Joe Neguse
Appearances
The MeidasTouch Podcast
Democratic Congressman Neguse on GOP Disaster CR
It's a great question. Good to be with you, Ben. And thanks for having me on. Look, first and foremost, I got to react to the clips that you just showed, because it is the height of absurdity for some of those Republican members. Literally, as the stock market is crashing, 401ks are vanishing. for countless Americans across the country.
The MeidasTouch Podcast
Democratic Congressman Neguse on GOP Disaster CR
Prices are going up across the board, and yet you have these Republican members, sycophants, praising the administration that is pursuing the reckless policies causing the harm that their constituents are experiencing. nonsensical. And of course, as you mentioned, the logical extension of this was today's vote on the CR, which they apparently were very proud of.
The MeidasTouch Podcast
Democratic Congressman Neguse on GOP Disaster CR
This is a bill that would cut funding for core programs that countless Americans rely upon. nutrition assistance, healthcare benefits, veterans benefits under the PACT Act for the next fiscal year, all on the chopping block under this partisan Republican spending bill that they pushed through the House earlier today. There is nothing to applaud about, but again, past is prologue.
The MeidasTouch Podcast
Democratic Congressman Neguse on GOP Disaster CR
It's clear that this is the course that they will maintain. And the fact that, as you said, you can see the sort of corruption on full display over at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue,
The MeidasTouch Podcast
Democratic Congressman Neguse on GOP Disaster CR
Today, it just is astounding, I think, to the average American who's struggling right now to make ends meet and to see a Republican majority in Washington, in the House, in the Senate, and in the White House that clearly cares nothing about ultimately improving their quality of life. It's shameful.
The MeidasTouch Podcast
Democratic Congressman Neguse on GOP Disaster CR
I mean, look, this is an it's an it's instructive in terms of where we are as a country. I think in the past, you know, I have a member or two that would approach me afterwards that understood that we had caught them, you know, in a bit of a trap, if you will, rhetorical trap. Right. They sort of exposing the hypocrisy of of their views in front of the Rules Committee.
The MeidasTouch Podcast
Democratic Congressman Neguse on GOP Disaster CR
but would understand that perhaps that might be something that they need to modulate in the future. These days, that's not the case. Generally speaking, as I said, most of the Republican caucus now are sycophants for President Trump. There is nothing that he has cannot do in their eyes, nothing that they won't bless and approve of and salute. And it's unfortunate.
The MeidasTouch Podcast
Democratic Congressman Neguse on GOP Disaster CR
I mean, again, this is not the way in which Article 1 branch of government, the United States Congress, is supposed to function. And yet, here's where we are. We find ourselves. So yeah, with respect to the Rules Committee, as you mentioned, it's a unique committee in the Congress because it's the only committee in the Congress that, A, has no time limit in terms of
The MeidasTouch Podcast
Democratic Congressman Neguse on GOP Disaster CR
the questions that are posed by members or the answers that are provided. And then secondly, as you said, it's an opportunity to be able to question your own colleagues.
The MeidasTouch Podcast
Democratic Congressman Neguse on GOP Disaster CR
And in my view, when you're coming in front of the Rules Committee and you're making the case to the American people for a policy that you're pursuing, then you ought to be artfully and honestly questioned about your own views and how they comport with the particular position you're taking. And often, as is the case, a lot of these members don't like ultimately being
The MeidasTouch Podcast
Democratic Congressman Neguse on GOP Disaster CR
you know, told or rather having it revealed to them the position they had taken on a particular issue previously that just lays bare the hypocrisy, which is all too common these days in Washington.
The MeidasTouch Podcast
Democratic Congressman Neguse on GOP Disaster CR
I think my answer to the first part of your question is unquestionably yes. I think people are frustrated and we hear from folks across the political spectrum about their frustration and displeasure with the way in which the Trump administration is conducting itself. I mean, look, I represent, you mentioned this,
The MeidasTouch Podcast
Democratic Congressman Neguse on GOP Disaster CR
A district, of course, in my view, the best district in the United States of America, but it's a large geographical district. It's larger than nine states, central and northern and western Colorado, right? Rural communities, urban communities, suburban communities, you name it. And as I go across my district doing town halls, because as House Democrats, we do town halls.
The MeidasTouch Podcast
Democratic Congressman Neguse on GOP Disaster CR
We actually enjoy town halls and visiting with constituents and listening to them and their concerns. I hear from folks who are deeply troubled by the mass purge of federal employees, right, at the Forest Service. These are people doing wildfire mitigation work, preventing the next megafire in the Rocky Mountain West.
The MeidasTouch Podcast
Democratic Congressman Neguse on GOP Disaster CR
People who are concerned about the land management agencies and the people working at our federal labs at NOAA and NIST, who are now being unceremoniously fired and purged from the federal workforce. They are concerned about the rising cost of living in an administration that clearly has
The MeidasTouch Podcast
Democratic Congressman Neguse on GOP Disaster CR
has no intention of doing anything about it and instead is only pursuing policies that will exacerbate the problem, right? I mean, you're an average working family looking at your 401k and realizing that in the last six weeks, the Trump administration has erased all gains in the last year. I mean, and clearly a recession potentially looming on the horizon. So yeah, folks are
The MeidasTouch Podcast
Democratic Congressman Neguse on GOP Disaster CR
Folks are pissed off, just to be candid. As I talk to people in my district, again, across the political spectrum, it's not to suggest that people don't want to see government reform. I think folks are hungry for reform. They're hungry to see fraud, waste, and abuse rooted out of the government.
The MeidasTouch Podcast
Democratic Congressman Neguse on GOP Disaster CR
But they don't want to see a chainsaw, a literal chainsaw, taken to the core functions of the federal government that serve Coloradans each and every day. They did not sign up for that.
The MeidasTouch Podcast
Democratic Congressman Neguse on GOP Disaster CR
Yeah, you're precisely right. I don't know that I could say it better than you just did. I mean, look, it's absurd. It's ludicrous. It's just sort of arsonists that are now complaining about the fire that they have created. And unfortunately, this is the most tragic part of all, is that there will be mass collateral damage to the absurdities of the policies that they are pursuing.
The MeidasTouch Podcast
Democratic Congressman Neguse on GOP Disaster CR
And so, you know, I think about the average working family in my district that's struggling to be able to buy a new car because car prices are soaring through the roof. Interest rates are still remarkably high. And what are they left with? They're left with, you know, the car infomercial that the President of the United States conducted earlier today on the White House lawn.
The MeidasTouch Podcast
Democratic Congressman Neguse on GOP Disaster CR
That is their policy prescription, right, is to engage in these reckless economic policies, the tariffs and the rest, unnecessary trade wars, and then ultimately offer nothing of actual consequence. to the American people who are really struggling. And from my perspective, that's the most confounding part of all.
The MeidasTouch Podcast
Democratic Congressman Neguse on GOP Disaster CR
House Democrats are going to remain focused, you know, as Leader Jeffries often says, keeping the main thing the main thing, which is quality of life, cost of living, addressing core challenges that the American people face that Republicans refuse to address. And as I said, if anything, are exacerbating.