Senator Reverend Warnock delivered a nearly hour-long Senate floor speech opposing Russell Vought’s nomination to lead the Office of Management and Budget (OMB)
The speech follows the recent federal funding freeze, orchestrated by Vought and the OMB, which has impacted federal funding and programs for everything from seniors to law enforcement to child care to veterans
Senator Reverend Warnock also used the speech to highlight personal stories from Georgians who have been impacted by the Trump Administration’s continued efforts to gut the federal government
Senator Reverend Warnock: “My state has been plagued by chaos, by confusion that has harmed Georgia families and Georgia workers and organizations serving their communities. We are witnessing, right now, a careless and heartless assault on federal investments and a freeze of government funding that has already been appropriated by Congress”
Watch Senator Reverend Warnock’s speech HERE
Washington, D.C. – Yesterday, U.S. Senator Reverend Raphael Warnock (D-GA) delivered a nearly hour-long speech on the floor of the U.S. Senate highlighting his opposition to Russell Vought’s nomination to be head of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB).
“I rise today in strong opposition to the nomination of Russell Vought to be the head of the Office of Management and Budget. His leadership will only continue the disruption that is hurting Georgians in every corner of my state, even as I speak,” said Senator Reverend Warnock.
During his floor speech, which was the longest of his tenure in the Senate, Senator Warnock addressed the continued efforts by the Trump Administration to gut the federal government from within. He also addressed the impacts of the Trump Administration’s federal funding freeze which has affected federal programs across Georgia and threatened services that support our veterans, law enforcement, seniors, schools, and our health system. The careless freeze is the brainchild of Russell Vought, the nominee to be the Director of the Office of Management and Budget.
“If you want to get a sense of who President Trump is looking out for, look at who he’s surrounding himself with. On that stage when he was inaugurated, you saw them, some of the richest people in the world. They were the ones who had proximity. Well, proximity matters. You can tell a whole lot about the character of a person’s public service based on the people who can get close to them. The folks who get to speak into their ear. If you want to know who Donald Trump is working for, look at who he’s surrounding himself with. The likes of Elon Musk, the billionaire, the richest man in the world who is now telling the rest of us that we need to tighten our belts. How quaint,” said Senator Reverend Warnock.
“Look, I will work with anyone who is able to have a serious bipartisan conversation about how to best utilize government resources and taxpayer dollars. Working across the aisle to get good things done for Georgia has been a cornerstone of my service in the Senate over the past four years. I’m listed as one of the most bipartisan senators in the Senate. I have worked with Republicans many, many times. But right now, the playbook is obvious. Cut programs that you rely on and give the richest of the rich the money. Robin Hood in reverse. Steal from the poor, give to the rich,” Senator Reverend Warnock added.
Watch Senator Warnock’s full speech HERE.
Below are key excerpts from Senator Warnock’s speech:
“Mr. President,
“I rise today in strong opposition to the nomination of Russell Vought to be the head of the Office of Management and Budget. His leadership will only continue the disruption that is hurting Georgians in every corner of my state, even as I speak.
“Over the past two and a half weeks, my state has been plagued by chaos, by confusion that has harmed Georgia families and Georgia workers and organizations serving their communities. We are witnessing right now a careless and heartless assault on federal investments and a freeze of government funding that has already been appropriated by Congress. To help Georgia seniors, veterans, students, and so many more.”
“I dare say that the people of Georgia who elected me, and the people of Georgia who elected Donald Trump, did not vote for this. But just as we warned, his dangerous plans are playing out in real-time. This is exactly what they said they were going to do. Some didn’t believe them. Even after they attempted to gaslight the American people into thinking otherwise, here we are in no time flat.”
[…]
“This stunt that was pulled a few days ago is a disaster for communities who want well-funded law enforcement, thriving businesses, safe roads and bridges, and as they attack federal workers, attack the government, they’re trying to convince you that the government is some third entity outside of us — some third entity outside of us? No, this is by the people, for the people, of the people.
“This is the highest of our aspirations, what we’re trying to achieve together. As we witness this assault, it is hitting Democrats and Republicans. Blue states and red states. As the people’s voices are being squeezed out of their democracy.
“Just last week, without even being confirmed, Vought orchestrated the effort to freeze federal spending, as if this money is his money rather than our money, the people’s money, throwing programs from infrastructure upgrades, to Medicaid, to free school lunches, to support for homeless veterans into chaos. How dare you take funds that are needed by the veterans of Georgia and all across this state? Those who fight for us should not have to fight with us to get what they deserve.”
[…]
“My constituents were deeply shaken by last week’s federal funding freeze. I received thousands of calls and e-mails from folks afraid of the freeze’s unknown harm to their community. So, let’s peel back the curtain even more on what happened over the last few days. The Trump Administration froze trillions of dollars of government spending to enact massive and disruptive funding cuts. These cuts are being orchestrated in part by Russell Vought and in partnership with the world’s richest man, Elon Musk — Elon Musk, the co-president.
“This unelected, unvetted bureaucrat who by my best guess appears to think that the livelihood of Georgians and Americans is some kind of start-up he can tear apart. So, if you want to get a sense of who President Trump is looking out for, look at who he’s surrounding himself with. On that stage when he was inaugurated, you saw them, some of the richest people in the world. They were the ones who had proximity. Well, proximity matters. You can tell a whole lot about the character of a person’s public service based on the people who can get close to them. The folks who get to speak into their ear.
“If you want to know who Donald Trump is working for, look at who he’s surrounding himself with. The likes of Elon Musk, the billionaire, the richest man in the world who is now telling the rest of us that we need to tighten our belts. How quaint.
“President Trump isn’t serving you, he’s serving them. He’s serving those in our country who are well off and who don’t play by the rules and putting at risk basic programs that help folks send their kids to school, keep food affordable, and lower their energy bills.”
[…]
“So when Elon Musk and his billionaire buddies go looking for spending cuts and they’re focused on cutting government waste, they start by targeting the working class. He said he couldn’t cut taxes for billionaires because they are the job creators. What about the folks who work on the job day to day? What about the folks who clean hospitals? Who mop floors? Who pick up our garbage? Why is it that those at the top deserve so much more than those working at the bottom? Those in the middle? Hardworking Americans who play by the rules?”
[…]
“Look, I will work with anyone who is able to have a serious bipartisan conversation about how to best utilize government resources and taxpayer dollars. Working across the aisle to get good things done for Georgia has been a cornerstone of my service in the Senate over the past four years. I’m listed as one of the most bipartisan senators in the Senate. I have worked with Republicans many, many times. But right now, the playbook is obvious. Cut programs that you rely on and give the richest of the rich the money. Robin Hood in reverse. Steal from the poor, give to the rich.”
[…]
“This is not how the most powerful government in the world ought to serve its people. The reality is, this new level of Washington’s dysfunction has real-world consequences that extend beyond Washington politicians. Georgia’s economy does not stop just because Washington is exercising a kind of chaos.”
“While we’re trying to get our act together up here, guess what? Farmers still need crop insurance, childcare workers in community health centers still need to make payroll, our roads and our bridges, and pipes still need repairs. When federal investments are put in limbo, the stability of our states and local communities are also put in jeopardy. And let me be clear, the trump administration has demonstrated that it will try this again and again and again, and when they do, the business community will suffer and Georgians will be out of their jobs, unless we stand up and say no.
“If this federal funding freeze continues, as Russell Vought hopes, the impact will be felt hardest by those who can least afford it. It’s easy in all the blusters of the beltway who is actually bearing the brunt of Donald Trump’s actions. Delays and freezing are not just inconvenient, they create instability, and they cost the jobs of our friends, our families, and our neighbors.
“So, it’s up to us in this moment to stand up. I am listening to the people who sent me to represent them. I’m thinking about those who do the work every single day. It is our job to respond to the call and the urgency of this moment. History will not treat us kindly if we are silent at a time like this.”
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