Daily Dems Doing the Work, Making Noise and Fighting Back Day 231
Every day people say Dems don’t care about their constituents, and every day I see so many things proving them wrong. Hopefully seeing these fighters helps you know they’re wrong too.
Repping the Rep: James Walkinshaw (VA-11)
Is my Rep for the week. I know, I know everyone is talking about him, but he’s new, and I want to highlight him too. Plus, you know, the way I highlight him will be vastly different than how everyone else does.
Has been in office less than a week, and he’s already making his priorities clear. His district is, in large part, federal workers, so his main priority is fighting for them, but he’s also going to focus on healthcare, and public transit. Of course there are other issues he cares about, but this is where he’s starting off. And he’s already started, as you’ll see tomorrow.
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Rep Andrea Salinas (OR-06)
Posted a video about ACA premium tax credits. It seems pretty clear to me this is a message Dems are united on.
I see so many people say that the problem Dems have is they say what’s wrong, but not how to fix it. But it’s important to recognize, a lot of things are wrong because they DID fix it, and then Republicans broke it again. Yes, there are absolutely things that need to be improved upon, but it’s also valid to acknowledge the things that were working that have been broken that just need to be brought back, or not be taken away in the first place.
The premium tax credits are one of those. I mean, as Rep Salinas said “as a result, marketplace enrollment nearly doubled from 2021-2025.” That’s a big deal. Democrats did the right thing with creating these tax credits. I hope they can save them, but as always, it’s on us. If you have a Republican senator or Rep, CALL THEM, and keep calling them. Let’s save the ACA, so something even better can come next.
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Congresswoman Sarah McBride (DE)
Spoke at the Human Rights Campaign Dinner. She posted a clip where she talks about how the temperature isn’t as high offline:
But the truth is: the media we consume can influence the world we live in, but it doesn’t define it. One of the blessings of serving in elected office is that I’m pushed outside my comfort zones. I represent people in red areas and blue areas. And let me tell you, while real disagreements exist, we are not as divided as the algorithms make it seem.
And that’s a great an important quote, but I have an even more important one, one you probably haven’t seen:
Despite some who claim that our allies are throwing trans people under the bus, I’m proud to say that votes tell a very different story. Because of HRC, because of my colleagues on this stage, and so many others on Capitol Hill, House and Senate Democrats have maintained near unanimous opposition to attack on our community. And we have scored together some critical victories: Preventing the passage of blanket bans on educational programs for trans youth and getting the ban on Medicaid coverage for gender affirming care for all ages stripped from that big ugly bill.
I get why she chose to highlight the first quote, but god the second one is even more important than she probably realizes. Why are these not the stories being shared about Democrats? Why would people online and on TV rather tear them down than lift them up. WE SHOULD BE LIFTING THEM UP! Especially when they do all the good that Rep McBride is talking about.
BlueSky | Instagram | Facebook | YouTube | TikTok
Rep Jimmy Gomez (CA-34)
Has been taking us grocery shopping with his son since March, when prices really started getting out of hand.
Sometimes he just talks through the effect of tariffs on groceries, sometimes he shows how much he saved by using coupons.
What I love most is that it brings up a really important point about Congress. Some members are rich, absolutely, but many members, especially the ones who live in expensive districts and have kids, they’re not necessarily super well off. You have a house in two places, one of which could be $1m+ (that gets you about 1600 feet in certain districts). Los Angeles is definitely one of those places, in Missoula Montana, 6 figures may seem like a lot, but in LA? You’re middle class. So to be able to see that in real time it’s important. He’s not a member of the elite cause he’s in congress, he’s just doing his job representing his constituents and still doing what he can to save money. The tariffs are affecting him just as much as some of his constituents.
BlueSky | Instagram | Facebook | Threads | YouTube | TikTok
Sen Amy Klobuchar (MN)
And Sen Richard Blumenthal (CT) joined Republican Sens Katie Britt (AL) and Lindsay Graham (KY) in demanding that kidnapped Ukrainian children, who are still being held in Russia, be brought home.
Sen Klobuchar starts by saying:
If you want to know what terrorism’s about, it’s kidnapping kids.
I’m glad they can come together on this incredibly important issue. I think, for the most part, other than when Trump does something to help Russia, the war is all but forgotten, so these moments are important to make sure it stays in the conversation.
Slava Ukraini!
BlueSky | Instagram | Facebook | Threads | YouTube
And finally…
Sen Tammy Duckworth (IL)
Held a town hall in Rockford, IL. A mom of an autistic son stood up and through tears asked:
What impacts will the cuts to medicaid, Medicare, SNAP, have on our developmental disability and autism citizens?
Sen Duckworth answered that those cuts are a red line for keeping the government open for all Democrats, and that’s something I’m thrilled to say, I’ve been hearing all week:
We have a budget fight on our hands, and we are asking our Republican colleagues, the Speaker of the House, Speaker Johnson, and Republican Leader, Senator Thune and President Trump to work with us in a bipartisan way and people have been asking “What will Democrats demand in exchange for not having a shut down?” what we’re gonna demand is restoration of the cuts to Medicaid, Medicare and SNAP. That is the central pillar of what Democrats are fighting for.
Our Democrats are united on bringing back these vital programs. And, god willing, it works.
So those are just some of today’s fighters. I hope you realize they ARE fighting for us.
If you made it to the end of this post comment 🏳️⚧️ (trans flag) because they ARE protecting and fighting for the trans community, and I am so sick of the punditry saying otherwise.
And if you watched or read any of these posts, comment 🇺🇦 (Ukraine flag) because, those kids must be sent home NOW!
Our voices are our superpower, but only when we use them!
🏳️⚧️
🏳️⚧️🇺🇦 can do spirit.