'These Aren't Just Numbers, These Are People': Tammy Baldwin Shreds BBB SNAP & Medicaid Cuts

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During remarks on the Senate floor Sunday, Sen. Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) voiced her objections to President Trump's Big Beautiful Bill.

Transcript

00:00in disbelief. You know, it may sound a little cheesy, but at the end of the day,

00:07I fundamentally believe in public service. I believe it can be a force for good,

00:14a force that gives people opportunity, a force that is people-powered, that can lift our neighbors

00:21up and instill hope, a force that meets the toughest challenges of our constituents,

00:29and that is why I am struck with disbelief. Disbelief because if you believe these things

00:39like I do, which I would argue most of my colleagues here do, why would you be jamming this bill through?

00:48At a time when Wisconsin families are asking us to take on the high cost of living

00:54and let them have a fair shot at success, Republicans are raising costs and making an

01:02already unfair tax system even worse. My Republican colleagues are not using their time and energy to

01:11go after greedy corporations, not to lower the cost of housing and not to expand access to affordable

01:20health care, but rather they are instead forging ahead with a bill that will kick millions of Americans

01:27off their health insurance, jack up prices for care for millions more, and literally take food off the

01:38tables of hungry families. Look, I was on the same ballot as Donald Trump last year.

01:47I heard the same concerns from my constituents that he did. Families needed some breathing room.

01:55My Republican colleagues often say that this president's victory gave him a mandate.

02:00mandate. Well, then, the president and I got the same mandate. To lower costs and give people the

02:09opportunity to live a steady and comfortable life. But in response, the difference could not be more

02:18stark. I'm actually working to do something about it. And this bill, the landmark bill from this president

02:26and the Republican Party does just the opposite and will raise costs for families. One of the biggest

02:35cost drivers I hear about is health care. And so instead of standing up to big drug companies to lower

02:42prescription drug costs and instead of building on the Affordable Care Act to expand access to health

02:49care coverage, this bill actually terminates coverage for Americans. In fact, 17 million Americans will be

02:59kicked off either Medicaid or the Affordable Care Act because of this bill. That is like stripping health

03:08care coverage from the entire populations of Wisconsin, Minnesota and Iowa combined.

03:15And these aren't just numbers. These are people. These are people who have stories. And they matter.

03:25I should know. After battling a childhood illness, I became one of those Americans labeled as having

03:32a pre-existing health condition. And insurance companies were legally able to deny me coverage.

03:40But because of the Affordable Care Act, we changed that. And we gave families like mine hope. Hope that

03:49they can get health care at a price they can afford and sleep well at night knowing they have coverage.

03:57Medicaid has given that same hope for generations to some of our most vulnerable neighbors.

04:04But with this bill, my Republican colleagues are instilling fear.

04:12When we talk about Medicaid, we're talking about the elderly, people with disabilities, and children. We're

04:19talking about a single mother of three who is struggling to make ends meet. And so many more. I have

04:27traveled the state of Wisconsin from Superior to Racine, La Crosse to Green Bay, and everywhere in between

04:35to hear from people who will be harmed by this bill. I have come to this very floor to share their stories,

04:44to try to help my Republican colleagues understand what this bill will mean.

04:50But it's not just the folks who need Medicaid to survive who are sounding the alarm. Take it from

04:58Dr. Abigail Wilgruber, a family medical resident in rural Wisconsin. She said this bill, quote,

05:05will deprive millions of Americans, particularly children, seniors, and individuals with disabilities,

05:12of the care they need to survive. She continued saying, these provisions will limit my ability to

05:20complete my job to the fullest, will lead to worse outcomes for patients. Or take it from Rosalange Burbutt,

05:30the executive director of an outpatient counseling center in the Fox Valley in Wisconsin, who said,

05:38and I quote, without Medicaid and Medicare reimbursements, or with reduced rates, our nonprofit will struggle

05:46to survive. She continued to say, quote, I would hate to consider cutting staff or programs, but that could

05:56become our only option. We would lose the ability to serve hundreds of clients, not because the need has

06:03diminished, but because we could no longer afford to provide care without reimbursement. I have more

06:12and more of these stories from doctors, nurses, and administrators on the ground who are spelling out the

06:19absolutely dire consequences of this bill. In Wisconsin, we are already in a crisis when it comes to

06:28getting good health care in our rural communities. The system is broken, and this bill is destined to

06:36make it only worse. While health care is near and dear to my heart, there is more bad news in this bill.

06:48Republicans' big betrayal will also take food assistance, the literal means by which some people are

06:56able to put nutritious food on the table away from them. This bill will take snap assistance, our nation's

07:04best way to make sure that no one goes hungry, away from more than three million Americans.

07:12And that leads us to the why. Republicans are making all of these cuts so that they can rig our tax code,

07:21which I must say already is deeply unfair to working families. And they would further tilt it in favor of

07:29the biggest corporations and the richest in our country. The Republican bill gives people at the top

07:38one-tenth of one percent, the richest of the rich, a tax cut of more than $250,000 every year.

07:47Yes, a quarter of a million dollars a year. All the while this bill hits working families the hardest.

07:56When taking into account the disastrous Medicaid and SNAP cuts, many working families would see their

08:05annual incomes fall by over $1,500. And it doesn't have to be this way. Yes, our system for taxes and

08:15health care are broken. But this bill is not the solution. This bill would make it harder for working

08:23families to have the opportunity to get ahead, harder for parents to get their kids health care,

08:29harder for families to put food on the table. We Democrats and Republicans should be working together

08:38to give some relief to workers. But instead, Republicans will choose to go it alone and vote

08:47to give the biggest corporations and the wealthy another unfair leg up. I will end with this.

08:55While I remain in disbelief and frankly disgust, I will always have hope.

09:01I have hope because it's not the people in this chamber with the power. It's the people. It's the people

09:10who will sadly feel the repercussions of this bill. It's the people who are rising up and will hold

09:18anyone who passes this disastrous bill accountable. That is where the true power is. And with that, I yield.

09:31So, if you look at the people who haveέρulating the world.

09:33It doesn't need to drive. That's what you do.

09:35Just a little bit nervously.

09:36It's the people who are there who are leading to this bill.

09:37It's the people who are there.

09:45They're not.

09:46It's a big deal.

09:49Yes, and to this, I think it's a big deal.

09:52It's a big deal.

09:53A big deal.

09:54So, if you want to take this bill, I want to talk about how to take it out.

09:56I'm just looking for some people that I have to say either.

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