Progressives have launched their first organized campaign against Republicans’ tax agenda, urging Democratic lawmakers and activists to fight jointly against what they say will be tax breaks for billionaires.
“It’s a con, it’s a grift,” said Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) at a press conference with Congressional Progressive Caucus members on Tuesday. They argued the tax cuts plotted by Trump would leave wealth concentrated with the top 1 percent.
Liberal lawmakers and advocacy groups have started to sporadically address the wealth problem they see as corroding Washington under Trump and tech mogul Elon Musk, who is in charge of so-called government efficiency measures and controversial federal workforce cuts under the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE)
Democratic officials on Capitol Hill have spoken out individually and are now working in unison, bolstered by organizers as Republican budget discussions form. Many want to draw attention to the ramifications that potential cuts to Medicaid, food assistance programs and retirement benefits could have for working class people.
Progressives’ efforts are becoming more coordinated as the tax debate takes shape under GOP control of Congress, spotlighting the impacts that a few extremely wealthy figures could have on Americans’ daily lives.
“I have no idea what I would do with a billion dollars,” Murphy said. “The scope of the greed is something we have never seen before in this country.”
Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.), a Squad member, reframed the conversation around the policies that helped many progressive members win popular support in districts across the country. “The billionaire class may have their lobbies, but the American people have us,” she said.
“No more breadcrumbs for working people,” added Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.), the former chair of the CPC. “We need to focus on the greedy billionaires.”
