Rosa Takes On the Trump Administration

To a packed hall on Saturday at the First Congregational Church in Guilford, Congresswoman Rosa L. DeLauro (D‑3rd Dist.) addressed the challenges of the Trump administration, 10 months after the presidential election.

Her appearance was part of the Fall Kick-Off Meeting of Connecticut Shoreline Indivisible (CTSI), one of many grassroots organizations that formed in response to the 2016 election using the Indivisible Guide as its action plan.

With 26 years in Congress under her belt and a forceful presence locally, DeLauro is known more simply as ​“Rosa.” She has remained largely unchallenged over the years on both Democratic and Republican sides. However, Bryan Anderson, a fellow Democrat, has announced his intention to primary her next May for the 2018 Democratic nomination, coming out in favor of Medicare for All and calling for an end to the war in Afghanistan. 

Anderson, 62 (pictured),a former New Haven city alderman and housing authority executive director, is an experienced pol within the Democratic party in New Haven. Anderson announced his plans to challenge DeLauro yesterday on the steps of City Hall in Milford, where he currently serves as an alderman. Then he headed for the New Haven leg of his trip, capping a daylong swing through the Third U.S. Congressional District to announce his candidacy.

DeLauro’s campaign manager, Jimmy Tickey, confirmed that she would be running again in 2018. At 74, DeLauro shows no signs of slowing down.

No Republican candidate has yet emerged seeking the seat in 2018.

Asked later if she would come out in favor of Medicare for all, DeLauro said that there are ​“a lot of moving parts… I will study it, look at it. I’m in favor of the public option. (The public option is a portion of the ACA that would have created a Medicare-like health insurance policy that most U.S. residents could purchase as an alternative to purchasing policies from private health insurers.)

DeLauro has said she is in favor of more incremental expansions, which, she says, have a better chance of passing, and reiterated that on Saturday.

CTSI organizer Gini King reminded the audience of the importance of Connecticut Renewable Energy as a comprehensive energy strategy to fight climate change – action for values, as well as the importance of running for election (noting that Matt Hoey is running as the Democratic candidate for First Selectman in Guilford and standing up to immigration policies.) 

Organizer Joan Means said that people were stunned at Trump’s election, and had to figure out how to respond. “We had to do something,” she said. “The Women’s March on Washington was powerful, big, and loud.” In introducing DeLauro, she said, “She speaks in favor of those in need.”

Taking the podium with her usual energy, DeLauro bridged on the importance of running for office. “Why you want to serve is critically important.” She cited the “raw energy and enthusiasm that have been harnessed and channeled into action.”

DeLauro quoted Shirley Chisholm, the first black woman elected to Congress, “You don’t make progress by standing on the sidelines.” She also paid tribute to her mother, Luisa DeLauro, who died two weeks ago at the age of 103; at the age of 20 (in 1933) she wrote an article encouraging women to become more active. “Come on, girls, let’s make ourselves heard!” It’s a favorite story of DeLauro’s.

She acknowledged that this has been a “year like none other.” She said that people had been used to checking on the news on the morning and evening and now it’s 24 hours. “You cannot get tired,” she said. “Our fundamental values are under attack.” She listed the challenges to education by Betsy DeVos, and the assault on the Affordable Care Act (ACA) and social safety nets (part of which she helped to craft in the ‘90s as a bipartisan effort).

On Saving the ACA

DeLauro said that the people saved the ACA. “We need to do it again. It isn’t over. Pence is still trying to persuade the Senate. The ACA is still in peril.” That was on Saturday. Despite the lack of Senate votes on Tuesday for the Graham-Cassidy bill, Republicans are still threatening to pass some iteration of the bill at some time in the future.

Quoting a recent New York Times article, DeLauro said that GOP donors are not happy. “It’s not about healthcare,” she said. “It’s about campaign promises and donors.

“They’re playing politics with people’s lives… moral boundaries are needed.” She added that it’s about what constituents are saying… “your voice matters.”

DeLauro stressed the importance of Medicaid for nursing home care, disabled children within the school system (“Medicaid was my co-parent,” she quoted one supporter as saying), and treatment within the opioid crisis

The public said “no,” she said, “It was a victory.”

She said that we’re in a “life and death battle,” now they’re cutting appropriations such as advertising, enrollment time, cost sharing to states related to ACA implementation. “As a result premiums escalated in Connecticut just last week,” she said. “We’re on a month-by-month basis.”

She discussed Sen. Bernie Sanders’ proposal for Medicare for all. “We may be there ultimately, but I will fight like hell for ACA, work to lower premiums and deductibles,” she said. “It’s precarious – Democrats are not in the majority.”

Jobs Overview, DACA, and the Budget

“Jobs don’t pay enough to live on,” DeLauro said. She lamented that programs are being cut that build the economy – apprenticeship programs, job training, teacher training, literacy programs. “People don’t know what’s in the budget. They need to know.”

“What cruelty!” she said of Trump’s rescinding of DACA (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals). “It’s heartless. They played by the rules, reported to ICE.”

She told of a Congressional intern who resigned out of fear of being sent back to his native country. DeLauro, the daughter of immigrants, said that if her father applied to come to the US today under Trump’s watch, he would be denied entry because he couldn’t read or write English.

DeLauro was questioned why she voted in favor of military spending beyond the cap? (Senate just voted to approve a $700B Pentagon spending bill, while the House voted on it in July.) “We’re a defense-heavy state,” she said. “We make helicopters, subs, engines, plus there’s the supply chain and small businesses attached.”

She added that the Budget Control Act Sequester will subsequently result in massive cuts (Note: The sequester is a package of automatic spending cuts that’s part of the Budget Control Act (BCA), which was passed in August 2011. The cuts, which are projected to total $1.2 trillion, are scheduled to begin in 2013 and end in 2021, evenly divided over the nine-year period.)

She was also asked about the budget problems in Connecticut. Would it involve getting business to Connecticut via tax breaks? Is there a federal solution? She said that there’s no move toward tax reform, just tax cuts, company by company, adding that they outsource and take care of their stockholders. “There’s a need to incentivize business,” she said.

DeLauro was questioned about the assault on the environment, national monuments, and the Arctic Wildlife Refuge drilling. She was asked if there is cognizance in Congress. “Hello? Floods, hurricanes! Democrats are making a fight on that bill, energy and the environment. (Note: the Energy and Natural Resources Act of 2017 is centered on energy efficiency, infrastructure and cyber security, as well as federal land management and sportsmen’s access.) You do have allies,” she responded.

Youth Participation?

Noticeably lacking was the lack of younger people attending the CTSI event. DeLauro said that 70 percent of young people do not have college degrees (confirmed by US Census data and the U.S. Labor Department’s Bureau of Labor Statistics). She said they are concerned about jobs and student debt; college should be free, she added, echoing a Bernie Sanders belief.

Joan Means said that getting them involved is important. CTSI is partnering with schools and took part in the Guilford fair parade. DeLauro said it was important to engage ​“people where they are.” Means noted that a young Democrat has been invited to the group’s Washington team for its Oct. 14 meeting to brainstorm on how to connect with more young people.

The Future

DeLauro made no secret of her distain for Trump. ​“The President is anti-American,” she said. ​“Trump is reckless and dangerous. He understands nothing, he’s ill informed, and has no intellectual curiosity.” She added, ​“We’re no longer viewed as the leader of the world community.”

She addressed the daily fear of people that stems from Trump and his rhetoric, when she was asked if the Republicans represent the view of their constituents. She said a hindrance is the role of money feeding the donor base, which leads to the need for campaign finance reform. ​“Some Republicans are scared,” she said.

She encouraged people to ​“raise hell with your senators and reps” and, like Means earlier, stressed the importance of voting. She said Special Investigator Robert Mueller is working, doing his job, and his findings will dictate where we’ll go. ​“We have to follow the law.” She encouraged people to call attention to what going on, adding that organizations such as the American Constitutional Society are looking into lawsuits.

“The Least Among Us”

DeLauro chronicles her history of working for the underprivileged in her book, ​“The Least Among Us: Waging the Battle for the Vulnerable.” She discussed the book at an appearance at RJ Julia Booksellers in Madison during the summer.

The book lays out the legislation she proposed to strengthen social safety nets – food stamps, Medicaid, unemployment insurance. ​“Today the social safety net is under massive attack by the Trump administration,” she said, and it’s spearheaded by Speaker of the House Paul Ryan, who believes that by removing social safety nets, people will be more motivated to work.

She referred to her battle with former House speaker Newt Gingrich in the 1990s. ​“We blocked him on the food stamp issue. We can do it again.” She said Gingrich also wanted to dismantle the school lunch program, block grants, and Medicare.Her persistence earned the comment from former White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emmanuel, ​“Don’t make the b***h mad!” DeLauro admits she’s never been one to mince words.Unlike today, however, she said, originally the social safety net was a bipartisan effort with McGovern, Dole, Javitts, Kennedy supporting it.

DeLauro also details the conflict she experienced with the Catholic Church because of her support of women’s right to choose and the difficulty in obtaining equal pay legislation for women, saving the school lunch program, defending the Child Tax Credit, and fighting against the Trans Pacific Partnership.Many of these issues are still being debated today.She offers an insider’s look into the legislative process – the late-night meetings, phone calls, give and take required to craft a bill. Along the way, she pays homage to her parents and their immigrant roots. Their activism and her work as Sen. Chris Dodd’s chief of staff inspired her career in public service.

About CTSI

According to its mission statement, CTSI is a grassroots organization honoring the values of inclusion, tolerance, fairness, equal treatment of all people, and the care of the environment, and committed to creating a more just society, building local political influence, and addressing systemic injustice and inequality.

CTSI has five working teams, which went to work right after the meeting. They cover Washington politics, Connecticut politics, immigration and refugees, environment, and healthcare. The teams work with members of Congress and local legislators advocating for human rights, equality, affordable healthcare for all, and environmental protection. They have a Facebook presence at CT Shoreline Indivisible. Upcoming meetings are Oct. 28 and Nov. 18, 10 a.m. at the First Congregational Church in Guilford.

###