Republican’s Big Ugly Bill Heads Back to the House

Washington, DC – Today, U.S. Representative John Garamendi (D-CA) released the following statement after Senate Republicans passed President Trump’s “Big Ugly Bill” and ahead of the House vote:

“Today, Republicans are one step away from passing President Trump’s so-called ‘Big Ugly’—or as it should be known, the largest transfer of wealth from working Americans in U.S. history. This bill shovels hundreds of billions in tax cuts to the ultrawealthy, kills medical services for 16 million people, and slashes Medicaid, SNAP, and clean energy tax credits—all to pay for tax breaks for billionaire donors across the country.

“Democrats have used every ounce of our power to obstruct its passage. But unfortunately, Republicans in Congress have muscled this bill through the Senate and sent it back to the House of Representatives, where it will likely pass—thanks to California Republicans who plan to vote YES, despite representing thousands of families who will be hurt the most by this bill.

“This bill kicks nearly 16 million Americans off their health care and raises costs for millions more. For a typical 60-year-old California couple with a household income of $85,000 the Big Ugly Bill would raise their health insurance costs up to $22,560 per year. Costs are already way too high without Republicans piling on.  

“But it’s not just health care that will be gutted, it'll cut benefits for hungry kids & working parents: 3 million Americans will lose food assistance, $18 billion taken from households with children, and working families lose $11 billion in SNAP benefits. That’s food out of the mouths of school children to pay for billionaire tax cuts.

“Not only is Trump slashing the social safety net, he’s going after our power grid too. Americans’ energy bills will rise because of this bill. That’s because the GOP’s ‘Big Ugly Bill’ will slash power generation by the equivalent of 300 nuclear power plants, leading to potentially rolling black outs across the country. It will also eliminate the tax credits people rely on to install solar panels, heat pumps, and other energy-efficient upgrades. These tax credits are vital to Californians looking for home remedies to lower their energy bills.

“This bill is so awful for working people that the North America’s Building Trades Unions (NABTU) called this the ‘biggest job-killing bill in the history of this country.’ That’s because this bill will destroy thousands of good-paying construction jobs, eliminate billions of hours of work, and erase hundreds of billions in economic benefits for America’s middle class.  

“This is the worst bill I’ve seen in a generation. No member of Congress should vote for it—especially not California Republicans. I’m calling on every Californian to put pressure on Representatives Valadao, Kiley, McClintock, Calvert, LaMalfa, and Young. If just three of them do the right thing, millions of lives will be better off. But their party loyalty could doom the health care and well-being of Americans for years to come.

“I don’t agree with Elon Musk on much, but I do agree with him on this bill. He recently tweeted,  ‘Every member of Congress who campaigned on reducing government spending and then immediately voted for the biggest debt increase in history should hang their head in shame! And they will lose their primary next year if it is the last thing I do on this Earth.’”

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