Fighting Back

Editors' Choice, Fighting Back

Fighting Back: “We will never stop fighting the GOP’s assault on our nation’s vital environmental protections”

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House Democratic Party Leader Nancy Pelosi on Earth Day 2018:

Each Earth Day, people around the world join together to celebrate the beauty of God’s creation, and to reaffirm our responsibility to protect and preserve our environment for generations to come.

Amid rising temperatures, surging seas and record floods, fires and storms, Earth Day reminds us that bold, ambitious global leadership is needed now more than ever to combat the growing climate crisis. Unfortunately, the Trump Administration and Republican Congress have given special interests a free pass to push their dirty energy agenda. The Trump Administration’s culture of corruption, exemplified by EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt, has weakened critical environmental protections, enabling polluters to poison our communities and threaten the health and well-being of our families.

We will never stop fighting the GOP’s assault on our nation’s vital environmental protections or their disregard for the air our children breathe and the water they drink. Democrats will continue to join cities, states, entrepreneurs and the American people to develop innovative strategies that honor our responsibility to build a healthier, more sustainable world for our children and grandchildren.”

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Editors' Choice, Fighting Back

Fighting Back: “Democrats are fighting back and we are going to defend Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security.””

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The Weekly Democratic Party Address was delivered by Senator Sheldon Whitehouse of Rhode Island.

(Sen. Whitehouse talks about the Republican #TaxScam)
blurb

“The massive tax giveaway Republicans pushed through Congress and President Trump signed into law late last year turns Tax Day into payday for the most well off, delivering enormous giveaways to the wealthy and well-connected. Since the Republicans passed their tax bill, corporations have spent more than $235 billion buying back stock. That’s a staggering 37 times as much as they have spent on workers’ bonuses or wage increases.”

(CSPAN link to Weekly Democratic Address: here)

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Editors' Choice, Fighting Back

Fighting Back: John Lewis – “Speak up and speak out in the face of injustice”

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The Weekly Democratic Party Address was delivered by Rep. John Lewis of Georgia.

(Congressman John Lewis of Georgia delivered the Weekly Democratic Address. In this week’s address, Lewis commemorates the 50th anniversary of the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. by reminding Americans to commit themselves to standing up in the face of injustice. )
Rep. Lewis:

“In the past 50 years, as a nation and as a people, we have made progress. But there are new forces trying to take us back, trying to turn back the clock, trying to take us to a darker time.

“Times like these can seem overwhelming, but I ask you to recommit yourself to the way of love, the way of peace, and the way of nonviolence.

“I ask you to look in your heart and to trust that justice will prevail.

“If Dr. King were with us today, he would continue to push our country to respect the dignity and the worth of every human being – no matter where they are born, no matter their race, age, religion, or gender identity.

“He would argue that we have a right to know what is in the food we eat, the water we drink, and the air we breathe.

“He would preach that we have a mission, an obligation, and a mandate to leave this country and this little planet a little cleaner, a little greener, and a little more peaceful for generations yet unborn.

“Most importantly, if Dr. King were alive, he would ask each of us to speak up, to speak out in the face of injustice, and he would demand that each and every one of us to do our part and do it well.

(CSPAN link to Weekly Democratic Address: here)

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Editors' Choice, Fighting Back

Fighting Back: “This march cannot be a moment. It must be a movement.”

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The Weekly Democratic Party Address was delivered by Senator Cory Booker of New Jersey.

(Senator Cory Booker (NJ) delivered the Democratic weekly address, talking about gun violence.)
TRIGGER WARNING: CSPAN included the end of the “president’s” weekly address with this clip.

Senator Booker

Gun owners and non-gunowners, Republican and Democrat, old and young, agree that there are common sense things that we can do to drive down gun violence in our country, including loopholes that allow people of ill will or criminals to obtain guns, whether it is domestic violence loopholes or background check loopholes that allow people who may even be suspected of being terrorists, to load up trucks full of weapons in our country. […]

We have work to do. This march cannot be a moment. It must be a movement. […]

This is a movement that should unite all Americans. It should not divide us. This is a movement that reflects our hallowed traditions, and it is a movement that I know is on the right side of history. Let us continue in our fight. Let us not be moved as we march in the right direction. Let us bring safety and security to our communities. Let us hail the truth of our nation. That we are a place that treasures life, that will preserve liberty, and that will find for every community, from Newark to Newtown, from Camden to Columbine, from Patterson to Parkland, that we are a nation in which every one of our communities is safe, strong, and resonates with the hope and promise of America.

(CSPAN link to Weekly Democratic Address: here)

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Editors' Choice, Fighting Back

Fighting Back: “It’s time to say #NeverAgain, and mean it.”

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The Weekly Democratic Party Address was delivered by Rep. Robin Kelly of Illinois.

(Congresswoman Robin Kelly of Illinois delivered the Weekly Democratic Address. In this week’s address, Kelly calls for commonsense gun reform and highlights the voices across the country that are ushering in a chorus of change.)
blurb

“How many more dreams need to be shattered? How many families torn apart? How many mothers need to bury their children? Why do NRA dollars matter more than American lives?

“This weekend, that’s changing. A new generation has risen. Their voices, ushering in a chorus of change. They are offering action, not thoughts and prayers. They believe that children should go to school with thoughts of homework, baseball tryout, prom dates and pop quizzes – not guns and bullets. […]

“This weekend, we stand with you. We speak out with you and we march with you in Washington, DC and Chicago; in Las Vegas and Miami; in Portland and San Diego and everywhere in between.

“My name is Congresswoman Robin Kelly. It’s time to say #NeverAgain, and mean it.”

(CSPAN link to Weekly Democratic Address: here)

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Editors' Choice, Fighting Back

Fighting Back: “We need real, direct investment in infrastructure, not more gifts to the donor class”

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The Weekly Democratic Party Address was delivered by Senator Jeff Merkley of Oregon.

(Chief Deputy Whip Jeff Merkley (D-OR))

My Democratic colleagues and I know that America’s success is measured around the kitchen table, not the Wall Street boardroom table. So whereas President Trump plans to sell us out to Wall Street developers, Democrats want real, direct investments that make our nation competitive in the 21st century, strengthen our middle class, create good paying jobs, and grow our economy.

We believe we can not only be proud of America’s incredible past achievements – from the Golden Gate Bridge and Hoover Dam to the Eisenhower interstate highways – but that we can create a new generation of incredible infrastructure that will awe our children and grandchildren, and power our economy for decades to come. Let’s make it happen!

(CSPAN link to Weekly Democratic Address: here)

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Editors' Choice, Fighting Back

Fighting Back: “Republicans are giving a raw deal to hard working families across America.”

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The Weekly Democratic Party Address was delivered by Congressman Bill Pascrell of New Jersey.

(Congressman Bill Pascrell of New Jersey, a Member of the House Ways and Means Committee, delivered the Weekly Democratic Address. In this week’s address, Pascrell called out the GOP tax scam for what it is: a disastrous law that raises taxes on millions of middle class families, while handing massive tax breaks to corporations and the richest few. )

“Republicans didn’t write their bill for the middle-class. The middle class was the furthest thing from their minds. They wrote their tax bill for their donor class. Then they shoved it down our throats in hopes no one would read the fine print.

“Let’s talk about the fine print.

“The Republican tax scam cost more than $2 trillion. That’s trillion with a ‘T.’ Where will that money go? I’m going to tell you.

“About $1.6 trillion of that money will go straight to reward corporations and the top One Percent. Can you think of a group less in need of tax relief?

“I’m all for growing wealth. But I’m not for gaming the system in the name of greed.

“And what are these big corporations doing with their payouts from the Republicans? I’m going to tell you, again.

“They’re putting it right in their pockets. They’re giving themselves sweet bonuses. They’re lavishing buybacks on their shareholders. […]

“The Republicans’ only major legislation passed under this administration is a corruption of our democracy done at the behest of their donors.

“The Republicans are giving a raw deal to hard working families in New Jersey and across America. You deserve a better one – A Better Deal: with Better Jobs, Better Wages and a Better Future for everyone.”

(CSPAN link to Weekly Democratic Address: here)

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Editors' Choice, Fighting Back

Fighting Back: “We must come together to work on gun violence reforms that will make a difference.”

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The Weekly Democratic Party Address was delivered by Senator Dianne Feinstein of California.

(Sen. Dianne Feinstein Delivers the Weekly Democratic Address)

“On December 14, 2012, a gunman walked into Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut, with an AR-15, and murdered 20 children – ages six and seven, beautiful children – and six young staffers. Five years later, a gunman walked into Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, with another AR-15, and murdered 14 children and three staff. Between just these two shootings, Congress did precisely nothing to remove weapons of war from our streets. Nothing to tighten background checks. Nothing to keep guns out of the hands of dangerous individuals,” said Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-CA). “There’s so much we can do. We just need the willpower and intestinal fortitude to take on the NRA and get something done for the safety of the men, women, and particularly the children in our schools of this country.”

(CSPAN link to Weekly Democratic Address: here)

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Editors' Choice, Fighting Back

Fighting Back: #NeverAgain – “We are tired of hearing it is too soon. It’s time.”

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The Weekly Democratic Party Address was delivered by Rep. Ted Deutch (D-Florida).

(Congressman Ted Deutch, representing Florida’s 22nd Congressional District, home to Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, speaks on gun control)
 
Congressman Deutch:

For those who say it is too soon – For those who always say it is too soon to make change, you must live with the knowledge that it is too late for the grieving parents, it is too late for the survivors who will carry this with them forever, it is too late for the Marjory Stoneman Douglas community.

We are tired of hearing that it is too soon. […]

It’s time for Republicans in Congress to show just a shred of the courage of American students. It’s time for Speaker Ryan to let the House vote to require background checks on every sale and transfer, to keep guns out of the hands of suspected terrorists, to outlaw bump stocks that enable automatic rates of fire, to require that no one under the age of 21 can buy a gun, and to once again ban assault weapons from our streets.

The students of Stoneman Douglas demand action. They will never give up. They are crying out, America has heard it, the world has heard it from them. Never again!

(Link to Nancy Pelosi Newsroom here)

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Editors' Choice, Fighting Back

Fighting Back: “Children are dying in our schools … all this Congress has to say is, let’s have a moment of silence.”

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House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi held her weekly press conference and the topic was the mass shooting in Florida and the weak Republican Party response to it. She was joined by Representative Mike Thompson (D-CA) who is the chair of the House Democrats Gun Violence Prevention Task Force.

Nancy Pelosi:

Once again, we come together very sadly. Our hearts have been broken by the tragedy of gun violence, this time Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School – Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Florida. Seventeen pronounced dead, more wounded. Innocent children sending terrified texts and goodbyes to their parents. We thank God for the heroism of the teachers, the school leaders, and our first responders running into harm’s way to save lives. […]

Children are dying in our schools, in our communities, on our streets. All this Congress has to say is, let’s have a moment of silence.

Mike Thompson:

If I was a Republican Member, I would be embarrassed that my Leadership wouldn’t address this issue. […] We were elected to deal with tough issues. And this is no different than any other tough issue. Somebody has to screw up the courage to be able to look at this issue and figure out what can Congress do. […]

And the idea that all of these shootings are mental health issues? I am sure that mental health factors in, but you can’t deflect by saying, ‘Oh, it is a mental health issue,’ and then turn around and work overtime trying to repeal the mental health programs that we have in place or put out a budget that cuts the mental health budget that we so desperately need across our United States of America.

The full transcript is below.

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