Some Brooklyn constituents call on Republican U.S. Rep. Malliotakis to vote against Trump's megabill
BROOKLYN (WABC) -- Now that Donald Trump's spending and tax cut bill has cleared the Senate and heads to the House, some Brooklyn constituents are hoping that the only Republican member of the city's Congressional delegation will buck her party and vote against it.
"Hopefully, people will join this fight. Because it's a fight for life," said Lisa Raymond of Indivisible Brooklyn, a social-justice group.
Brooklyn constituents of U.S. Rep. Nicole Malliotakis called on her not to vote with her party on the president's budget bill because of how it will affect millions of New Yorkers who rely on Medicaid and SNAP.
The bill includes major cuts to Medicaid and roughly $4 trillion in tax cuts for the wealthy.
It is expected to add over $3 trillion to the national debt in a decade's time.
"I hope that Nicole realizes that she may vote for this bill, but it's not going to come without a price. Her constituents are going to be furious," Raymond said.
The bill squeaked through the Senate with three Republicans rejecting it, causing a 50-50 split. Vice President JD Vance broke the tie.
And now it is in the House of Representatives where Democrats are gearing up for a fight.
"We will do everything we can to kill this legislation and to fight for the security, the food needs, of the people of the Bronx," U.S. Rep. Ritchie Torres said.
Torres says his family once relied on SNAP benefits, or food stamps, just as 1.8 million people in the city do now, and they could see those benefits slashed.
Food pantries like City Harvest are bracing for an increase in demand, and say they're not prepared to meet it.
"We've always seen that there is an uptick in pantry visits when there are policy changes to SNAP, so something of this scale, this is really something we haven't seen before," said City Harvest director Jerome Nathaniel.
And if the state and city try to offset those cuts, Nathaniel says there might be reductions in other places that will hurt all New Yorkers.
It eliminates taxes on tips and overtime, one of the president's campaign promises, but he also vowed not to cut Medicaid, and the bill includes deep cuts to that program. According to the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office, these cuts could mean more than 11 million Americans will lose their health insurance in the next decade.
"Why would anyone who claims to be concerned about protecting their constituents from these devastating Medicaid and health care cuts vote for Donald Trump's one big ugly bill," House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries asked.
Several House Republicans have already publicly said they will reject the Senate-approved version of the bill.
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