Ayanna Pressley: “I rise on behalf of the Massachusetts Seventh Congressional District. As the House prepares to vote on a truly…”

“I rise on behalf of the Massachusetts Seventh Congressional District. As the House prepares to vote on a truly horrifying Republican budget resolution, one void of empathy or common sense, I am thinking of the people in my district who stand to be harmed the most: families in Mattapan who receive their healthcare through MassHealth, the Medicaid program for Massachusetts; mothers in Chelsea, who rely on SNAP to feed their babies; disabled veterans in Randolph who receive lifesaving care and benefits through the VA; families in Roxbury who rely on Head Start for childcare. This Republican majority said they would spend the next 2 years cutting costs for the middle class, but the only thing they are cutting is trillions of dollars from lifesaving programs our communities depend on to make ends meet. Mr. Chair, this has never been about efficiency. Tell me how it is efficient to make people across this country sicker, hungrier, poorer, and more vulnerable. Tell me how it is efficient to buy more toy rockets for Donald Trump's billionaire friends while parents can't afford groceries. The cruelty is the point. What a callous shame and a sham. I urge my colleagues to stand with the people. Protect families and reject this shameful budget resolution. In the words of a righteous faith leader whose place of worship Donald Trump recently attended: Have mercy.”