Commentary: WASHINGTON, D.C. – Joint Economic Committee Democrats released a report today highlighting how the partisan agenda pushed by President Trump and Congressional Republicans has made 2017 a difficult year for working Americans. The report also details how nearly one year into the Trump presidency, Republicans have failed to take any action to address the nation’s most urgent needs, such as infrastructure and the opioid crisis, despite repeated promises.
“This year was marked by complete failure by Republicans in Congress to help the working Americans who need it the most,” said Senator Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.), Ranking Member of the Joint Economic Committee. “Instead, Republicans and the Trump administration have made partisan moves to endanger the economic security of families across this country. Democrats stand ready to work with Republicans for the rest of the 115th Congress to achieve real progress in improving the lives of every American, regardless of zip code.”
The report, “Worst of 2017: How Republicans Stacked the Deck Against Working Families,” highlights that President Trump and Congressional Republicans have hurt workers’ rights, rolled back consumer financial protections, targeted public lands for commercial development, and attempted to strip health care coverage from millions of Americans. As highlighted in the report, Republicans have:
- Hurt worker pay, rights, and retirement security by repeatedly setting aside worker interests and instead pursuing increased profits for the wealthy;
- Launched many attacks on our health care system, threatening to destabilize nearly one-fifth of our economy;
- Rolled back consumer financial regulations and gutted the authority of independent financial regulators;
- Failed to make key investments in their budgets, and proposed to cut infrastructure, education, medical and scientific research and more by over $5 trillion in 10 years;
- Turned their backs on rural America, where the poverty rate is three percent higher than it is in metropolitan areas;
- Rejected established science in support of man-made climate change, relaxed environmental regulation, and supported privatization of public lands; and
- Changed rules to allow massive deficits, threatened to shut down the government, and failed to nominate qualified candidates to fill top government posts.
It also highlights that more of the same is expected in 2018, as Republicans have put SNAP, Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid on the chopping block to pay for the $1.4 trillion hole in the debt from their tax bill.
Click here to review the report online.