Huffman Statement on House Passage of Trump’s Big, Ugly Bill
Washington, D.C. – Today, U.S. Representative Jared Huffman (CA-02) released the following statement after the House passed President Trump’s Big, Ugly Bill:
“Republicans just rammed through one of the most shameless betrayals in recent memory: Trump’s Big, Ugly Bill is a full-blown catastrophe for the American people. President Trump promised affordability, and now Americans will pay higher energy bills. Republicans campaigned on energy independence, but they’re giving China the deal of the century. They promised a stronger economy, yet they just kneecapped hundreds of thousands of good-paying jobs. They promised to protect our public lands, and now they’ve auctioned our resources off to polluters and developers,” Rep. Huffman said.
“This unconscionable legislation is what it looks like when a government turns its back on the people it vowed to serve. Millions of Americans will have their health care and food assistance taken away. And what’s worse? Republicans are proud of this bill. They’re celebrating a scheme that steals from working families to bankroll billionaire tax breaks and handouts to fossil fuel CEOs,” Huffman said. “Once again, Republicans and President Trump have made their priorities painfully clear: when forced to choose between Americans and their billionaire donors, they’ll betray us and sell us out every time.”
Although Republicans refused to consider any Democratic amendments to improve their partisan sweetheart deal, Rep. Huffman filed the following amendments to protect working families, safeguard our public lands, and prevent school voucher schemes:
- Representative Huffman’s amendment #198 would require foreign adversaries, including state-owned companies, pay royalties to mine on U.S. public lands.
- Representative Huffman’s amendment #215 would only allow coal mining provisions to take effect if federal officials confirm coal is cost-competitive with renewable energy.
- Representative Huffman’s amendment #224 would remove royalty rate cuts for oil and gas drilling on land and offshore.
- Representative Huffman’s amendment #230 would strike Arctic Refuge oil and gas leasing provisions and replace them with the Arctic Refuge Protection Act.
- Representative Huffman’s amendment #244 would strike funding rescission for the National Park Service and Bureau of Land Management.
- Representative Huffman’s amendment #266 would limit increased logging until mature and old-growth forests on federal lands are conserved and protections are expanded.
- Representative Huffman’s amendment #459 would ensure the Bureau of Reclamation does not violate or override state law.
- Representative Huffman’s amendment #480 would strike Sec. 70411, which provides a tax credit for wealthy donors to contribute to private and religious school voucher programs.
In California’s Second Congressional District, this bill:
- Increases average premiums by $3,070 per year for the 41,000 people who receive coverage under the Affordable Care Act
- Puts 231,738 people who depend on Medicaid at risk of losing their health care
- Threatens 28,369 households who count on SNAP to put food on the table
- Takes away 5,130 jobs in clean energy and manufacturing
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