Katherine Clark: “I thank the gentleman, and it is my privilege to join my first colloquy to stand here on behalf of the Democratic…”

“I thank the gentleman, and it is my privilege to join my first colloquy to stand here on behalf of the Democratic Caucus. It is a pleasure to be with him, and I thank him for the small promotion, however brief. I really do appreciate the insight into the week ahead, although it does seem to have a very local flavor to it. I have to express my dismay that, once again, the House Republican majority is putting forward an agenda designed to score points, rather than address the very real challenges faced by Americans. Next week, President Biden will return to this Chamber for the State of the Union. Under his leadership, House Democrats have lowered costs; we have created great-paying union jobs; and we have made communities safer. We have spurred a period of renewed opportunity: 10.7 million new jobs, the lowest unemployment rate in half a century, and wage growth that is outpacing inflation. But that work has seemed to have ground to a halt. Here is what we have seen from the majority over the last month. The first bill of the 118th Congress was a bill that helps billionaires dodge their taxes and added $114 billion to the deficit. They continued their assault on reproductive freedom and are threatening economic disaster in order to cut Social Security and Medicare, and filling our schedule with hollow, symbolic stunts. The American people are in the GOP's rearview mirror.…”