Trump’s Tariff Tailspin

Dear Neighbor,

This week, President Trump announced a slew of reckless tariffs that are already sending our economy into a tailspin. Working families are already struggling with rising prices and high costs of living – issues that have only gotten worse since Trump took office. Don’t forget – Trump is the one who said he would lower prices on day one. Looks like that turned out to be yet another boldfaced lie.

Inflation is going up. The stock market is tumbling. Consumer confidence is declining. And Americans’ retirement savings are in jeopardy. Costs are not going down in New Jersey though; they're going way up. This will only get worse now that Trump has completely isolated America and started a trade war with nearly every nation on the planet, including our allies. These reckless policies are killing jobs, punishing consumers, and putting us on a path toward a recession. Energy costs, grocery bills and the price of everyday goods will increase dramatically as a result.

Trump’s excessive tariffs will do nothing to strengthen domestic manufacturing or bring jobs back to the U.S. Democrats took an important step toward that goal when we passed the Inlfation Reduction Act. If Republicans cared about American workers like the say they do, they would have joined us in our efforts. Instead, every single one of them voted against our bill. Now, they’re sitting in silence as Trump threatens American jobs and drives our economy into the ground. All while they do nothing to lower costs for Americans.

This is not what “liberation” looks like. This is what a recession looks like.

My Town Hall in Metuchen

Last night, I held a town hall in Metuchen to discuss the issues, hear directly from constituents, and provide updates on my work in Congress. I truly appreciate everyone who took time out of their day to join us. These town halls are an important part of the job — because they keep me grounded in the real concerns of the people I represent.

Over the past few weeks, my office has received a wave of calls and messages from people alarmed by Republican plans to slash health care, public education, and more – all to fund massive tax cuts for billionaires and big corporations. During the town hall we covered a wide range of topics — including Elon Musk’s takeover of the federal government, the economic pain inflicted by Trump’s policies, Republican threats to cut Medicaid, and most importantly, what we as a community can do to fight back.

For those who couldn’t make it, please know that it is a priority of mine to be accessible, to listen, and to act. Every Friday, I go live on Instagram and Facebook to keep constituents updated, and I’m constantly out in the district, holding roundtables, attending local events, and meeting with constituents.

The WTF Show

I hosted The WTF Show (Wednesday, Thursday, Friday) this week with fellow New Jersey Congressman Rob Menendez. The WTF Show is a new weekly show that House Democrats launched to candidly discuss WTF the Trump Administration is actually doing and how we can respond.

Watch our full conversation here.

Massive Cuts to Public Health Funding

I led Democrats in the New Jersey Congressional Delegation in sounding the alarm that Trump’s cuts to critical federal public health funding would severely weaken New Jersey’s public health infrastructure, including efforts to prevent disease outbreaks, expand access to addiction and mental health treatment, and support a stable health care workforce. This funding is a critical lifeline for state and local health departments, and it’s all under threat right now.

If these cuts are allowed to proceed, the consequences will be significant. Health programs will be dismantled, services will be terminated midstream, and the burden of these cuts will fall disproportionately on low-income communities, seniors, and individuals struggling with mental health and substance use disorders.

As the top Democrat on the House Energy and Commerce Committee, I’m leading the fight to protect public health and New Jersey families. I will continue to fight against these cuts and push back against Trump and his radical Republican enablers.

Read our full letter here.

Trump’s Dangerous Plan to Gut FEMA

The Middlesex County Utilities Authority will receive over $21.5 million in federal funding from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to repair damage to the Green Brook Pumping Station caused by the remnants of Hurricane Ida. Combined with the local cost share, the total project investment will approach $25 million. This funding is another example of why FEMA’s disaster recovery mission is essential — especially for a densely populated, flood-prone state like New Jersey.

Unfortunately, Trump and his allies want to gut FEMA – the very agency that helped us recover from Sandy, Ida, and countless other disasters. This would be catastrophic for communities that rely on the agency to help them recover and rebuild. It’s a reckless and dangerous plan that would leave New Jerseyans and millions of other Americans to fend for themselves when the next storm hits. We have fought for years to reform FEMA so future storm survivors aren’t stuck in the same bureaucratic nightmare that Sandy and Ida survivors had to face. We’re not going to let the federal government abandon them — not now, and not under Trump’s dangerous plan.