October 28, 2023
Dear Friends,
Over the past few weeks, we have seen the House of Representatives utterly paralyzed by GOP infighting. After a small band of extremists ousted Kevin McCarthy from the Speakership, the House was left rudderless in a time of crisis while Republicans searched for an alternative who could appease their far-right flank.
Now, following three wasted weeks with no progress on funding our government or supporting our allies, Republicans have finally chosen a Speaker. I wish Speaker Johnson success, and I will always look to work with him in a bipartisan way when possible. But the troubling record of the House GOP’s newest leader reveals just how far Republicans have slid down the path of MAGA extremism and how difficult bipartisan governance might be.
Mike Johnson, the new Speaker of the House, has a long list of positions that fit squarely with the most radical wing of the Republican Party.
- He is rigidly anti-abortion, calling the overturning of Roe v. Wade “an historic and joyful day.” He cosponsored a bill that would ban abortion nationwide, and even opposed the ability of private companies to cover costs for their employees’ essential reproductive care. Once, he even equated a woman’s right to choose with the Holocaust.
- He is radically anti-LGBTQ, serving as the lead sponsor of a national version of Florida’s infamous “Don’t Say Gay” bill. He has described gender-affirming care for trans children as “butchery,” and led a bill in the Louisiana House of Representatives that would have prohibited same-sex couples from receiving state marriage benefits.
- He is a staunch proponent of efforts to slash critical government programs, and once called cutting Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security his “number one priority.” He also voted against the Honoring our PACT Act, which delivered the largest expansion of veterans’ benefits in American history.
- He was a key architect of Donald Trump’s scheme to subvert our democracy and overturn the 2020 election, and personally lobbied other Republicans and the Supreme Court to toss out the votes of millions of Americans. Even after the riots on January 6th, he voted against certifying the election results.
These are just a few of Speaker Johnson’s extreme stances, which also include denying climate change, supporting Trump’s Muslim Ban, and voting to shut down the government just last month.
Taken as a whole, these views place Johnson and his House Republican conference far outside the mainstream of American public opinion. But regardless of who holds the Speaker’s gavel, we will not abandon the hard work of delivering for our communities. Too many precious days have already been wasted on pointless GOP gridlock. It is long past time for the House to get back to work on behalf of the American people. And we have a lot of work to do.
With a devastating government shutdown looming in less than three weeks, we are running out of time to pass the strong legislation we need to fully fund the essential federal programs American families rely on. After the 2018 Farm Bill expired last month, we need to advance a new Farm Bill to support our rural communities. And we must provide critical aid to our Ukrainian allies in their fight to defend their democracy, while also extending badly needed humanitarian assistance to the people of Israel and Gaza. House Democrats are ready to come to the table and pass legislation that addresses all of these priorities. But we cannot do so without reasonable governing partners who are willing to take a bipartisan, common-sense approach.
The past few weeks have shown us over and over again that House Republicans are thoroughly incapable of governing on their own. Speaker Johnson will have to deal with the same dynamics that faced Kevin McCarthy: a razor-thin majority, an emboldened and empowered far-right “chaos caucus,” and a Democratic Senate and White House. As I wrote last week, bipartisanship is the only path forward if House Republicans hope to accomplish anything in this critical three-week period or in the rest of this Congress.
My Democratic colleagues and I remain ready and willing to reach across the aisle and get things done for the American people. After weeks of political gamesmanship and dysfunction, it is my fervent hope that House Republicans are ready to join us in that effort.
As always, thank you for reading.
Your friend,
DID YOU KNOW?
My office and I are working to make sure you remain informed with the latest updates and recommendations from federal agencies. With that in mind, here is some information that may be of interest to you:
- With the start of the Medicare Open Enrollment Period on October 15th, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has issued an alert to help consumers identify and avoid Medicare-related scams.
- Medicare scammers often look official. They often pretend to be from or connected to Medicare, or to a business you know, in order to steal your personal information.
- Here are some tips to avoid the scammers:
- Never give personal information to anyone who contacts you out of the blue, even if the request seems to come from Medicare. Medicare will never call you unexpectedly to ask for your financial information or to sell you products. Not sure that call is legitimate? Hang up and call Medicare at 1-800-MEDICARE.
- Don’t respond to anyone who seems to be from Medicare and asks for your personal information. As soon as they ask for your Medicare, Social Security, or financial account numbers, you know it’s a scam. The real Medicare does not ask for that kind of information.
- Click HERE to find more resources on how to avoid Medicare scams.
- You can click HERE to get help comparing Medicare costs, coverage, and plans from the State Health Insurance Assistance Programs (SHIPs) in each U.S. state and territory.
- To report someone pretending to be from Medicare, call 1-800-MEDICARE, then tell the FTC at ReportFraud.ftc.gov.
