Chairman Aguilar: Republicans control the House, the Senate and the Presidency. They could work with Democrats at any time to lower the costs.
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Today, House Democratic Caucus Chair Pete Aguilar, Vice Chair Ted Lieu and House Budget Committee Ranking Member Brendan Boyle held a press conference calling out Trump and Republicans for their corrupt and wasteful policies that do nothing to bring down costs for the American people. You can watch the full press conference here and read the transcript below.
CHAIRMAN AGUILAR: I want to thank Vice Chair Ted Lieu for joining us and Ranking Member Brendan Boyle with the Budget Committee. Donald Trump and House Republicans this week are once again proving that this is the most corrupt administration in our nation's 250 years. Americans didn't vote for a slush fund to bail out January 6th insurrectionists with felony convictions, or to build ballrooms with helipads, or to help Trump and his billionaire donors get rich trading stocks. Yet that's exactly what this administration has been doing.
And in Congress, it’s not much better. Last year, Republicans passed the largest healthcare cut and food assistance cut in American history, just to give billionaires and wealthy corporations making record profits continued tax cuts. Now, this week, they're doubling down on their disastrous misuse of taxpayer funds by giving an out of control ICE $70 billion with zero reforms, while they continue to push a ballroom that costs $1 billion. All of this comes at a time when hardworking Americans are already struggling within the weight of Trump's costly tariffs and skyrocketing food and gas prices thanks to his war of choice with Iran. Americans are smart. They know Trump's policies are directly impacting their wallets, and they know that Republicans aren't concerned about improving their lives. It's no wonder his economic rating is hovering around 30 percent, a career low. Republicans know that they're hurting Americans, and you want to know what the response is? Jim Jordan says, ‘That's life.’ Mike Lawler said that the Iran war is ‘absolutely worth it.’ And Trump even doubled down, saying that his comment that he ‘didn't think about Americans' financial situation’ was a ‘perfect statement.’
When a Democrat is in power, Republicans love to play the blame game. But when they're in power, Republicans tell Americans to be patient, even as they face financial ruin. Remember, Republicans control the House, the Senate and the Presidency. They could work with Democrats at any time they want to lower the costs that Americans face. I hope they'll finally listen and work with us. Vice Chair Ted Lieu.
VICE CHAIR LIEU: Thank you, Chairman Aguilar. We have a cost of living emergency in America. Gas prices are skyrocketing, grocery prices are surging, mortgage rates are climbing, and what are Trump and Republicans focused on? A $1 billion taxpayer-funded ballroom, a giant arch in D.C. to honor Trump and now we learn a nearly $1.8 billion slush fund to pay criminals who are friends of Donald Trump, including January 6th rioters. November is coming.
Now, let me tell you a little bit about why this nearly $1.8 billion taxpayer-funded slush fund is completely unethical and totally ridiculous. First of all, it came as a result of a settlement between the IRS and the Department of Justice. Well, it turns out both those agencies are the same entity, because they both report to Donald Trump. So, it's like settling with yourself, and with these fake negotiations and this fake settlement, magically appears nearly $1.8 billion to pay people who have been convicted of crimes. This is completely unethical. The people drafting this document know it's unethical. Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche will lose his law license after his term is over, because he's engaging in flatly unethical behavior. You can't have a fake settlement with fake negotiations with essentially one entity negotiating against itself, and then just paying out taxpayer money that Congress never authorized to go to criminals. And now I'm honored to present to you the amazing Representative from Pennsylvania, Brendan Boyle, who is also the Ranking Member of the House Budget Committee.
RANKING MEMBER BOYLE: Thank you. Thank you to both the Chair and Vice Chair. Well, here we are to debate and vote on the Billion-dollar Ballroom Act. You know, if you take a step back, you recognize just how absurd this situation is. We have, right now, healthcare costs out of control, thanks to the Republican cuts that were passed last summer and signed into law by the President. Let's not forget that's even before the Medicaid cuts come into effect this December, when it is projected we will begin to see the 15 million Americans who are about to lose their healthcare because of the Republican bill passed last summer. But that's not all, not just healthcare. Food prices are skyrocketing far higher today than they were a year and a half ago. And gas prices? Gas prices were actually a bit of a bright spot two and a half months ago. Gas in my area, like the national average, was just under $3 a gallon. Where is it today? An average of $4.52 a gallon, and climbing—a more than 50 percent increase in just two months. We haven't seen something like that in 60 years, so it's no wonder that we have consumer sentiment at a record low in the University of Michigan study, a study that goes back and has been asked every month since 1952. And the President's approval when it comes to the economy? The lowest recorded for any president since George W. Bush at the height of the Great Recession. What an unmitigated disaster this administration has been when it comes to the economy. The people are desperately in need of help. They are in desperate need to make their lives more affordable. And what do the Republicans offer them? The billion-dollar ballroom. All to honor their dear leader. It's about time they start putting the people first and not their dear leader.
###
Previous Article