Let's set aside that the stock markets are in chaos and having volatile swings.”
House of Representatives9 April 2025Source ↗
“By the way, Medicaid is also the program that helps provide long-term care for a lot of middle-income families in this country. Mr. Speaker, the notion that we can make all these cuts and don't worry, be happy, come on. Come on. People can figure this out. The math is undefeated. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Rhode Island (Mr. Magaziner).”
House of Representatives9 April 2025Source ↗
“I am sorry that my friends don't want to appear like Republicans are insensitive to the plight of those who are struggling in the lower income brackets and who need Medicaid and for whom it is a lifeline. It is just the truth. There is no way. Again, do the arithmetic. Do the math. There is no way to get those cuts without going into Medicaid. That is going to hurt people. Mr. Speaker, again, I tried in the Committee on Rules to have an amendment saying that we won't give tax cuts to people who have a net worth of over a billion dollars. That was rejected on a party-line vote. We want to give more benefits to people at the top, but the way we are going to do it is we are going to cut people's healthcare benefits who are on Medicaid.”
House of Representatives9 April 2025Source ↗
“Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, the gentlewoman said that we need to deal with facts. I agree. Yet, we also need to deal with math. I understand that President Trump told the gentlewoman and other Republicans ``to close your eyes'' and vote for this budget. That is a direct quote, by the way. Did he tell Republicans to hide their calculator, too? I just went through my concerns about the cuts in Medicaid. This budget actually has instructions to the Committee on Energy and Commerce to cut $880 billion at a minimum. They were instructed to find $880 billion at a minimum in savings. There is no way to do that when doing the math without cutting Medicaid. That is just a fact. The math is undefeated here.”
House of Representatives9 April 2025Source ↗
“If Republicans at least admitted what the impact of these tariffs really were on average working families, we could have an intellectually honest conversation about what this budget and Trump's tariffs do. Yet, we can't because that would force the other side to acknowledge the truth. The truth is that this budget was written by the rich, for the rich, to help the rich get richer. That is what this is: a massive transfer of wealth from those at the bottom to those at the top. It is Robin Hood in reverse, and the American people will pay the price for the Republicans' billionaire-first budget. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.”
House of Representatives9 April 2025Source ↗
“Small businesses cannot plan or operate under this level of uncertainty. What big business would want to invest in any new manufacturing if there is no telling what policy is in place tomorrow? How can our trading partners believe what we say when we are changing policy every 3 days? The swinging back and forth is making Americans worse off for no apparent reason. Maybe Republicans think that some people need to be hurt in order to fix our country. I love it when Trump puts up all of these billionaires to tell working families: You have to just deal with the pain. It is no big deal. You should sacrifice. These are billionaires lecturing hardworking, middle-class Americans.”
House of Representatives9 April 2025Source ↗
“Speaker, I don't know whether it is idiocy or incompetence, maybe both, but that means that Trump tanked the market nearly 20 percent and put the entire American economy on the line so that countries would give him a phone call? Is that what this is all about? Give me a damned break. Rightwing pundits are going to act like pausing the tariffs was some kind of stroke of genius, that recouping only one-third of our market losses is somehow a brilliant move. Now, I wasn't very good in arithmetic, but that doesn't sound like a brilliant move to me. That sounds like a stupid move. First, let me remind my colleagues across the aisle that this is just a pause. Second, 10 percent tariffs across the board are still in place, plus the increased Chinese tariffs. Third, all of this chaos is horrible for the economy.”
House of Representatives9 April 2025Source ↗
“By the way, on tariffs, if I may, Republicans are once again rigging the rules to protect Donald Trump and hide from accountability. {time} 1430 Republicans know his tariffs are economic poison and know voters hate them, but House Republicans are too cowardly to go on record. The majority is trying to sneak around with a procedural gimmick in this rule to block a vote on the tariffs instead of facing the truth. Mr. Speaker, to be clear, a vote for today's rule is a vote for Trump's disastrous trade war, period. There is no hiding from it. Mr. Speaker, I know that Trump just announced on social media, of all ways, that he is partially backing down and putting a temporary pause on some of the tariffs he announced last week. Mr.”
House of Representatives9 April 2025Source ↗
“I mean, with all the chaos in our economy right now, does anybody really believe that we have to help out billionaires, that they are the ones who are hurting, not average working families but billionaires? We have billionaires in this country who pay an effective tax rate that is lower than the effective tax rate for teachers, police officers, and firefighters. What the hell is wrong with this place? I mean, the priorities here are all screwed up. Let's have a debate about our values and our choices, but, please, let's not pretend like this budget isn't going to hurt people. Let's at least have an intellectually honest conversation and admit what this is about. Just like the devastating DOGE cuts to NIH and CDC, they are going to hurt people, just like Trump's tariffs are hurting people.”
House of Representatives9 April 2025Source ↗
“Even if you cut literally every single other dollar, you are still at least $500 billion short, half a trillion dollars short. I guess I understand why President Trump suggests that you all close your eyes before voting on this steaming pile of Medicaid cuts. I would also say it is not mathematically possible to tell the Agriculture Committee to cut $230 billion without cutting SNAP benefits. You just can't do it. You have to kick people off of food assistance if this budget passes. That means children, seniors, and Americans with disabilities are cut off. In my opinion, that is the reality that Republicans are trying to hide from the American people. We had a hearing in the Agriculture Committee yesterday where Republicans were bragging about how they wanted to put more hurdles in place for people to be eligible for SNAP.”
House of Representatives9 April 2025Source ↗