This moment demands leaders who can effectively stand up to Trump. That's a big part of why I'm running for governor.
Here's a longer story about a moment from the first Trump Administration that didn't get much attention at the time, but it shows what's at stake with this second Trump Administration. I hope you'll read it, and consider chipping in $5 to our campaign against Donald Trump.
It was a sleepy hearing in the Oversight Subcommittee on Economic and Consumer Policy. The title of the hearing was boring: "The Trump Administration's Proposed Changes to Broad-Based Categorical Eligibility for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program."
Despite the long name, the topic was hunger. The Trump Administration had drafted a new rule to make it harder for families to get food assistance. They wanted Americans who were already struggling to make ends meet to spend hours and hours filling out tedious and pointless forms.
I'd seen this show before. The reality of this paperwork burden is that those most in need don't get help, because they don't have the time and the process is too confusing. But, the scammers, who are determined to game the system, continue to cheat anyway. So, the rate of fraud actually stays the same or even goes up, but with certainty—the rate of hunger gets worse.
The witness chosen by Republicans was someone who had worked in Maine to implement these kinds of cumbersome forms for families in need. The form he created for food assistance was six pages asking for hyper-specific information—more detailed than even I had to provide for my financial disclosure as a Congressmember.
So, I asked the witness: How much do you pay for utilities? How often do you pay for sewer and how much? What day are you paid? What is your hourly rate of pay?
At one point he tried to deflect: "I don't know, but I could pull it up in 11 seconds."
But, I didn't let him off the hook: "Tick tock. I'll wait," I said, and I did.
He did not, in fact, find his info. So, he tried mansplaining: "I don't see what this has to do with—"
I cut him off. "Excuse me. I ask the questions, and you may either answer or refuse to answer, which is your prerogative."
Finally, I held up the six-page form he had designed, and I explained that those were just a fraction of the hoops families had to jump through so that they didn't go hungry. If he couldn't answer those questions easily, why had he demanded that families, who have fewer resources than him, need to do it?
By the way, that witness, Sam Adolphsen, is now Donald Trump's Deputy Assistant for Domestic Policy, where he can wreak that same havoc on nearly every form of support we provide people who are struggling to make ends meet.
This year, Donald Trump and his cronies are bringing back the exact same playbook to tear down all the important government programs that Californians rely on. We need fierce leaders standing up to them, and that's why I made the decision to get into this race.
I'm so grateful for the support I've so received so far, and I would love to have you on our team. Chipping in whatever you can makes a big difference.
Many thanks for reading,
Katie
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