“My colleagues across the aisle say that they care about seniors, veterans, children, and families, but in the words of James Baldwin, ‘I can’t believe what you say, because I see what you do.’”

“Republicans continue to govern in a way that is clueless, callous, and with great contempt, and I would say godless, because faith without works is dead.”

Floor Speech (YouTube)

WASHINGTON – In an impassioned speech on the House floor, Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley (MA-07) blasted Republicans for holding the economy hostage and threatening a default on our national debt as they try to rip away healthcare and life-saving assistance for the most vulnerable people.

A full transcript of her remarks is available below and the full video is available here.

Transcript: Pressley Blasts GOP for Holding Economy Hostage, Threatening Default on National Debt

U.S. House of Representatives

May 25, 2023

I rise today on behalf of the hundreds of thousands of people in the Massachusetts Seventh.

The single mom in Randolph who depends on SNAP to feed her babies.

The disabled veteran in Chelsea who relies on SSDI.

Families in Roxbury struggling to pay rent and their mortgages.

My colleagues across the aisle say that they care about seniors, veterans, children, and families, but in the words of James Baldwin, ‘I can’t believe what you say, because I see what you do.’

The Republicans continue to govern in a way that is clueless, callous, and with great contempt, and I would say godless, because faith without works is dead.

Republicans want us to make an impossible choice: extreme, drastic cuts to life-saving programs, or a catastrophic default on our debt—both of which would impact our most vulnerable.

And this is a manufactured crisis. That is a false choice.

If Republicans had even an ounce of compassion. Democrats want to change and save lives and Republicans want to play with yours. And the American people are currently in limbo because of it.

Stop playing with people’s lives. This is not a game. Pass a clean debt ceiling increase.

—

A Republican default on our debt would:

• Kill about 8,500 jobs in MA-07 alone. Nationwide, a default could kill more than 7 million jobs.
• Jeopardize Social Security payments for 64,000 families in MA-07.
• Put health benefits at risk for 297,000 people in MA-07 who rely on Medicare, Medicaid, or Veterans Affairs health coverage.
• Increase lifetime mortgage costs for the typical homeowner in Massachusetts by $90,000.
• Raise the costs of a new car loan for the typical American by $800.
• Threaten the retirement savings of 77,800 people near retirement in MA-07, eliminating $20,000 from the typical retirement portfolio.

Last week, Rep. Pressley joined her colleagues in the Congressional Progressive Caucus in urging President Biden to prepare to invoke his constitutional authority granted in the 14th Amendment to uphold the full faith and credit of the United States and end Republican hostage taking of the economy that could trigger a financial catastrophe. Rep. Pressley has also joined her colleagues in urging Speaker McCarthy to allow prompt floor consideration of legislation to raise the debt ceiling without any extraneous policies attached.

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