Workers are the heart of the economy. It is workers who move goods and provide services. And workers create jobs by spending their wages.

So when I get asked by voters how we can fix the economy, my answer is simple: put workers first.

Since President Biden has taken office, putting working families first is exactly what Democrats have done.

We passed the American Rescue Plan, which put money directly into the hands of workers and small businesses owners.

We passed the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, which invested $550 billion of new spending on critical infrastructure projects across the country. Americans will be put to work repairing roads and bridges while also updating the power grid and providing broadband internet access.

We brought historically low unemployment and stronger growth than China for the first time in nearly five decades to an economy that had lost 20 million jobs.

But there is still work to do.

Workers have not received a real raise in years. That is why my Democratic colleagues and I support a $15 federal minimum wage.

The pandemic laid bare and made worse the glaring gaps in child care, housing, and medical costs. That is why my Democratic colleagues and I support expanding access to child care, guaranteeing equal pay for women, and combating the rising cost of prescription drugs.

Like I said: it sounds simple. Yet Republicans do not agree. This is why the upcoming election is so critical.

When faced with reasonable efforts to lower prescription drug prices, make child care more affordable, and manage the rising costs of housing, gas, and basic essentials like baby formula, my Democratic colleagues and I voted yes and all but a handful of Republicans voted no. Right down the line, no, no, and no.

I am asking for your vote to continue putting working families first.

It is the question facing voters this election, and the choice could not be clearer.

Rick