2027 Presidential Budget Request Will Make Life Harder

Floor Speech

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Mr. MENEFEE. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to oppose President Trump's budget. A budget is a statement of values, and this one shows what President Trump cares about: his senseless war first and American families last.

Across the country and in my home in Houston, Americans are fed up with a government that seems more focused on endless wars than on whether people can afford groceries or gas.

President Trump's proposed budget cuts many of the programs that would offer even a little bit of relief to the economic pain he has caused. It would even cut childcare, ignoring the realities families face. As a father of two, I know how costly childcare is, and I am troubled by leaders who would make it harder, not easier, for parents to work and raise their children.

We are feeling these cuts uniquely in my city of Houston. Despite having some of the most food-insecure neighborhoods in the entire country, we have seen massive cuts to food banks, including tens of millions of dollars from the Houston Food Bank.

Despite having the largest medical research hub in the entire country in the Texas Medical Center, which relies on a routine basis on NIH grants, we have seen $5 billion cut from the NIH.

Despite having some of the most environmental injustice-ridden communities in the entire United States of America, we have seen more than 50 percent in funding cuts to the Environmental Protection Agency. We know that those cuts are coming mostly from the environmental justice divisions.

This budget is immoral. It is an attack on Americans. It is going to severely harm people in Houston.

The President's policies have raised costs, worsened the affordability crisis, undermined access to healthcare, and delivered tax breaks for billionaires while working families fall further behind. Millions of people risk losing vital care and financial security while a small number of billionaires see their wealth grow. Think about that: Families are going without care so that the rich can get richer.

We are the wealthiest nation on Earth. Our budget can and must afford investments in childcare and healthcare and support for our seniors while managing our finances responsibly. What we cannot afford are priorities that put the richest first and leave working families behind.

Mr. Speaker, President Trump's budget represents not America First, but America last.

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