Ocasio-Cortez Gives Floor Remarks Opposing Trump’s Big Beautiful Bill

Washington, D.C. - Today, Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) continued to fight against President Trump’s cuts to Medicaid and food assistance benefits during debate on the floor of the House of Representatives. The legislation, which is under consideration after passing the Senate by one vote on Tuesday, will kick 17 million people off of their health care and potentially cause local hospitals to shut down in New York and across the country. 

The budget cuts Republicans are proposing are required to fund tax cuts for the wealthiest people on the planet.

Find Representative Ocasio-Cortez’s remarks as delivered below:

“Thank you. And I thank the chairman.

You know, President Trump had issued some statements throughout this process saying and urging, insisting that this bill does not cut Medicaid. He's also said some things. You know, he says he doesn't think I'm too much of a smart person. And I'll tell you one thing, it doesn't take a smart person to know if you're being lied to.

President Trump, you're either being lied to or you are lying, because this bill represents, in the text of this bill, the largest and greatest loss of health care in American history. 

17 million Americans will lose their health care on this bill, not undocumented people, not, quote unquote, the disgusting term “illegal,” but 17 million Americans will have their health care cut from this bill.

On this point of tax on tips, as one of the only people in this body who has lived off of tips, I want to tell you a little bit about the scam of that text, a little bit of the fine print there. The cap on that is $25,000. 

While you're jacking up taxes on people who make less than $50,000 across the United States while taking away their snap, while taking away their Medicaid, while kicking them off of the ACA and their health care extensions.

So if you're at home and you're living off tips, you do the math. Is that worth it to you? Losing all your health care, not able to feed your babies, not being able to put a diaper on their bottom, in exchange for what? 

This bill is a deal with the devil. It explodes our national debt. It militarizes our entire economy, and it strips away health care and basic dignity of the American people.

For what? To give Elon Musk a tax break and billionaires the greedy taking of our nation. 

We cannot stand for it and we will not support it. 

You should be ashamed.”

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