May 3, 2025
Dear Friends,
This week marked 100 days since Donald Trump was inaugurated as the 47th President of the United States, ushering in a new era of fear, chaos, and cruelty unlike any in our nation’s history. In just a few short months, Trump and his administration have proposed and enacted a raft of calamitous policy changes that have left millions of American families facing higher costs, diminished public services, and threats to their fundamental rights, among countless other devastating impacts.
Americans don’t like what they’re seeing from Donald Trump and his cronies, and they’re already making their voices heard. Millions of people have shown up at rallies and town hall events across the nation — including the three meetings I’ve held here in our Capital Region — to express their alarm at this administration’s reckless and illegal actions. And in just 100 days, Trump’s approval rating has plummeted to just 42%, the second-worst approval rating for any president at the 100-day mark since the dawn of modern polling. Only one presidential term has started off worse in the eyes of the American people — Donald Trump’s first.
These numbers place Donald Trump atop the rankings of the worst presidents in the history of our nation. But while working families across the country shoulder the consequences of this administration’s incompetence, Trump remains unconcerned about the wellbeing of the American people. When global markets tumbled in response to his reckless tariff policies, Trump blasted Americans worried about a possible recession as “weak and stupid.” Instead of working on the new trade deals he promised, Trump has spent nearly a quarter of his second term golfing at his own resorts — costing taxpayers tens of millions of dollars.
And in a series of interviews and events this week to mark his first 100 days back in office, President Trump only doubled down on his disastrous record. “I don’t really believe I’ve made any mistakes,” he told one town hall audience — eliciting bursts of laughter from the crowd. At a rally in Michigan this week, Trump dismissed his falling approval ratings as “fake” and remarked wistfully: “I miss the campaign.” The bottom line: President Trump is completely uninterested in governing, correcting his missteps, or delivering on the promises he made to the American people on the campaign trail. Now, while Trump stews in his own delusions and distractions, working families across the nation are struggling with the impact of his dangerous agenda.
Trump’s so-called “Liberation Day” tariffs — representing the largest tax increase since the Vietnam War — are already setting off alarm bells for countless families here in our Capital Region and beyond. The U.S. economy shrank by 0.3% in the first quarter of this year — a sharp reversal from the 2.4% growth Trump inherited at the start of his term. Consumer inflation jumped by 3.6% over the same time period, and the non-partisan economists at the Yale Budget Lab estimate that Trump’s tariffs will cost the average American household nearly $5,000 per year in drastic price hikes on items ranging from fresh produce and clothing to cars and prescription drugs.
At the same time, Trump and his billionaire buddy Elon Musk are working to decimate the safety net programs that help sustain working families during challenging economic times. After illegally shuttering entire agencies and firing thousands of employees responsible for administering essential federal programs and services, Trump and his GOP allies in Congress are now attempting to force through drastic cuts to benefits that millions of Americans have earned. The Republican budget proposal contains at least $880 billion in Medicaid cuts and hundreds of billions in additional cutbacks to Social Security, anti-hunger programs, and much more — imperiling the lives and livelihoods of millions of people nationwide. Far from fulfilling his campaign promise to cut costs and make life more affordable for American families, Trump has done the exact opposite — and the American people are taking notice.
After more than three months of constant chaos and incompetence, more and more Americans are awakening to the damage caused by Donald Trump’s reckless and radical agenda. Throughout Trump’s first 100 days, your voices of protest and solidarity have provided a beacon of hope — helping turn the tide of public opinion against this authoritarian administration. Now, we must continue speaking out and standing up for our friends, our neighbors, and our communities. Together, we can keep up our momentum and reclaim a brighter future for ourselves and our children.
As always, thank you for reading.
Your friend,
DID YOU KNOW?
My office and I are working to make sure you remain informed with the latest updates, announcements, and recommendations from governments and agencies. With that in mind, here is some information that may be of interest to you:
- This week, Republicans are starting to lay the groundwork for their disastrous budget, which is set to include massive cuts to vital programs, including Medicaid.
- I’m committed to doing everything in my power to uplift your voices in Washington as I fight back against this painful budget betrayal.
- With that goal in mind, I want to hear from you about how Medicaid impacts your life or the lives of your loved ones.
- If you have a story to share about how the GOP’s proposed Medicaid cuts would hurt you and your family, I encourage you to take this short survey on my website.
- With your permission, I’m eager to share your stories with my colleagues to help them better understand the devastating impact these cuts would have on our families and our communities.
