James P. McGovern

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Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time. Mr. Speaker, before we finish, I want to bring this debate back to something very basic and speak directly to the American people. Are you better off now than you were 2 years ago? I think most people would say they are worse off, and the numbers back that up. When Trump came into office on January 20, 2025, the national average for a gallon of gas was about $3.12. Today, it is more than $4.31. Diesel, the fuel that moves our food, building materials, packages, almost everything we buy, is now above $6.23 a gallon. That is the most expensive it has ever been in the history of the United States of America. The annual inflation rate was 3 percent when this administration began. The latest number is 3.4 percent. Again, I think that is an undercount. Americans are estimated to have spent nearly $2,000 more last year, thanks to Trump's stupid tariffs and his illegal war. That is why I find the conversation Republicans want to have today so disconnected from what is happening outside this building. I mean, we hear enormous promises. For example, Trump is promising $5,000 payments to American adults after the election if Republicans win, and only if Republicans win. Even Speaker Johnson has acknowledged that such payments would require congressional approval. Needless to say, these $5,000 checks are never going to happen. We all know that, but I guess that is to be expected from a President who is the king of broken promises. Trump said he would release the Epstein files, and then he did everything he could to hide them from the public, likely because he and his administration knows he is in them. Again, where is the pressure from the Republican leadership on the Epstein files? Nothing. It takes my breath away how my Republican friends just kind of turn their backs on what the right thing to do is. Trump said he would end the Russia-Ukraine war in 24 hours. That is what he said directly. That was clearly untrue. This is now year four of a full-scale conflict. He said he would end wars, not start wars. Yet we are over 6\1/2\ months into the war with Iran, and nobody believes there is an end in sight. He said he would balance the Federal budget. Because of the tax cuts for millionaires and billionaires and because of this unpaid, reckless, illegal war, the debt just surpassed $40 trillion, and not a peep from Republicans. They don't care. He said he would end inflation and lower prices ``on day one.'' Inflation is up. Prices are up. The economy has only gotten worse. The trouble with these lies, Mr. Speaker, is that some people believe them. Some families may hear the President promise them $5,000 and then actually plan around that money. Maybe they are now planning to get that medical procedure they otherwise could not afford or believe that they will finally be able to pay rent or pay off their credit card and have enough food to feed their family for the next month. They want to believe that when the President of the United States says something, that it is truthful, and we all know that they can't rely on that because he has broken promise after promise after promise. It is wrong to make an empty promise like that. It is just cruel when the economy is this bad. There is no $5,000 check in this rule. There could be if Republicans think it is such a good idea. They could have done that if they wanted to, but they didn't. There is nothing about that. There isn't a bill to bring down food prices in this rule or to address the housing crisis or to help people afford basic, everyday things. I don't know what the gentlewoman hears when she goes home, but I hear about the cost of living all the time. I hear about issues of affordability all the time, and constituents are asking me when Congress is going to do something. They don't want to hear anymore about building a ballroom or an Arc de Trump or about a reflecting pool. They want to know when their grocery prices are going to go down. This majority should be judged by what it actually puts on the floor, not by slogans, not by promises, not by press conferences, or what somebody says might happen someday. That day is today. Republicans are in complete control. They have the House, the Senate, and the White House. They could do something right now to help people if they wanted to. The thing is, they don't care. They don't care that people are hurting. The acceptance of cruelty is how one can characterize these policies that are going into effect that cut Medicaid by $1 trillion and cut SNAP by $200 billion. It is astounding. It takes my breath away, but that much is made clear by their agenda this week. They would rather waste time on rotten bills and go home for a month than to fight the necessary battles here in the Capitol to actually help folks. We need an economy, Mr. Speaker, where getting to work doesn't break the budget, where buying groceries doesn't require a calculator or getting sick doesn't mean going into debt, and where an honest day's work is enough to build a decent life. It is definitely not too much to ask for. It just isn't. That ought to be the standard around here. We ought to be coming to work to help the American people, yet Republicans time and time again fail to meet that mark. The American people see through the blatant corruption and the outright lies that Washington has become known for. It is time to hold this President, and especially the Republicans here in Congress, responsible for steering our economy off a cliff and driving our country into the ground. Come November, I really do hope and pray for the sake of our future and for the sake of our country that we are going to correct course. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.