On the recordJanuary 4, 2018
yesterday the four congressional leaders had a positive and productive meeting with Budget Director Mulvaney and representatives from the White House, including Mr. Short. It was a good first step, but there is a lot of work to do. Ultimately, the budget agreement must lift the spending caps with parity between defense and urgent domestic priorities, it must include disaster aid, a healthcare package, and an agreement to enshrine DACA protections alongside additional border security. Like our Republican colleagues, Democrats want to make sure our men and women in uniform have the resources they need to do their jobs. There is not an argument about that, but we also want to make sure there are crucial investments in economic development and job creation here at home--programs that support the middle class and help it grow. That includes a number of things, including funding needed for the opioid crisis. Life expectancy has gone down in America for the first time in years because of deaths from the opioid abuse by young people and middle-aged people. Are we just going to shrug our shoulders at that? There is a lot more to do. It affects rural areas, urban areas, and suburban areas. There have been 63,000 Americans who have died from drug overdoses. Those are deaths on the battlefield, in a sense, as well--often the flower of our youth, the prime of America, so many in rural areas. These are kids who were full of potential.…
