Providing for Consideration of Senate Amendments to H.R. Consolidated Appropriations Act, Providing for Consideration of H.J. Res. Disapproving the Action of the District of Columbia Council in Approving the D.C. Income and Franchise Tax Conformity and Revision Temporary Amendment Act of and Providing for Consideration of H.R. Critical Mineral Dominance Act

Floor Speech

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Mr. AMO. Mr. Speaker, Republicans are trying yet again to write a blank check for ICE while American families struggle to afford the basics.

If we defeat the previous question, we can claw back the $75 billion in the ICE slush fund that Trump and Republicans established with their big, ugly law and redirect that money to where it belongs: lowering healthcare costs.

In that same bill, Republicans cut more than $1 trillion from our healthcare system, jeopardizing millions of Americans. Reclaiming this $75 billion from ICE would prevent 700,000 Americans from losing their health insurance. That is 700,000 Americans protected. That is 700,000 Americans being spared from choosing between seeing a doctor or paying rent or paying for their groceries. This is a simple question of our values.

Taxpayer dollars should be used to care for people, not to fund masked agents terrorizing our communities, spreading panic, making us less safe, and killing people.

Instead of lowering costs, Republicans poured billions into DHS, an agency spreading chaos and making choices with deadly consequences, all while ignoring the needs of working families. That tells you what their priorities are.

Mr. Speaker, everyone in this Chamber has a chance to decide today: Do we want to lower costs and protect 700,000 Americans receiving Medicaid or fund Trump's domestic mass army of terror? It is that simple.

Here is the kicker. This effort was bipartisan in the Senate when Senator Sanders introduced it. Democrats and Republicans agreed that we should cut the ICE slush fund to protect Medicaid. It should be bipartisan here, too.

I hope Republicans make the right choice, but my expectations are pretty low. I hope the American people are listening. They are most certainly watching on their screens every night.

Mr. Speaker, this vote is about using taxpayer dollars to lower costs for Americans over fueling the fear that persists in our cities. It is about caring for our neighbors when they are sick over sending masked agents to terrorize our communities. It really is that simple.

Choose care over cruelty. I urge a ``no'' vote.

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