An Update From Your Congressman

 

LAST 2 WEEKS IN REVIEW

I’m your Representative in Congress and I write to keep you informed. Chaos & uncertainty weakening the economy Working to safeguard science and health The imperative to grapple with post-Covid learning loss Peace through strength; not ceasefire through appeasement Curbing online toxicity with Section 230 reform Students on Capitol Hill

Chaos & uncertainty weakening the economy

A call for a bold Democratic agenda : The Trump Administration is chaotic and corrupt, and the partisan continuing resolution (CR) was a blank check for the president that reduces oversight of his spending decisions and expands his ability to abuse emergency powers. I voted no.  I joined over 60 other House Democrats in a letter urging our Senate colleagues to also reject the CR. The American people did not send us to Washington to capitulate to chaos. We must use every opportunity, however rare in the minority, to show the American people how we would govern if given power. Voting for a bill that empowers Trump to tank the economy, threaten our allies, and strip benefits from veterans is not the way to do that.  Listen to my Impolitic Podcast episode with Puck’s John Heilemann on the eve of the Senate vote: Acquiescing to Chaos and Corruption.  Democrats must not simply oppose MAGA but also push bold, transformative ideas on how to build housing, build wealth, and build trust in this country. We cannot be the party of the status quo.    Talking a good economy into a recession : I joined Fox News Sunday this weekend as the Democratic guest to make clear that Trump’s reality TV show will be expensive for American families. Nonpartisan experts forecast that his tariffs – if he can ever decide on them – will cost families up to $2,000 a year. Airline executives are noting depressed travel demand; inflation expectations are surging; and the Dollar General CEO is saying his customers can only afford bare necessities when they shop. The president’s erratic economic and strategic policies are pumping uncertainty into the business climate, rattling consumers, and alarming allies like Canada. Congress should remove the president’s ability to abuse emergency authorities to levy tariffs helter-skelter; unfortunately, the continuing resolution that just passed actually grants Trump even more power over tariffs and trade.   Crunching the numbers on the GOP’s upcoming tax bill: Hundreds of constituents from the I-495 Belt of the district joined me for a virtual town hall. I laid out the arithmetic behind the Trump tax cuts and pay-fors. It starts with recognizing that the federal government spends money on five things: the military Social Security Medicare debt service non-defense discretionary (NDD) This last item, NDD spending, accounts for less than a fifth of federal expenditures but includes most things that come to mind when you consider the federal government: e.g., border security, Head Start, research funding, air traffic control, food and farm subsidies, and Medicaid. Trump has told congressional Republicans to pay for his $4 trillion of tax cuts, which are heavily weighted to the rich, by cutting only NDD spending. The arithmetic is quite clear: Republicans must slash Medicaid, which covers 40% of American children as well as at-home care for seniors, in order to pay for the tax cuts. Even that math won't add up, though; so Republicans are also intent on increasing the federal deficit to cover the cost, claiming that the tax cuts will pay for themselves. Cuts to Medicaid do not just harm its beneficiaries, though; anyone with health insurance through their employer is likely to see premiums go up, because Americans without health insurance visit the ER when they get sick, and hospitals cross-subsidize that unfunded mandate by increasing rates on commercial payers. Trump is trying to distract from this unpopular policy by keeping the media focused on his chaos. Democrats in Congress must defend the rule of law while still staying laser-focused on exactly what Trump doesn't want Americans talking about: he is trying to cut healthcare to pay for his tax cuts.   Heating bills and Massachusetts energy policy: I met with Lisa Wieland, President of National Grid New England, to discuss energy costs for Bay Staters. The Boston Globe has highlighted how the spike in recent energy bills is largely driven by state-mandated energy-efficiency programs bundled into rates. While these energy-efficiency programs may be salutary, they are also expensive.  Many lower-income Bay Staters are eligible for subsidies, but the middle class is increasingly feeling the pain of high gas and electricity costs. Massachusetts is not well connected to the energy grid, making us reliant on liquefied natural gas from Trinidad and Tobago to meet peak demand. Even with renewables coming online, the trend for Massachusetts energy costs is in one direction: up. One part of the ultimate answer for affordable, reliable, carbon-free energy for Massachusetts should be fission power. In the near term, residents in Southeastern Massachusetts who are struggling with energy bills should contact Citizens for Citizens for potential support through their  Fuel Assistance Program . This program is funded through Congress, and I am a perennial advocate for it in the appropriations process because I know how impactful it is for Bay Staters during the winter.

Would you support a nuclear power plant in Massachusetts to lower energy costs?

Working to safeguard science and health

Stand up for science : I joined the Stand Up For Science Rally on the Boston Common to add my voice to the hundreds who attended in support of curiosity-driven, peer-reviewed science, free from political interference. Massachusetts is proud to host scientists from the world over, tackling the hardest problems and building at the cutting edge. That innovation requires high standards, clear rules, and evidence-driven policy from Washington, not the chaos and corruption of the last two months. To stand up for science, I asked rally-goers to get their friends in Louisiana, Kentucky, and Idaho to contact Senator Cassidy (Chair of HELP), Senator Crapo (Chair of Finance), and Congressman Guthrie (Chair of Energy & Commerce) with a demand to conduct oversight of Health & Human Services, including the NIH, FDA, and CDC. The public pressure is already having an effect: the administration withdrew its nominee for CDC Director, a longtime anti-vax conspiracist.   Rallying bipartisan support for intellectual property: Senator Thom Tillis (R-NC) and I joined the national conference of AUTM, the association for tech-transfer officials at universities, to discuss intellectual property, science funding, and how innovation cascades from universities to businesses.  With DOGE slashing NIH research and FDA scientists and laboratories, it's critical that Congress muster bipartisan support for the fundamentals of America's science and technology enterprise: strong IP protections, R&D funding at (ideally) 5% of GDP, and reasonable regulations.   Supporting care for new moms: Brookline OB/GYNs met with my staff and me to discuss the importance of perinatal care. Medicaid covers up to 12 months of postpartum healthcare. These visits between doctors and new moms – both in-person and remotely – have proven particularly valuable in catching and reversing substance abuse issues.  The evidence is overwhelming that health and wellness support for mothers and young children pays big dividends for families and society; Congress must protect funding for perinatal care and expand early childhood investments.

The imperative to grapple with post-Covid learning loss

Democrats must rebuild trust with parents and students : My day-one issue after I was elected in the fall of 2020 was helping to reopen the schools. By summer of 2020, the evidence was clear that the schools could, and should, safely reopen. Dr. Ashish Jha, who would become President Biden’s COVID coordinator, made the case clearly and compellingly late spring and throughout the summer.  After winning election, I engaged everywhere across the three dozen cities and towns in the district and invited one of my partners in that work, a superintendent, as my guest to the State of the Union. But it took too long to get the schools open, and students are still struggling.  I recently spoke to the New York Times ahead of the fifth anniversary of the school closures about how Democrats must reflect on the failure of decision-making that kept the schools closed and rebuild trust with parents and students by delivering excellence in education. One example, here in our district, is 1:1 remote tutoring for students behind in math and reading.

Peace through strength; not ceasefire through appeasement

Ukraine needs security guarantees : The president is undermining Ukraine while bending over backwards to appease Vladimir Putin. The recent phone call between Trump and Putin appears to have been yet another episode in which Russia got more than it gave.  Without security guarantees for Ukraine, these talks are simply a platform for Putin. Security can be assured by: Using Russian frozen assets (~300 billion euros) to fund Ukrainian self-defense in three layers: border force, strategic reserve, aerial defense. This self-defense would cost ~$20–40 billion annually, meaning Russian frozen assets could provide for a decade of Ukrainian military-industrial build-up and troop deployment Committing EU troops and American snap-back sanctions (especially on oil and gas) to backstop Ukrainian sovereignty Extending the envelope of the EU Lisbon Treaty's Article 42.7 collective-defense provision to Ukraine immediately, and putting Ukraine on a glidepath to join the European Union no later than 2030   Trump's appeasement is not a 'reverse Nixon' : I joined the Silicon Curtain Podcast to rebuke arguments from Trump apologists who claim that he's executing a 'reverse Nixon' in his appeasement of Russia, by wedging China's junior partner from it. That's wrong.  First, because accepting the premise of Russian revanchism in Ukraine emboldens Chinese revanchism in Taiwan and the South China Sea.  Second, because undercutting NATO in attempting this wedge is more likely to drive Europe toward China, out of economic and security concerns, than Russia toward the United States.  And third, because Russia and China have given zero indication that their 'no-limits' partnership is unraveling — indeed, they are increasing cooperation. Weakness never works.   Ceding free airwaves to the Chinese Communist Party : Last November, I toured the headquarters of Radio Free Asia, which I have long supported as a bullhorn for American values and soft power in the Indo-Pacific. The administration's shameful mass firing of Radio Free Asia journalists saves taxpayers no money, decimates fact-based reporting in the world's most populous region, and hands a soft-power victory to Xi Jinping.

Curbing online toxicity with Section 230 reform

Talking to Middle Tech about Big Tech: Internet Works represents 'middle tech', companies like Yelp and Tripadvisor that are household names but not leviathans like Meta or Google. I met with Internet Works to discuss Section 230, the 1990s-era law that shields Internet companies from liability for user-generated content.  I have introduced bipartisan legislation to curtail Section 230, which social media corporations have used to avoid a duty of care for underage users. For example, deepfake videos violating the intimate privacy of young women are proliferating on social media platforms.  While I reject the status quo of Section 230, I do not seek reforms that would open up companies like Tripadvisor to vexatious lawsuits for every obnoxious comment left on their sites. I want competition and creativity on the Internet, which requires clear rules and legal certainty for small and medium-sized companies, which are less able to withstand litigation than big corporations. I am confident Congress can amend Section 230 in a manner that reduces online toxicity without leading to never-ending litigation that disproportionately hurts start-ups.

Students on Capitol Hill

My typical day in Washington : I spoke with high schoolers from Newton North High School and middle schoolers from Dexter Southfield (Brookline) on Capitol Hill. I told them about a typical day in Washington, from committee hearings to meetings in my office to votes on the House floor. They came prepared with great questions. I am always impressed and grateful for the teachers who organize these Washington trips and then chaperone big groups of kids through the crowded, crazy hallways of the Capitol. Thank you to teacher-chaperones!   And the survey says : Noble and Greenough School middle schoolers also joined me on the steps of the U.S. Capitol. We talked about the hearing on brownfield redevelopment that I had just left (which I don't think they found that fascinating); and also about TikTok and social media regulation, which got more engagement.  I asked these students my favorite question: if I could wave a wand and make it so that nobody in your class had TikTok, Instagram, or Snap, would you want me to? A majority of hands went up.   Town halls around the district : In the last couple of weeks I have held in-person town halls in Fall River and Taunton, as well as one Zoom town hall and one teletown hall. I listened to my constituents’ frustration and fear, and I shared with them my actions to defend the rule of law, protect Social Security, uphold U.S. global leadership, support science, and back evidence-driven policy-making.  Many also asked what they could do. My answer: determine one issue that galvanizes you and volunteer for a non-profit that advances it. Don’t retreat into your private sphere; expand the envelope of civil society.

Ask your Congressman

Question: Social Security is fast approaching a point where the trust fund reserves which keep the program going at full measure will be depleted. At such time (approx. 2035), if the program is not reformed the payouts will be reduced by somewhere in the neighborhood of 18- 20%. My question is, given the current climate in Washington, is there any chance of a bi-partisan effort to hammer out a reform package in the near future?”  - Bill, Milford Answer:  Negotiations on Social Security require trust, and trust regarding Social Security is in short supply right now because of the administration’s closure of Social Security offices and lies about fraud in the system.  However, there is the policy basis for bipartisan negotiations, eventually. In January, the Brookings Institution put forward a comprehensive proposal to fix Social Security. A former top economist to George W. Bush called the proposal “constructive” with the potential to “jump-start” discussion; he also offered thoughtful amendments . On the center-left, Social Security expert Alici a Munnell, of Boston College, called the Brookings proposal “balanced” and “workable” and recommended it be adopted. Munnell summarizes the core tenets: New revenues come from an increase in the taxable wage base from its current level of $168,000 to about $300,000 (as opposed to eliminating the cap altogether), a small increase in the tax rate, greater taxation of benefits for high-income beneficiaries, and ensuring that the pass-through earnings of business owners who materially participate are subject to the payroll tax.  The major benefit cut is an increase in the full retirement age – but only for those who have seen meaningful increases in life expectancy and can work longer. The two other cuts extend the period for computing average earnings from the highest 35 to highest 40 years and phase out the dependent spouse’s benefit, recognizing the increased labor force participation of women.  The final component involves the logical move of placing all revenues ever collected from the taxation of retirement and disability benefits into the Social Security trust funds. At this point some of these revenues go to the Hospital Insurance trust fund, so changes would be required in the Medicare program.  This component also involves an expansion of coverage by: 1) increasing immigration caps for direct care workers – a group sorely needed to provide long-term care services – and other groups; and 2) extending coverage to the roughly 5 million state and local workers not currently participating in Social Security, who benefit unfairly from Social Security’s progressive benefit formula and family benefits. You can submit a question for a future newsletter here . Please note that casework inquiries for federal agencies must be submitted to my website here . My casework team will respond to these in a timely manner.

Onwards,

Jake

WASHINGTON 15 Independence Avenue SE 1524 Longworth HOB Washington, DC 20515 Phone: (202) 225-5931 NEWTON 29 Crafts Street Suite 375 Newton, MA 02458 Phone: (617) 332-3333 ATTLEBORO 8 North Main Street Suite 200 Attleboro, MA 02703 Phone: (508) 431-1110