Today, House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries joined House and Senate Democrats for a press event where he highlighted the unified Democratic opposition to the reckless Republican budget that does nothing to make life better for hardworking American taxpayers.

LEADER JEFFRIES: It’s a high honor and a distinct privilege to stand with our Senate colleagues, House and Senate Democrats, united together in strong opposition to this reckless Republican budget that will not make life better for the American people. It will continue to make things worse. Here in America, our country is far too expensive. The cost of living is out of control. Housing costs are too high. Grocery bills are too high. Gas prices are too high. Utility bills are too high. And healthcare costs are way too high. America is too expensive. And it’s a direct result of failed Trump-Republican policies.

We believe in this country that there are far too many people struggling to live paycheck to paycheck. Hardworking American taxpayers who can’t thrive and can barely survive. That is unacceptable in the United States of America, the wealthiest country in the history of the world, and things need to change. Democrats believe that in this great country of ours, when you work hard and play by the rules, you should be able to live an affordable life, a comfortable life and the good life. We believe that in this country, every single American should be able to afford to go see a doctor when they need one. That in this great country of ours, access to high-quality and affordable healthcare can’t simply be a privilege available only to the wealthy, the well-off and the well-connected. Access to high-quality and affordable healthcare should be a right available to every single American. And that’s what we’re going to continue to fight hard to bring about.

We believe that in this great country we have a broken immigration system. We’re committed to making sure we always have a strong, a safe and a secure border. But this broken immigration system, it should be fixed in a comprehensive and in a bipartisan way. We believe that taxpayer dollars in this country should be used to make life more affordable for the American people, not subsidize corruption of Donald Trump and his cartel. That taxpayer dollars should be used to make the lives of everyday Americans more comfortable, more affordable, give them the ability to experience a middle-class life and beyond. And that taxpayer dollars under no circumstances, which is one of the major problems with this reckless Republican budget, taxpayer dollars under no circumstances should be used to brutalize or kill American citizens or violently target law-abiding immigrant families. That’s unpatriotic, unacceptable and it’s un-American, which is why we are strongly opposing this bill. Immigration enforcement in this country should be fair, it should be just and it should be humane. But that’s not what’s happening in America right now. ICE remains out of control and we’re committed to reining them in.

And so, there’s a clear choice that the American people are going to be asked to confront over the next several months. Do you want an affordable country that Democrats are fighting hard to bring about, or do you want a country that solely is benefiting the wealthy, the well-off and the well connected? Do you want a country that brings people together, which is what we are committed to doing, or country where Republicans are continuing to tear us apart? Do you want to move America forward or do you want to turn back the clock? That’s the choice that the American people are confronting.

And Democrats remain committed to driving down the high cost of living, to fixing our broken healthcare system, to getting ICE under control, to ending this reckless and costly war of choice in the Middle East and to cleaning up corruption wherever it’s found—in the Congress, in the White House and certainly across the street in the United States Supreme Court. Democrats are going to fight hard to make your life better.

Full press event can be watched here.

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