Rep. Andrea Salinas Statement on House Passage of Republican Tax Scam

Today, U.S. Congresswoman Andrea Salinas (OR-06) released the following statement following the House Passage of Republicans’ Tax Scam:

“I voted no on this big, ugly betrayal because it increases costs for working families and hurts seniors, veterans, and children in Oregon and across the country. At a time when Americans are already struggling to make ends meet, this bill will increase costs, strip away health care, take food off the table of working families and increase energy costs for all Americans—all to give tax breaks to large corporations and billionaires. I was proud to stand up for hardworking Oregonians and vote against this bill.

“For Oregonians, the damage is immediate and severe. The bill slashes hundreds of billions of dollars from Medicaid, known in our state as the Oregon Health Plan. These cuts could shutter rural hospitals, nursing homes, and health centers, leaving all Oregon families with higher health care costs and rural patients with little to no access to care.

“This package also threatens nutrition assistance for the almost 800,000 people in our state who count on SNAP to put food on the table. The cuts would make this the single largest rollback of food aid in American history and would hurt Oregonians who rely on SNAP as well as local farmers and grocers. And the cuts would extend beyond SNAP to threaten food assistance programs like Meals on Wheels. This is cruel, plain, and simple.

“Not only does this bill increase costs for families, it’s also a fiscal disaster. It adds $5 trillion to our national debt, further jeopardizing our bond rating and our children’s future. For a party that claims to care about cutting the debt, it’s clear Republicans care more about kicking working families when they’re down.

“This bill is a betrayal of the values we hold in Oregon. I will never support legislation that asks our working families to sacrifice, for the sole purpose of enriching the wealthiest Americans. This bill isn’t about fiscal responsibility - it’s a tax giveaway to the ultra-wealthy, paid for by gutting healthcare and SNAP programs that our communities rely on to survive and thrive.”

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