Washington, D.C. – Today, House Budget Chairman Jodey Arrington (TX-19) delivered the following remarks on the House floor urging the passage of
H.R. 1, the
One Big Beautiful Bill Act.
Remarks As Delivered:
Mr. Speaker, for the last four years, the American people have suffered one self-inflicted crisis after another. From the chaos at our southern border to our crime ridden streets, to a cost-of-living crisis that decimated working families from sea to shining sea, leaving Americans weaker and our country more divided and more vulnerable than it's been in generations.
Colleagues, lest we forget how we got here and why this moment is so important and so consequential in the life of our country. Let's reflect on the recent history.
Under the leadership of Biden-Harris and Congressional Democrats, our federal government failed to enforce the laws of our land and unilaterally surrendered our sovereign border to terrorist drug cartels.
On top of that, our military mission was reduced from warfighter readiness to ideological indoctrination. We lost the confidence of our allies, the respect of our enemies, and America's influence on the world stage.
Unbridled spending and failed fiscal policies sent our country's economy into a tailspin. Trillions in deficit spending, trillions more in regulations, cradle-to-grave welfare without work, and an all-out assault on American energy independence wreaked havoc on our economy and created the worst inflation crisis in 40 years.
In November, the American people gave President Trump a historic mandate and unified Republican leadership in Congress to reverse course on these failed policies and their disastrous consequences.
And that's exactly what this bill does.
The One Big Beautiful Bill Act delivers:
- The greatest single investment in border security and national defense.
- The largest tax cuts for families and small businesses.
- The most significant commitment to unlocking America's energy resources.
- The largest reduction in spending in the history of the United States – by two-fold.
But in an attempt to derail our efforts – you can be sure of this – our Democrat colleagues will use their tired, old tactics of fear mongering and false claims.
They’d like to lead you to believe that this reconciliation bill is a “tax cut for the rich on the backs of the poor.” Their narrative throughout this process has not only been misleading and completely untrue – it prays on the fears of our nation's most vulnerable.
Here's the truth:
- The 2017 tax cuts lowered tax rates for every American household at every income level – with the lower income families benefiting the most, while actually increasing the amount of taxes paid at the top 1%.
- Three out of every $4 in the Trump tax cuts didn't go to corporations – they went to individuals.
- Workers experienced a record 25-year wage increase.
- Families received an additional $5,000 in median household income, and income for the bottom 50% grew three times faster than the top 1%.
- And, as a result, a record, 6 million Americans were lifted out of poverty.
But this won't stop our Democrat colleagues from scaring you with fallacious statements that children will go without food, seniors will be stranded without healthcare, and the disabled will be left to die in the streets.
All of this is just to cover for what they really want to do – protect healthcare and welfare at any cost for illegal immigrants at the expense of hardworking taxpayers and our citizens who depend on them.
And crazy enough, they also want to abandon the commonsense Clinton era work requirements that reduced government dependency by 80% - and instead – they would trap millions of people in poverty and rob them of the dignity of work.
But, by the overwhelming results of this last election – it’s abundantly clear – the American people see through this too, and they have totally rejected the Democrat's radical agenda.
Their message to Washington was clear: they want competent leaders, common sense policies, and a commitment from all of us to put America and Americans first.
Let's give the people what they voted for.
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