Urgent Senate Update: I Voted NO
I have voted seven times for a responsible funding agreement to end the shameful Trump shutdown, hold the president accountable to the law, and prevent health care costs from skyrocketing for tens of millions of Americans. I have always been prepared to reach a compromise, but the funding bill that passed the Senate tonight does not come close to meeting those terms. Not only does it fail to prevent the impending explosion of health care costs, it also lacks the necessary guardrails to stop President Trump from ignoring the law and illegally withholding funds for important priorities. It is a bad deal for the American people. That is why I voted NO.
While I am very disappointed that the so-called deal did not include these essential elements, I will not stop fighting for them. Donald Trump has been illegally shutting down our government in pieces since he tapped Elon Musk to take a chainsaw to essential public services. We need to establish guardrails to prevent that from happening. We also need to defuse the ticking time bomb of the health care crisis that Trump and Republicans refuse to address. When Trump and congressional Republicans passed their so-called “big, beautiful bill,” they extended and expanded tax cuts for their billionaire buddies and the very wealthy, but they refused to extend tax credits that help middle-class families afford their health insurance. This will not only harm approximately 190,000 Marylanders who receive these tax credits, it will also push up costs for everyone else in the insurance market. They also slashed Medicaid and cut other provisions of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) to help finance their tax cuts for the rich. As a result of their actions, nearly 14 million Americans will lose their health coverage entirely, premiums will more than double on average for over 20 million Americans, and it’s estimated that over 50,000 Americans will die prematurely each year. This is absolutely unacceptable, and we must fight to reverse the damage they are doing and rebuild and reform our health care system.
Trump has also deliberately tried to cut off food assistance (SNAP) and force millions of families to go hungry — to use them as pawns in his shutdown scheme. It was clear all along that he had the authority to use a SNAP contingency fund established by the Congress. He chose not to do so. Indeed, federal courts ruled that he was required to use those SNAP funds. Still, even now, the Trump Administration is contesting the order to provide full November benefits to millions of families. It is yet another example of the depravity of Trump and his cronies.
During this shutdown, I have worked to pass my legislation — called the True Shutdown Fairness Act — to ensure that all federal employees and servicemembers get paid and none get fired during the shutdown. That bill would also have held federal contractors — from maintenance and custodial staff to construction and security workers — harmless. Like federal employees, they had nothing to do with this shutdown and should not be the ones punished for it. Republicans blocked that legislation from moving forward.
When the government reopens, the Trump Administration must follow the law that Senator Cardin and I passed after the first Trump shutdown to ensure all federal employees receive the full back pay they are owed. The Trump Administration tried to scare federal employees by casting doubt on that requirement, but it is unambiguous and federal employees will receive full back pay. I will continue working to support our federal workers, contractors, and servicemembers as well as stand up to this Administration’s attacks on our communities and their disregard for the unacceptable rising costs Americans are facing.
Onwards,
Chris Van Hollen |