WASHINGTON—The Century Foundation and Nate Schenkkan, Freedom House’s former director of research, announced the development of a new democracy index, United States Democracy Meter, which finds that the U.S. government under Trump in 2025 “slid well into authoritarianism.” While other established indices have previously found the United States to be gradually declining over the past twenty years, no measure has yet tracked the historic collapse of U.S. democracy on the scale we’ve seen in the last 12 months.
Based on in-depth analyses of the health of state institutions, non-state sectors, individual rights and elections, Century’s Democracy Meter scored the U.S. at a 57 out of 100 this year, down from 79 in 2024—an astonishing 28 percent drop in just one year, a decline so large that it’s typically only seen when countries have coups, our researchers say. To put this in context, our analysis suggests U.S. democracy is at greater risk than at any time since Watergate, and it may even be approaching its pre-Civil Rights Movement lowpoint.
“It’s no secret to anyone watching the world around them that America is suffering from a surge in authoritarianism,” said Nate Schenkkan, the report’s lead author. “But seeing it all laid out—especially against the backdrop of what’s happened in 2026 so far—is staggering and should force everyone to think about how seriously we take preserving and restoring our democracy.”
“Our democracy is not self-executing. Failing to vigorously defend and improve it only sows the ground for authoritarian movements and actors,”said Thanassis Cambanis, Director of Century International and coauthor of the report. “While it’s clear that authoritarianism has taken hold in America, we are not without recourse through elections and mass mobilization.”
The report reveals that the core problem for the United States is the expansion of the executive branch’s powers, aided by a Republican-controlled Congress’s acquiescence and abetted by a highly ideologically aligned Supreme Court. More than half of America’s overall drop in score was in the evaluation of the category “state institutions,” which covers the executive branch, Congress, the judiciary, and grand corruption. This category fell from 22/30 points to 10/30.
The only category that did not have a decline was elections, with the score holding at 12/15 both years, as the lack of federal authority over election administration has so far prevented the Trump administration from changing the rules of the game. Elections can still be a means of contesting and changing power.
“American democracy is at greater risk than at any time since Watergate, and it may even be approaching its pre-Civil Rights Movement lowpoint.
“The U.S. government has become authoritarian in its intentions and its practices, even if it cannot always achieve its authoritarian goals.”
Alarming but Not Irreversible
“The swift decline of U.S. democracy this year is alarming. It is the result of choices by the right wing of American politics, which is committed to transforming the state from the inside out, and complacency, particularly from elite institutions, about the risk of authoritarianism. Importantly, however, the right wing has not yet succeeded in consolidating an authoritarian system. The United States’ size and diversity, tradition of independent civil society, its wealth, and its decentralized electoral system all make it difficult to keep power.
“The typical post-World War II democracies to which the United States is most often compared—Canada, Japan, and those in Europe—have not had these sorts of democratic declines. Other less healthy democracies have experienced similar collapses, but only after coups, attempted coups, or major shocks. The democratic decline in the United States over the last year is remarkable in modern history.
“The first priority for action is to defend the areas that are still robust, and will be needed for democracy to make a comeback. Media, civil society, and the protection of individual rights are essential to halting and then reversing democratic decline. For the opposition to have a chance of winning power, the electoral system needs to be sustained. These institutions need to be protected through legal campaigns, but also through protests, donations, and individual choices.
“The second priority—possible to pursue if there is a change in political power—must be to remedy the gaping structural weaknesses in the U.S. system. The executive’s ability to enact such rapid and extralegal changes in such a short time has been conditional, first and foremost, on the Supreme Court’s highly partisan tilt and the Republican Congress’s abdication of its role. Neither branch has acted to check the executive, and have mostly supported it running roughshod over the law and the constitutional order. When even federal judges are no longer extending to the government the “presumption of regularity,” and are expressing frustration that the Supreme Court operates without clear reasoning, the system is broken.
“Democracy is not self-implementing. Without decisive action to address these issues, it will remain vulnerable to concerted efforts to undermine it. The first responsibility is to defend democracy, and the second one is to rebuild it.”
See the report: https://tcf.org/content/report/centurys-new-democracy-meter-shows-america-took-an-authoritarian-turn-in-2025/
The Trump administration’s latest attack on clean energy, climate action and energy independence in order to bolster the fossil fuel industry, prompted New York Governor Kathy Hochul, Massachusetts Governor Maura Healey, Connecticut Governor Ned Lamont and Rhode Island Governor Dan McKee to issue a joint statement decrying the action (which was already overturned in federal court), and promising to continue to fight the action in court. In addition, Governor Hochul published an op-ed in the Empire Report. These are projects that have been years in development, have gone through all the regulatory and environmental reviews, and have been well underway, nearing completion and would supply millions of households with lower cost energy while addressing the crisis in reducing carbon emissions contributing to climate change, climate disasters and sealevel rise. The relationship between the dependence on oil, wars and imperialism is heightened as Trump with one hand overturns clean energy initiatives and carbon emission standards, while he takes over Venezuelan oil tankers threatens an invasion of Venezuela to take over its oil resources.
“The Trump administration’s announcement yesterday pausing offshore wind leases is its latest egregious attack on clean energy and it lands like a lump of dirty coal for the holiday season for American workers, consumers, and investors. Pausing active leases, especially for completed and nearly completed projects, defies logic, will hurt our bid for energy independence, will drive up costs for America ratepayers, and will make us lose thousands of good-paying jobs. It also threatens grid reliability that is needed to keep the lights on.
“Atlantic states are working hard to build more energy to meet rising demand and lower costs. Already, these projects have created thousands of jobs and injected billions in economic activity into our communities.
“This baseless, reckless and erratic action from the Department of Interior will also inject further uncertainty into the markets, making it harder for states and private companies to secure financing for public works projects if investors know they can be stopped at any time despite having gone through all the necessary local and federal approval processes.
“A federal judge earlier this month ruled the Trump administration cannot simply halt federal approvals of offshore wind permits arbitrarily. We are committed as governors to again fight back to ensure these projects move forward and provide power, jobs, and grid reliability to our communities.”
Governor Kathy Hochul: ‘Killing Jobs Won’t Power America;
Today, Empire Report published an op-ed by Governor Kathy Hochul responding to President Trump’s suspension of offshore wind projects. Text of the op-ed can be viewed online and is available below:
Right in the midst of the holiday season, we learned that President Trump is once again pulling the rug out from under New York workers. Without warning, his administration shut down Empire Wind 1 and Sunrise Wind, along with offshore wind projects in other states. In one reckless move, he put thousands of good-paying jobs and New York’s energy future at risk.
Imagine working hard all year, only to find out that your job is suddenly gone. That is reality for nearly 2,000 New Yorkers who woke up yesterday wondering if they will still have a paycheck. People who did everything right, worked hard, and showed up every day, are now being told their livelihoods do not matter. Not because these projects failed. Not because the permits were flawed. But because the President decided to pull the plug.
The jobs building these wind farms aren’t just good union jobs that keep families afloat — they are also jobs that will create clean energy and keep energy costs down. Just a few months ago, the New York State Independent System Operator warned that unless New York starts generating more power quickly, we could face blackouts as soon as this summer.
That is why New York is aggressively pursuing an all-of-the-above energy approach. We build. We plan. We use every tool available–solar, wind, nuclear, and gas–because keeping the lights on and costs down is not optional.
Empire Wind 1 and Sunrise Wind are central to that effort. Together, these projects are expected to generate enough electricity to power roughly 10 percent of New York City. They strengthen reliability at a time of growing demand. They reduce pressure on energy prices for families already stretched thin. And they anchor a robust offshore wind supply chain, from ports and manufacturers to electricians, ironworkers, and longshoremen who depend on these projects to keep working.
President Trump’s vendetta against wind projects is obsessive and baffling. It is also not new. When President Trump issued a stop work order on Empire Wind 1 earlier this year, I convinced him to lift it. Alongside the Attorney General, I went to court to ensure he could not arbitrarily deny new offshore wind permits. Just as canceling Empire Wind 1 was unacceptable months ago, this new stoppage is unacceptable now.
The President is now hiding behind claims of national security, arguing that projects approved by the Department of Defense and fully permitted at the federal and state level, are suddenly a threat. New Yorkers know the truth. The real threat is not a carefully designed offshore wind project. It is a President undermining America’s ability to produce its own energy.
Mr. President, you and I agree: Energy independence matters. So let us build.
I have saved wind power in New York before. And now, in partnership with the other impacted states, I will do it again. This will not be the year that hardworking New Yorkers lose their paychecks during the holidays because their President turned his back on them. This will be the year that New Yorkers have the jobs they need and the power their economy requires, at a cost they can afford, because I will never stop fighting for New Yorkers.
New York City, one of several anchor protests among some 2700 “No Kings” protests and rallies nationwide, drew an estimated 350,000, stretching three miles down 7th Avenue. In all, some 7 million participated in what is considered the largest peacetime protest against a sitting president in history.
They represented the diversity of everyday New Yorkers and carried signs declaring they are taking back the inalienable rights of Americans. Signs mocked Trump, the Trump Administration and MAGA Republicans who tried to brand the protesters as “un-American,”, “unpatriotic” and “antifa” (“Aunt Tifa says No Kings”) with a broad coalition standing perhaps for different interests (science, public education, women’s rights, immigrant rights, due process and law and order, climate and the environment) but all with the same message: they are proudly anti-Fascist, just like 1776 and 1941 and want to reclaim democracy, inalienable rights, the rule of law, “We the People” and “Justice for All.”
They were reacting to armed military in the streets and descending from Blackhawk helicopters in the night; individuals snatched up by masked men wielding assault weapons without warrants but based on what they looked like, wore or where they lived or worked; children as young as six handcuffed and taken or left alone on the street; protesters gassed and violently assaulted for exercising their freedoms. They were reacting to billions of dollars and tens of thousands of federal workers slashed from healthcare, public education, research, environment and infrastructure to give billionaires tax credits and fund the emerging police/military state. They were reacting to malicious prosecutions of political opponents, charges against fund-raising groups of financing terrorism, labeling Democrats, liberals and progressives as “terrorists.” They were standing up to protect their “inalienable rights” of free speech, free press, to protest and assemble, and most significantly, the right to vote. They were standing up for “We the People” and “justice for all” just as the founding documents promised.
What was striking is that these were ordinary, everyday people. Families with their young children, young, middle-aged and old, every race and ethnicity.
There was good cheer, good humor, clever signs and costumes! Many reflected the desire for America to return to a place of kindness, compassion, empathy (“Make America America Again”) and the marchers manifested that with their own kindness, civility, compassion for each other.
Meanwhile (as MSNBC reported), it was “business as usual” for Trump – going to his Mar-a-Lago estate (where he illegally stored stolen classified documents), fundraising and playing golf, as he reveled in the hardship, suffering of others by keeping the government shut down and uses it as an opportunity to attack Democrats and kill “Democrat programs” – you know, things like healthcare, public education, clean energy, violence prevention, counter-terrorism, cancer research, climate change mitigation and disaster aid.
Trump is also cutting billions of dollars in previously allocated funding for infrastructure projects in Blue states and cities (including the $18 billion Hudson Gateway Tunnel) and on Friday, cancelled $11 billion more projects in New York City, Baltimore, San Francisco and Boston, prompting many in the Blue “donor” states (which send more tax dollars to Washington than they get back in federal funding) to start talking about withholding federal tax money, since Trump is weaponizing Democrats’ tax money against them. (His attempt to withhold funding for counter-terrorism in NYC was stalled by a court but Trump feels he has an ace in the hole with his Imperial Supremes.)
There was also a sense of urgency to take back rule of law, due process, and democracy before they are lost altogether. People worry that Trump is already rigging the midterms and will only build on what he tried to do on January 6, 2021 to keep power (why else is he building a $250 million ballroom at the White House, paving over the Rose Garden, building arches in Washington DC, and spending $1 billion to retrofit the Qatari Air Force 1?). But there is also the urgency of now because so much of the damage has already been done – to our world standing, to our economic power, to peoples’ livelihoods and lives, to our leadership in technology and innovation as the US faces the kind of brain drain that Germany experienced with the rise of Nazism.
As if to prove the point, Trump put an exclamation mark on it by his latest demonstration of pardoning criminals who support him and prosecuting and persecuting anyone who opposes him, criticizes him, or dares to prosecute his criminality and abuse of power. He had just freed the fraudster George Santos (forgiving the $350,000 in restitution Santos owed his victims) and bombed yet another vessel in Caribbean waters, continuing to extra-judicially assassinate people he claims are “narco-terrorists” without evidence, yet sent back two survivors to their home countries (so not really drug traffickers?), and gleefully declares that fishermen are now too afraid to put their boats in the water. And as his tariffs bankrupt American soybean farmers and his Big Beautiful cuts to healthcare cause health insurance premiums to double and triple, causing millions to lose their healthcare altogether, he is doling out $40 billion to Argentina to prop up its corrupt president, spending $172 million on private luxury jets for Kristi Noem, and millions to gild the White House and hold a vanity military parade.
Americans are worried that Trump’s militarization of the streets is aimed at provoking violent response to give him the excuse he craves to invoke the Insurrection Act and unleash martial law to intimidate people from going to the polls in the midterms so that Republicans keep control of the House and Senate. Actor and activist Robert DeNiro, a major supporter of the No Kings protest, said on MSNBC these massive No Kings protests, showing solidarity and community, are meant to make people feel comfortable, empowered and determined to exercise their right to vote.
The question remains what Trump’s enablers, the Congressional Republicans, see. Do they even care about voters or do they have confidence the elections are sufficiently rigged? They clearly don’t care about their constituents who are suffering because of their complicity in Trump’s unconstitutional abuse of power, from his illegal tariffs that are tanking the economy and inflating prices, to sending military to fire upon Americans in their communities, to firing federal workers, to cancelling billions of dollars of their own Congressionally appropriated funding to Democratic states, cities and universities, to his rampant, corrupt pay-to-play deal making, to the malicious, vindictive prosecution of his enemies, obstruction of justice and evisceration of due process and the rule of law.
We know what the dictator wannabe Trump sees. He proudly posted images of himself and Vance wearing crowns and Jeffries and Schumer wearing sombreros (which should show Latinos who elected him in 2024 how he disrespects them), and when the New York Times asked for his comment, White House spokesman Abigail Jackson responded in an email, “Who cares.”
That’s the statement of someone who doesn’t care about votes, or elections, or courts because he believes he is all-powerful. It’s the “Whadya gonna do ‘bout it” principle of governance. As he told Christians in the 2024 campaign just vote for him once more and “you don’t have to vote again. We’ll have it fixed so good, you’re not gonna have to vote” and warmly embraced Chief Justice Roberts at the State of the Union, telling him “I won’t forget.”
Trump’s authoritarianism should come as no surprise, though. In the 2024 campaign, Trump said he wanted to tear up the Constitution and be a dictator on Day 1.
Trump and the MAGA Republicans have demonstrated that their interest is ruling, not governing and they seem quite comfortable in believing they will be able to suppress the vote and control elections (and the vote count) enough to maintain control (gerrymandering to eliminate Democratic districts, instituting stringent ID requirements, tampering with mail-in voting, making polling places less accessible, and now, the major electronic voting machine company, Dominion, has been taken over by a Republican operative, so like all their accusations, “They are rigging the election” is a confession.)
Nationwide, organizers (some 200 groups led by Indivisible, Moveon, 50501) estimated a 7 million (topping the 5 million of the June event) in 2700 cities, towns and villages across all 50 states, making it the largest peacetime protest in history. Rallies were also held in other countries.
“Today, millions of Americans stood together to reject authoritarianism and remind the world that our democracy belongs to the people, not to one man’s ambition,” Ezra Levin and Leah Greenberg, co-founders of Indivisible, which helped organize the event, said in a statement.
Notably, the New York Police Department reported zero arrests.
Here’s the deal: New Yorkers will hardly notice a government shut down because the trump administration has effectively cut off funding, has already effectively shuttered agencies and government services, canceled investments, fired so many federal workers and experts so that important agencies like Social Security, Medicare and the IRS are barely able to function. (Unlike President Biden whose biggest investment legislation like the Bipartisan Infrastructure Act, sent 2/3 of funding into Red states – for which he got no credit.) Now trump and the MAGA Republicans are barreling toward their wet dream of repealing Obamacare without actually having to go through the process of voting, while shoving a budget down the throats of Americans that will upend health care and public health – moving back to making access to health care a privilege, not a right.
After cutting Democrats out of actual budget negotiations for months, their claim to just pass the CR and have weeks more to negotiate is pure deception, they are blaming Democrats for the shutdown by lying (as usual) that Democrats want “Cadillac health benefits for illegal immigrants.” Not at all. Democrats are fighting to prevent the hike in health insurance premiums coming as soon as this month – a 60-year old couple earning $85,000 will see their health insurance premium increase to $27,000 – making insurance unaffordable. This is part and parcel of a trump administration “whole of government” plan to make Americans weaker, sicker, poorer, and if possible die off sooner rather than be a financial burden.
Moreover, Trump has already defied the Constitution and clawed back Congressional appropriations, while Republicans have proven to be untrustworthy. The Democrats have learned their lesson and heard their constituents who are pleading for them to stand up to this lawless, cruel administration.– Karen Rubin, news-photos-features.com
Governor Kathy Hochul and New Yorkers rallied today to call out President Trump and Washington Republicans for turning their backs on Americans and shutting down the federal government. After bending the knee to Trump’s reckless trade war and devastating Big Ugly Bill, Republicans in Congress are once again abandoning their constituents to enact further pain and chaos at the behest of the Trump Administration.
“After voting to gut food assistance and healthcare for millions of New Yorkers, Republicans in Congress – including seven members from New York – are once again recklessly siding with Donald Trump to shut down the federal government. Republicans were given another chance to stand up for their constituents, yet they chose to leave town rather than work in good faith to avoid a government shutdown,” Governor Hochul said. “The GOP shutdown will have devastating effects on workers, small businesses and families throughout our state. Washington Republicans need to do their damn jobs, actually stand up for the people they serve, and come to the table to end this shutdown.”
Trump and Congressional Republicans have already inflicted pain on New York. Their agenda:
Strips 1.5 million New Yorkers of their health coverage
Puts 300,000 New Yorkers at risk of losing SNAP benefits
Burdens hospitals with over $3 billion annually in uncompensated care costs
Slashes $8 billion from the State health system per year
Threatens an $11 billion hit to overall economic activity, including agriculture and food industries, due to the loss of SNAP benefits
And this shutdown will cause even more destruction:
With more than 115,000 federal employees in New York State, tens of thousands will be furloughed, while essential federal employees, including air traffic controllers and TSA employees, will be forced to work without pay
Pauses or delays in the processing of applications for Social Security, veterans benefits, and other federal benefits
Critical programs, such as SNAP and WIC, are at risk of running out of funds and pausing benefits in the event of an extended shutdown
Threatens funding for Head Start programs across the state, jeopardizing childcare and early education for thousands of New York families
Hospitals across the state will be left waiting for federal reimbursements
Creates uncertainty for hundreds of thousands of families and seniors with housing vouchers or that reside in public housing who will be worried whether their rent will be paid
Farmers left without emergency aid while facing detrimental trade policies
Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins said, “Today’s government shutdown is the direct result of ongoing chaos in Washington and a lack of leadership. This shutdown will have a rippling effect, and it is the Republican Party who must be held responsible, including the seven GOP members of Congress from New York, and the party infrastructure here at home that enables them. This is not about smart governance, this is about their insensitivity to the cruelty and pain they are inflicting on their fellow Americans. This shutdown will force workers to go without paychecks, seniors to go without food, veterans to go without healthcare, and countless communities to suffer in numerous ways because of their political games. While here in New York, we will continue to do everything in our power to stand up for our people. The truth is that the effects of this shutdown will be devastating, and no state will have enough resources to undo every wrong that Washington Republicans are committing. I implore New York’s Republican Representatives to stop enabling this cruelty, to stand up for America, and to put people over party. The people of New York, and this country, deserve nothing less.”
State Senator Toby Ann Stavisky said, “I know how many working families depend on basic needs—putting food on the table, having health care they can count on, and having access to housing they can afford. President Trump, meanwhile, is more concerned with escalators, fake science, and Jimmy Kimmel more than the millions of New Yorkers about to lose their healthcare and SNAP benefits. Republicans control both houses of Congress, and this reckless shutdown robs families of security. We must hold them accountable for preferring chaos over common sense.”
State Senator Liz Krueger said, “This MAGA Shutdown is just the latest example of the damage being done to regular New Yorkers by Donald Trump’s policies that put his billionaire donors first and the American people last. While Democrats in Washington are standing up for families about to lose their health insurance, Republicans are doing their utmost to take it away and make life harder, all while Trump’s reckless flailing drives up inflation and puts the economy on the edge of recession. Enough is enough.”
New York State AFL-CIO President Mario Cilento said, “I want to thank Governor Hochul for consistently demonstrating the kind of leadership we urgently need, a stark contrast to the void of leadership in Washington. To be clear, this shutdown and all the pain it will cause lies squarely on the Administration and Congressional Republicans. Their calculated, cruel, and chaotic decisions will harm every American as healthcare costs soar. In addition, this will lead to the loss of jobs for countless dedicated public servants, whom we deeply respect and appreciate, and put at risk the vital services they provide to the American people. We need united leadership that will bring people together and prioritize the needs of everyday working people. The Union Movement in New York State stands together. We will fight this outrageous assault on working people with all the strength of our collective resolve.”
DC37 Executive Director Henry Garrido said, “Our members are the backbone of this city and this country — dedicated public workers who care for the sick, educate our children, keep our streets safe, and ensure our communities thrive. President Trump’s reckless government shutdown disrespects the very people who make this nation work. Shutting down the government is not leadership — it’s a failure to value working families and protect them from harm. At DC 37, we stand united with all public workers across this country. We demand respect, dignity, and an end to using our livelihoods as political pawns. Social justice is a union issue — and this injustice will not go unanswered.”
32BJ SEIU President Manny Pastreich said, “The Republicans who control the House, Senate and White House are playing with the health and livelihoods of millions of Americans. Over 22 million Americans are about to see their health care premiums skyrocket by an average of 75 percent because Republicans will not extend Affordable Care Act premium tax credits, and direct and contracted government workers are at risk of losing their much-needed paychecks. 32BJ SEIU represents approximately 2,400 hard-working federally contracted security officers, office cleaners, and food service workers across multiple states and D.C. – workers who would bear the brunt of a Republican-created government shutdown. Not only do 32BJ members earn less than direct federal employees, but they also would be ineligible to receive backpay. A government shutdown would turn their lives upside down, forcing many to risk eviction, have their utilities turned off and leave them unable to feed themselves and their families. In New York, we represent hardworking security officers and cleaners at the Statue of Liberty, the Federal Reserve and other federal offices who would be impacted.
State Senator Brad Hoylman-Sigal said, “Donald Trump and his minions recklessly shut down the federal government, and its ordinary New Yorkers who will pay the price. As Trump holds the federal budget hostage and demands cuts to vital health care funding, nearly 3 million New Yorkers face losing access to the SNAP benefits that provide them groceries, New York federal courts may be unable to administer justice, New York housing project approvals may grind to a halt because of a housing loan application freeze, New York small businesses may face closure because they are unable to obtain federal loans, New York travelers may face undue delays at airports because of staffing shortages, and the 16 million annual visitors to New York national parks and historic sites will be shut out. All this to say nothing of the nearly 185,000 federal workers in New York who may go without pay. I stand with Governor Hochul and other elected officials to demand that Donald Trump and his cronies stop selling out New Yorkers and re-open the government as soon as possible.”
State Senator Roxanne J. Persaud said, “Putting politics over people with a reckless shutdown threatens the health, food security, and livelihoods of millions of New Yorkers. This is a cruel betrayal of working families, and we should not stay silent while our communities are left to suffer.”
State Senator Peter Harkham said, “In just nine months, President Trump and the Republicans in Congress have inflicted immeasurable damage to the health, safety and security of New Yorkers. Their chaotic and cruel governance ignores the rule of law and serves the ultra-rich while life becomes more precarious each day for too many statewide. True to their character, the administration and its allies are already blaming everyone except themselves for the wreckage they will be causing and lives being severely impacted with a government shutdown.”
State Senator Brian Kavanagh said, “The reckless, destructive actions of the Trump administration and Republican majorities in both houses of Congress over the past nine months have threatened the housing stability, healthcare, and food security of countless Americans. Their decision to shut down the federal government will only cause more pointless harm. I am proud to stand with Governor Kathy Hochul and our colleagues here in New York to oppose these destructive actions and to work to ensure that the government we’ve been elected to lead continues to provide critical resources and offer solutions to the big problems we face.”
State Senator John Liu said, “After slashing healthcare funding in the Big Ugly Bill and terrorizing immigrants across the country with ICE attacks, President Trump’s Republican-controlled government is doubling down on its reckless and dangerous behavior by shutting down the government. This Republican-led shutdown will have devastating impacts on the institutions, programming, and services affecting all New Yorkers, from our hospitals to our farmers and families struggling to make ends meet. It’s abhorrent that New Yorkers, along with working people across the country, are being forced to pay the price for the GOP’s chaos and disorder.”
State Senator Shelley B. Mayer said, “A government shutdown will have significant adverse consequences for New Yorkers and Americans across our country. We need to be clear: to avoid a shutdown, there needs to be an agreement that protects New Yorkers from the disastrous impacts of the Trump agenda. And yet so far, the Administration will not agree to such an agreement. The Trump Administration and Congressional Majority have spent the last nine months pursuing an agenda that harms all New Yorkers ––stripping Medicaid coverage from 1.5 million New Yorkers, cutting SNAP benefits that feed thousands of our neighbors, threatening funding for our education system, and tearing apart immigrant families. A government shutdown will only cause further harm. I urge our Republican colleagues who represent New York to step up and reach a meaningful agreement that protects New Yorkers from this imminent harm.”
State Senator Jeremy Cooney said, “Because of reckless decisions in Washington, New Yorkers are suffering devastating consequences. More than 1.5 million New Yorkers have already lost access to health care. Nearly 3 million more are at risk of losing SNAP benefits, hospitals are strained, and farmers are being denied emergency services. Our communities deserve better, and we won’t stop fighting until they get exactly that.”
Assemblymember Rebecca A. Seawright said, “As Chair of the Committee on Aging, I am deeply concerned about the devastating impact this reckless shutdown will have on older New Yorkers. Seniors across our state depend on SNAP, housing assistance, and access to health care to live with dignity. Stripping away these lifelines is not only irresponsible — it is cruel. I stand with Governor Hochul and my colleagues in calling out Trump and Washington Republicans for putting politics over people and endangering the health, safety, and well-being of millions, especially our most vulnerable neighbors.”
Assemblymember Andrew Hevesi said, “President Trump and Washington Republicans, including New York’s GOP delegation, have led our country to the brink of a disaster. The last nine months have been a failure of leadership, and now as their party argues over petty grievances, millions of vulnerable New Yorkers will suffer. Today, the cost of their inability to govern will be 2.8 million New Yorkers losing SNAP benefits; hundreds of thousands of women and children left without the WIC nutrition program; tens of thousands of federal workers going without pay; and countless hospitals and farms facing financial ruin. Congressional Republicans must stay in Washington until they reach a deal that keeps the government funded and open, and does not destabilize access to healthcare, or food and nutrition programs.”
Assemblymember Linda B. Rosenthal said, “For someone who boasts about knowing the art of the deal, Donald Trump has proven completely feckless in running the government. We are just nine months into Trump’s presidency and the federal government has already shut down, millions are bracing for the loss of food assistance and over one million New Yorkers are preparing for the loss of their health insurance. Donald Trump and his Congressional puppets have made it clear that they have no interest in serving the needs of the American people, just using their power to benefit themselves and their billionaire friends. New Yorkers, and voters across the country, will remember this when Congressional elections are held next year. I am glad that Governor Hochul is once again fighting back and protecting New Yorkers against the dangers of this administration.”
Assemblymember Ron Kim said, “This federal administration has already cut funding for vital programs that keep New Yorkers safe and healthy, and a shutdown of the government for any length of time will cause devastating harm to countless people. I stand with Governor Hochul in urging our leaders in Congress to pass a funding measure that ensures the government can continue providing its indispensable services to all Americans while protecting their health care and other essential benefits.”
Assemblymember Michaelle C. Solages said, “The Trump Administration is gutting services, and Republicans in Congress are cheering it on with a reckless shutdown. Healthcare, SNAP, and WIC are lifelines, not political toys. If they keep choosing Trump over their own constituents, families will pay the price. I stand with Governor Hochul in demanding these funds stay protected.”
Assemblymember Harry B. Bronson said, “The attacks on the American people from President Trump and his administration have now come to a head with the federal government shutting down. I am proud to stand with my democratic colleagues at all levels of government to protect New Yorkers’ healthcare, jobs, and safety. This shutdown is the fault of President Trump and his accomplices. Their unwillingness to negotiate a fair budget and their commitment to eliminating healthcare for so many will have devastating financial impacts on our friends, families, and neighbors. Thank you, Governor Hochul, for your leadership to support New Yorkers when our President will not.”
Assemblymember Rodneyse Bichotte Hermelyn said, “President Trump and Washington Republicans are once again putting politics over people with this reckless shutdown. Here in Brooklyn, where so many families are already struggling, and now millions shall stand to lose food assistance, health care, and housing support. These cuts would be devastating for women, children, immigrants, New Yorkers who rely on SNAP and working families. I stand with Governor Kathy Hochul and my colleagues to demand an end to this crisis and protect our most vulnerable communities.”
Assemblymember Latrice Walker said, “If the government shutdown goes beyond a week, the WIC program will likely run out of money. It’s the nation’s signature nutrition program for low-income mothers and babies, servicing more than 440,000 New Yorkers – including constituents in my district. A prolonged shutdown would also cause nearly 3 million New Yorkers to lose their SNAP benefits. Housing vouchers will be delayed, putting people’s stability at risk. The shutdown will have a devastating impact on the most vulnerable Americans – a sadly predictable continuation of cruelty coming from President Trump and the GOP-controlled Congress. I urge lawmakers in Washington to come to an agreement before irrevocable damage is done to people who need the most help.”
Assemblymember Alicia L. Hyndman said, “This shutdown is not just reckless; it’s deeply harmful. New York families are bearing the brunt of Washington Republicans’ political maneuvering, with millions at risk of losing food assistance, health coverage, and housing support. I stand firmly with Governor Hochul and my Democratic colleagues in calling out this failure of leadership. We were elected to protect our constituents, not to play politics with their lives. It’s time to reject chaos and recommit to fighting for the dignity and stability every New Yorker deserves.”
Assemblymember Manny De Los Santos said, “As an Assembly Member for the 72nd District, I stand with Governor Hochul and New York Democrats in condemning Donald Trump and Washington Republicans for causing a government shutdown. This is more than politics — it hurts working families in Northern Manhattan and across New York State. Cutting health care, food, and housing support will devastate our communities. Families deserve stability, not chaos, and I’ll keep fighting to make sure every New Yorker has the resources they need to thrive.”
Assemblymember Al Taylor said, “A government shutdown isn’t an abstract headline, it’s an immediate hit to families in our communities who depend on food assistance, health care, and housing support. When Washington Republicans choose chaos over solutions, New Yorkers pay the price. From Harlem to Inwood, we know what’s at stake: it rips food off tables, puts health care out of reach, and takes stability away from families right here in New York. I am proud to stand with Governor Hochul in demanding that people’s needs come before partisan politics.”
Assemblyman Charles D. Fall said, “As a legislator committed to protecting and improving the lives of New Yorkers, I am appalled by the reckless, callous, and reprehensible actions of Republicans in Washington. This government shutdown is nothing short of immoral—it is cruelty disguised as politics from people who are supposed to serve the public. It renounces millions of Americans who rely on essential programs like SNAP, WIC, and housing vouchers—programs that prevent families from going hungry and keep them from sleeping on the streets. It denies emergency aid to hardworking farmers who feed this very nation. Rather than serving people Republicans swore an oath to protect, they have chosen political gamesmanship that inflicts real harm on vulnerable communities. Standing alongside this manufactured crisis is not leadership—it is cowardice, negligent, and a betrayal to the American people.”
Assemblymember Alex Bores said, “Trump’s disastrous agenda has harmed millions of New Yorkers and this shutdown will only exacerbate the problems he has caused. With Congress controlled by powers that would harm our state, New Yorkers should feel confident that their state government will continue to provide the everyday services they rely on, with or without help from Washington.”
Assemblymember Jenifer Rajkumar said, “The lives of millions of New Yorkers are at risk today due to an ideological game of brinkmanship playing out in Washington. Continuity of government is essential to our democracy, yet this shutdown is taking food out of the mouths of our fellow New Yorkers, pulling the plug on our healthcare system, picking the pockets of women and children, and giving the boot to people needing housing assistance. For the sake of New York and our nation, we must rise above the extremism permeating politics, and orient our moral compass to common sense, unity, and problem-solving. I am proud to partner with Governor Hochul to deliver real solutions to uplift New Yorkers. Together, New York will stand up to Washington extremists and be the epicenter of the unifying, practical leadership our Nation needs.”
Assemblymember Grace Lee said, “Trump and Republicans in Washington are once again putting politics before people. This reckless shutdown will harm millions of New Yorkers, stripping away food assistance, health care, and critical support for women and children. I stand with Governor Hochul to hold Republicans accountable for the damage they are causing to our communities.”
Assemblymember Nikki Lucas said, “A government shutdown is not only reckless, but completely irresponsible on the part of Washington Republicans and President Trump. This is just another example of them putting the people of these United States last. I urge House Democrats to stay strong and continue fighting back. The residents of district 60 in East New York, Brownsville and Canarsie, like communities across our city and country, are relying on all of us to be responsible stewards of their present and future.”
Assemblymember Larinda C. Hooks said, “This shutdown is more than a government issue, it’s a family issue. It means parents worried about whether they can take their child to the doctor, seniors questioning if they can afford their medicine, and neighbors wondering how they’ll put food on the table. In times like these, our communities deserve stability and peace of mind. As a democrat, I will stand firm and not bend to the will of the Washington Republicans who intend to take away the people’s ability to survive.”
Assemblymember Tony Simone said, “Donald Trump and Congressional Republicans have betrayed the American people. This stunning refusal to ensure our hard earned tax dollars be used to keep our hospitals and farms running, to keep children from going hungry, to keep housing aid from the most vulnerable among us, all in the name of tax cuts for the wealthy and an ego-driven trade war, is shameful and outright theft from our pockets.”
Assemblymember John Zaccaro, Jr. said, “President Trump’s government shutdown is nothing short of a dereliction of his duty and his oath of office. New Yorkers, many of whom live in the Bronx, have already been devastated by the President’s reckless agenda. Now, the President wants to shut down the government—forcing nearly 2.8 million New Yorkers to lose SNAP benefits, putting 442,000 women and children who rely on WIC at risk, delaying housing vouchers, stalling hospitals waiting for federal reimbursements, and leaving farmers without emergency aid. The President is willing to decimate the working class and shut down the government simply to hand his billionaire and millionaire cronies a tax break.”
Assemblymember Micah Lasher said, “Trump and Congressional Republicans have hijacked the federal government and stripped it for parts. They’ve robbed 1.5 million New Yorkers of their health coverage and taken food stamps from hundreds of thousands more — all while making billions for Donald Trump and his family and giving tax breaks to Trump’s rich friends. They now seek to pass the most unfair, unconscionable spending bill we have ever seen. No one who is a patriot should go along for this ride,” said Assemblymember Micah Lasher. “We in New York believe in making sure working families have the basic necessities, not bigger yachts for Trump and his pals. We demand that Congress put an end to the cruelty and the corruption.”
Assemblymember Emerita Torres said, “New Yorkers deserve leaders who will fight for them, not politicians who undermine their livelihoods. A federal government shutdown will strip vital services and programs from millions of New York families, including healthcare and food programs, as well as veteran support. As a former federal worker who was furloughed during Trump’s first government shutdown, I know firsthand the stress and financial uncertainty these reckless political stunts can cause. While Republicans continue to follow Trump’s dangerous agenda, I stand with the Governor and New York Democrats in putting our communities first.”
Protesters took to New York City streets on Saturday, September 20, to call for climate, social, and economic justice, and specifically, making billionaires and polluters pay up.
The “Make Billionaires Pay” march united climate activists, migrant rights defenders and women’s rights advocates in their demands for climate and social justice. Climate movement researchers say the coalition reflects a growing shift toward intersectional, grassroots mobilization as climate action stalls at the federal level. It is led by 350.org, Climate Defenders, Desis Rising Up and Moving (DRUM), Target Majority NYC and Women’s March.
“I hope we can scare Trump and his billionaire allies,” said Renata Pumarol, deputy director of Climate Defenders, a multi-racial and multi-generational climate organizing hub. “We need to show them that we are organized, and that there are more of us than them.”
“The billionaire fascists are setting our world on fire,” Target Majority NYC stated. “They’re dismantling democracy, attacking immigrants, and fueling war. They profit off genocide and climate collapse. This moment demands mass mobilization. As world leaders gather in New York City for the UN General Assembly and Climate Week, it’s time to show them that we are revolting against Trump and the billionaire class. We’re calling on people across the US to join the nonviolent resistance by hosting a march in your community or joining the anchor march in NYC.”
“Everything feels out of control. ICE raids tearing families apart. Genocide streamed live on our screens,” Womens March declared.” Free speech and our freedoms under direct attack from the Trump regime. And billionaires are pouring gasoline on every fire while families can’t make rent. They want us scattered. Silent. Afraid. Today, we gather in power. As the United Nations meets and Climate Week begins, we take the streets of New York City- lound, undeniable, impossible to ignore.”
“Make Billionaires Pay”
They gathered during Climate Week, as the United Nations General Assembly gets underway.
They marched as the Trump administration is actively rescinding the historic climate actions of the Biden Administration to transition to a clean, renewable energy economy, cancelling regulations to protect the air and water from pollution, cancelling tax credits for electric vehicles, actively shutting down the offshore windfarms that were already well under construction, his EPA Administrator, Long Islander Lee Zeldin who unsuccessfully ran for New York Governor, rescinding the Endangerment Finding that empowers the federal government to regulate carbon emissions contributing to climate change.
“As soon as the second Trump administration took office in January 2025, he unleashed an immediate and unprecedented attack on our environment and public health,” writes the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC). “This includes a rollback of crucial environmental safeguards, the repeal of bedrock environmental and health laws, the delay of critical protections for endangered species, and attacks on well-established science and scientists.” (https://www.nrdc.org/resources/white-house-watch-tracking-attacks-our-environment-health)
The actions are not only hurting public health, exposing communities to more severe and deadly climate disasters, but affordability, as well. Ending the development and transition to clean, renewable energy makes American households dependent on ever-rising prices for fossil fuels.
“Clean energy has lowered Americans’ bills, created hundreds of thousands of jobs, and helped fight climate change. But it’s bad for the fossil fuel industry’s bottom line, and Trump seems willing to stop at nothing to slow it down – including breaking the law his own party just passed,” the Climate Action Campaign (CAC) writes. “We need to build as much clean energy as we can to help avoid the worst impacts of climate change. Thanks to Trump and his fossil fuel cronies, Americans are getting more pollution, higher bills, and more deadly extreme weather instead of the healthy, safe, and prosperous future we deserve.” (https://www.actonclimate.com/post/cacs-alt-on-trumps-latest-attack-on-wind-and-solar/)
It’s hard to keep track of all the aggressively, in-your face anti-climate, anti-environment, anti-public health actions trump has unleashed – this list was compiled with the help of AI:
Withdrew from the Paris Agreement again.
Prioritizes fossil fuel production while actively attacking clean renewable energy development: Trump’s “America First Energy Plan” prioritizes fossil fuel development, including oil, coal, and natural gas, aiming for energy dominance through deregulation.
Reviving oil pipeline projects that communities rejected.
Opened protected areas for drilling: Trump administration finalized decisions to open Alaska’s Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) and other federally protected lands and waters to drilling.
Declared a “national energy emergency” during his 2025 inauguration to justify further expansion of fossil fuel extraction and streamline the permitting process for new oil and gas projects.
Rolled back Clean Power Plan
Weakened vehicle emissions standards:
Targeted renewable energy: The second Trump administration has halted new offshore wind projects, even ones that were nearing completion, and limited tax credits for wind and solar projects as well as credits enabling homeowners to incorporate solar energy.
Reduced Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) authority and budget, undermining its ability to enforce environmental regulations, while declaring it would not bother to regulate polluters.
Weakened the Clean Water Act: The administration repealed the 2015 Clean Water Rule, narrowing the scope of federal protection for wetlands and small streams and leaving more waterways vulnerable to pollution.
Scaled back national monuments: Trump dramatically reduced the size of several national monuments, including Bears Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante in Utah, to open up land for resource extraction. In 2020, he opened the Northeast Canyons and Seamounts Marine National Monument to commercial fishing. In the second term, he has gone back to reverse Biden’s re-designations.
Loosened methane regulations: The EPA weakened rules that limited methane emissions from oil and gas operations on public and tribal lands.
Targeted toxics and pollution standards: The administration rolled back standards for mercury and air toxics from power plants and loosened rules regulating coal ash disposal, and delayed or rescinded standards keeping “forever chemicals” out of drinking water.
Cut climate research funding including those at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and The National Weather Service, stopped satellite monitoring showing impacts of climate change, and cancelled reports that measure climate change.
Dismissed climate change: Trump and his administration frequently expressed skepticism about the scientific consensus on climate change and dismantled interagency groups designed to coordinate climate action and continues to call climate change a “hoax” and a “scam.”
Limited the “social cost of carbon”: An executive order disbanded the interagency working group that calculated the “social cost of carbon”—a metric used to quantify the economic damages from greenhouse gas emissions—and directed agencies to consider eliminating the calculation. Companies are discouraged from calculating the risk of climate change in their investments and public reporting.
Reduced public health protections: A 2018 analysis by Harvard researchers estimated that the environmental rollbacks could lead to thousands of extra deaths and millions of additional respiratory problems per decade due to increased pollution.
Meanwhile, a new study led by a Stony Brook University researcher projects that, due to climate change factors, there will be more wildfires in the coming decades, and their smoke could lead to tens of thousands of deaths by 2050.
Climate disasters have become more severe and more frequent and more costly even as Trump moves to shut down FEMA. The US spends $150 billion annually on climate-related disaster relief (as much as what Trump has allocated to militarize mass deportations), with recent years seeing even higher costs due to increased frequency of major events. The US experienced 27 billion-dollar disasters in 2024, totaling $182.7 billion – well above the 5-year average.
Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lee Zeldin has proposed rolling back carbon pollution standards for existing coal and new gas-fired power plants and dismantling standards that limit dangerous Mercury and Air Toxics (MATS) pollution from coal plants. These rollbacks would worsen air quality, hurt public health, and exacerbate the climate crisis.
“Climate pollution is worsening health and living conditions for so many of our families nationwide, which is why people across party lines strongly oppose their repeal,” stated Climate Action Campaign Director Margie Alt. “The EPA was created to protect people, not polluters. Eliminating these vital air pollution and climate protections will make our families sick, poison the air, and make extreme weather triggered by the climate crisis more deadly and destructive. The EPA should honor its mission to protect our health and environment, not advance an agenda that puts polluters first.”
Thousands of Americans are now dying each year from heat stroke, with global warming setting new records for temperature year after year.
“Clean energy has lowered Americans’ bills, created hundreds of thousands of jobs, and helped fight climate change. But it’s bad for the fossil fuel industry’s bottom line, and Trump seems willing to stop at nothing to slow it down – including breaking the law his own party just passed.
Even as his administration works aggressively to harm the environment, unleash climate change rather than mitigate against it resulting in public health emergencies ranging from epidemics, to heat stroke, to asthma, to heart disease, trump is working to dismantle public health altogether.
A kind of catch-all for protest in what has become a rolling series of protests, other issues being voiced included democracy, rule of law, immigrant rights, human rights, Palestinian rights, ending war and conflict.
Governor Kathy Hochul today outlined the turmoil created under President Trump’s first 100 days in office, warning that his administration’s retaliatory policies, deep federal cuts and unilateral tariffs are poised to negatively impact New York’s economy, the environment and hard working families. Last week, New York State joined a multi-state lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of President Trump’s global tariffs. According to independent estimates, Trump’s tariffs will cost the State’s economy more than $7 billion, result in more than 280,000 jobs lost and hit New York families with an average cost increase of $6,400. New York has also led the fight to protect federal funding from cuts and disruptions that are impacting more than $1.3 billion in federal funding for New York and has successfully challenged in court the Trump Administration’s global funding freeze, as well as cuts to the National Institutes of Health, the Department of Health and Human Services, the Federal Emergency Management Agency and other critical federal agencies.
“The first 100 days of the Trump Administration have been rife with chaos and uncertainty, from on-again, off-again tariffs to cuts to vital programs, New Yorkers are paying the price,” Governor Hochul said. “President Trump promised relief from inflation and his policies are making life harder, chaotic and more expensive for working class New Yorkers while slashing the very services they rely on.”
Implications for New Yorkers during President Trump’s First 100 Days Include:
More than $1.3 billion in cuts to funding for State programs so far with more expected, in addition to the funding cuts to local governments, universities and other organizations delivering critical services to New Yorkers
Massive fluctuation in the stock market from ever changing tariff policies has shrunk 401(k)s and 529 college savings plans, and is expected to increase cost of living for New Yorkers by thousands of dollars
Manufacturers and small businesses are reeling from severe cost hikes on some products due to tariffs, leading them to leave shipments in customs or cancel orders
Canadian and European travel to New York has dropped and hotel stays and trips in regions such as the North Country and Western New York have been cancelled
The pause of construction of Empire Wind, which will have a profound impact on jobs and energy production
Cutting millions in funding that allows school districts and food banks to buy produce from local farmers who rely on their purchases
Three Social Security Administration offices closed in New York
Eliminated every person in the office that manages a program helping over 1 million New Yorkers pay their heating and cooling bills
Cuts to the NIH paused the critical research of a New York Scientist on Alzheimer’s treatments
Cut over $300 million in infrastructure funding for New York communities, threatening our public safety
Cutting the majority of federal AmeriCorps funding in New York, which supports approximately 1,500 AmeriCorps members working for non-profits and in low-income communities across the State
PUBLIC SAFETY AND IMMIGRATION
The Trump administration has revoked more than $325 million in vital resiliency funding from the Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities program and put $56 million more at risk, which will impact several critical infrastructure and community resilience projects in New York State.
Additionally, DOGE is planning to cut up to 84 percent of staff from their Office of Community Planning and Development, which helps pay to rebuild homes and other recovery efforts after the country’s worst disasters such as Superstorm Sandy and Tropical Storms Lee and Irene.
The Albany National Weather Service (NWS) Office was forced to suspend weather balloon launches due to staff shortages and budget constraints. This has impacted the ability of the NWS to provide twice-daily balloon launches, impacting the accuracy of weather forecasts.
After Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detained a Sackets Harbor mom and her children, Governor Hochul took action, engaging with the White House, Border Czar Tom Homan and local officials in an effort to bring the family back home. After 11 days in detention, the family was returned to Sackets Harbor.
ECONOMY AND TOURISM
The stock market has been unstable due to President Trump’s on-again, off-again tariff policy. This has caused retirees’ 401(k)s and students’ 529 savings plans to shrink. Additionally, consumer confidence plunged, to 50.8 percent in April from 71.7 percent in January. The dollar has weakened, falling to a three month low in April.
The Governor has heard from small and mid-sized businesses across the State who are worried about rising costs and their future. A recent survey from the National Small Business Association found that the majority of small businesses are concerned about tariffs and one in three are very concerned. Examples include North Country manufacturer Alcoa, which took an estimated $20 million hit on imports from Canada, and North Country Golf Club which is facing declines in businesses due to the decline in tourism from Canada. In the Southern Tier, the Cortland Standard, which was in business for more than a century, has closed its doors, citing the expected 25 percent tariffs on paper as part of the decision.
The Trump administration is cancelling the successful Manufacturers Extension Partnership (MEP) in several states. In New York, NY MEP centers generated $1.25 billion in economic impact, supported the creation or retention of nearly 6,300 jobs and served over 700 companies during the 2023 calendar year. This decision has raised widespread concern across the entire national network of MEP Centers, prompting fears about whether these initial cancellations are the first step in a broader effort to dismantle the program and eliminate federal funding for all 51 centers.
Due to the tariff trade war with Canada, New York’s number one trade partner, and the rhetoric that Canada could be the “51st state,” impacts are widespread. Visitors from Canada are avoiding the U.S. and New York State. Overall, total bridge crossings between Eastern Ontario and New York State for March are down 23,000 compared to 2024, and at the lowest level since 2022. Additionally, Niagara River bridges traffic for February is down 14 percent and Thousand Islands Bridge crossings are down 19 percent.
A survey of local businesses in the North Country found that 66 percent have already experienced a slight to significant decrease in Canadian bookings for 2025, and that 26 percent have already adjusted staffing levels in response to the decline.
TRANSPORTATION
President Trump’s Department of Transportation vowed to kill congestion pricing from day one of his administration, despite clear evidence that the program is working. The MTA reported that in March, traffic is down 13 percent, travel times have improved in key corridors within the Central Business District and it has increased revenue for the MTA that will result in improvements in the system.
IMPACTS ON HARD WORKING FAMILIES
President Trump has reduced the federal workforce by more than 120,000 people nationwide according to data compiled from CNN. In New York more than 1,200 federal workers have been forced to file for unemployment.
The Trump administration has pledged to cancel the successful and free Direct File tax filing program. This program has already begun to make an impact in its first full year, with many New Yorkers saving nearly $300 per household in tax prep fees that could instead go toward groceries, gas, child care or rent.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture slashed hundreds of millions of dollars in funding that helped schools buy food from local farms. The program sought to bring local produce to schools and child care facilities, giving schools the opportunities to purchase fresh foods and use smaller producers rather than rely on large corporations.
The Trump Administration announced that half of all food shipments through The Emergency Food Assistance Program (TEFAP) would be canceled, resulting in a $500 million reduction in funding for food banks across the country. New York State could see a loss of around 16 million pounds of USDA foods in 2025 due to the TEFAP funding cuts, according to Feeding New York State.
SSA field offices are closing, wait times for deserving seniors are increasing and sensitive and private personal data is in danger of being insecure.
ENERGY
The Trump Administration stopped construction on Empire Wind, putting thousands of construction jobs at risk and threatening to dismantle a project that when complete, will generate enough electricity to power about 500,000 homes in New York State.
Funding has been suspended for the National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (NEVI) Formula Funds. The NEVI program — passed as part of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law — provides funding directly to states for installing public electric vehicle (EV) charging stations, which, if implemented, will lower fuel costs for families, reduce U.S. dependence on fossil fuels and create construction jobs nationwide.
President Trump has also threatened to roll back the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) and repeal its tax credits. NYSERDA estimates a full repeal of the clean energy incentives could result in more than $20 billion in increased project costs and could cause significant project attrition.
HOUSING
At the direction of President Trump and DOGE, HUD staff has been decimated, imperiling the core functions of the agency that serve our communities, manage federally funded housing programs and assist housing development at a time of national crisis for housing. Funding has also been cut for organizations that fight housing discrimination across the country, while rolling back federal protections to Affirmatively Further Fair Housing.
HUD has further announced it was ending four years early the Emergency Housing Voucher Program, a successful federal program to combat homelessness for more than 9,500 households across the State. The federal administration imperiling this funding will force these families, at last stably housed, back onto the street.
The $1 billion Green and Resilient Retrofit Program that helps preserve affordable housing is being paused, threatening projects that keep tens of thousands of units livable for low-income Americans.
HEALTH CARE
The actions of the current administration threaten the health and safety of New Yorkers. New York State remains steadfast in its commitment to safeguarding the health and well-being of all New Yorkers and promoting health equity.
President Trump has endorsed the House’s budget resolution which includes over $1 trillion in cuts to critical safety net programs like Medicaid and SNAP. Nearly 7 million qualifying New Yorkers are covered under Medicaid, including 2.5 million children, and 636,000 New Yorkers with disabilities. 2.9 million New Yorkers rely on SNAP for healthy food, including over 800,000 children.
The Trump administration’s National Institute of Health (NIH) has cut grant funding to SUNY used to conduct research to cure diseases, keep our nation safe and grow our economy. The NIH’s sudden budget cuts will cost SUNY research an estimated $79 million on current grants, including more than $21 million over just the next five months that will immediately imperil the work of SUNY’s dedicated researchers by decimating the equipment, staff and services they rely on.
The Trump Administration picked a top health official who has questioned the safety of vaccines and the use of fluoride in drinking water and claimed that autism was preventable. These views go against proven science and could lead to more diseases by making people doubt public health advice.
The Administration has taken back important public health funding. This includes money for tracking disease, supporting vaccinations and helping vulnerable communities hit hardest by the pandemic. Without this funding, local health services must cut staff and scale back programs, especially in areas that need the most help.
Hundreds of federal health workers have lost jobs, making it harder for both the federal government and states like New York to respond to health threats and deliver services like maternal care and disease control.
New executive orders have removed federal support for diversity, equity and inclusion programs, harming efforts to ensure fair health care for women, LGBTQ+ people and communities of color. These actions affirm that the needs of these communities no longer matter to the federal government.
In addition, with massive arbitrary cuts to federal agencies, the future of federal programs to help combat substance use disorder, heating and cooling assistance for low-income New Yorkers, and early childhood investment programs like Head Start remain in jeopardy.
New York State remains committed to ensuring all New Yorkers have access to affordable, quality health care. Accordingly, the State rejects thinly veiled attacks on anyone who may not comport with the Trump Administration’s limited views of who is a person.
EDUCATION
President Trump vowed to eliminate the Department of Education, a crucial part of the federal government that supports kids, teachers and administrators right here in New York State. New York receives $5.5 billion annually from the Department of Education. Approximately $3.2 billion is routed through the State Budget and $2.3 billion is sent directly to local entities, primarily colleges and universities. This crucial funding supports Pell Grants for college students, money for kids with disabilities, programs that are supporting kids’ mental health, crucial research at our public higher education institutions and much more
ENVIRONMENT & AGRICULTURE
The Trump administration has taken aim through Executive Order at dismantling New York State’s strong environmental protections.
Additionally, funding for the Local Food Purchasing Assistance Program has been slashed. While the Biden administration had indicated that $24 million would be available under the LFPA program (New York Food for New York Families), the Trump administration (USDA) has reversed and this next round of funding will no longer be available.
More recently, New York State’s $60 million award for the New York Connects: Climate Smart Farms and Forests Program, which funds climate smart agriculture and forestry practices, was cancelled by USDA.
USDA staff that assist farmers with implementing conservation programs, loans and other resources for their farms, have been laid off.
Over 80 percent of agrochemical imports and 70 percent of farm machinery imports come from countries facing tariffs of 10 percent or more. Tariffs may slow down or halt on-farm expansion and modernization due to projected increases in equipment costs, with much of the stainless steel coming from abroad.
Trade issues are having a compounding effect for dairy farmers — input costs are going up and the milk price relies on export markets. Tariffs and threats of trade disputes result in lost markets and lower milk prices. For example, the budget for a building project went from $85,000 to $106,000, due to tariffs on steel and aluminum, one farm had a $2,200 fee added to their bill for grain because it came from a Canadian feed mill and another farm is anticipating their bottom line to be 7-10 percent lower this year due to lower milk prices and tariffs on inputs, including feed, energy and building supplies.
The ability of West Coast apple producers to export their product will play a key role in the price and demand for New York apples. If West Coast producers are not able to expand overseas markets, they will continue to flood East Coast markets and displace New York State fresh apples where they can undercut prices.
Tariffs placed on equipment, largely coming from Canada, would increase producers’ costs of maple syrup production significantly and negatively impact profitability in the maple industry.
Governor Kathy Hochul and New York Attorney General Letitia James today announced that New York State and a coalition of 11 other states are suing the Trump administration for illegally imposing unprecedented tax hikes on Americans in the form of tariffs issued under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA). The Trump administration’s IEEPA tariffs raise taxes on imports from nearly every country on Earth, including America’s closest allies and trading partners, and they have already caused severe economic damage. The lawsuit, filed by Attorney General James and a coalition of attorneys general, argues that Congress has not granted the president the authority to impose these tariffs and therefore the administration violated the law by imposing them through executive orders, social media posts, and agency orders. The coalition seeks a court order halting these IEEPA tariffs, including the worldwide tariffs that were paused on April 9, and preventing the Trump administration from enforcing or implementing them.
“President Trump’s reckless tariffs have skyrocketed costs for consumers and unleashed economic chaos across the country. New York is standing up to fight back against the largest federal tax hike in American history,” Governor Hochul said. “Attorney General James and I are partnering on this litigation on behalf of New York consumers, because we can’t let President Trump push our country into a recession.”
New York State Attorney General Letitia James said,“The president does not have the power to raise taxes on a whim, but that’s exactly what President Trump has been doing with these tariffs. Donald Trump promised that he would lower prices and ease the cost of living, but these illegal tariffs will have the exact opposite effect on American families. His tariffs are unlawful and if not stopped, they will lead to more inflation, unemployment, and economic damage.”
Since February, President Trump has been unilaterally imposing sweeping tariffs against America’s closest trading partners. These tariffs expanded in a series of announcements in April to now cover nearly every country worldwide, including places that are not involved in international trade, such as the Heard and McDonald Islands, which have no known human inhabitants.
In addition to the severe economic damage that President Trump’s tariffs have already caused, the coalition warns they could cause even more destruction if allowed to continue. The lawsuit argues the IEEPA tariffs will increase unemployment, raise inflation, and threaten Americans’ wages by slowing economic growth. The president’s tariffs will harm the states and their residents by making important goods ranging from electronics to building materials more expensive and scarce.
These costs will severely impact New Yorkers. Economists estimate the increased tariffs will cost the average family thousands of dollars per year, and a report from the New York City Comptroller estimated that even a mild recession caused by the tariffs would lead to over 35,000 lost jobs in New York City alone. New York state agencies could end up paying over $100 million in extra costs due to tariffs increasing prices. Retaliatory tariffs imposed by Canada on the hundreds of millions of dollars in electricity that New York imports every year would cause New Yorkers’ energy bills to spike. Across the state, small businesses that rely on imports are already reeling from the threat of higher prices and uncertainty caused by the administration’s policies. In Central New York, the Cortland Standard, one of the oldest family-owned newspapers in the country, announced it would cease publication in part due to an expected tariff on newsprint.
The lawsuit, filed in the United States Court of International Trade, asserts that President Trump has no authority to impose tariffs as he has. While the president has declared emergencies and invoked IEEPA to justify these tariffs, not once has any other president used IEEPA to impose tariffs like this in the five decades since it became law. As the coalition argues in the lawsuit, the law was not designed to allow the president to unilaterally impose worldwide tariffs indiscriminately. In addition, the coalition argues that the Trump administration has overstepped its authority and violated the Constitution and the Administrative Procedure Act by imposing these tariffs.
With this lawsuit, the coalition is seeking a court order declaring the Trump administration’s IEEPA tariff orders to be in violation of the law and ordering the administration to stop implementing or enforcing these tariffs.
Joining Attorney General James in filing this lawsuit are the attorneys general of Arizona, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Maine, Minnesota, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, and Vermont. (California filed its own lawsuit against the Trump Administration.)
Governor Hochul has been in contact with federal leaders regarding the devastating effects tariffs will have on New York’s residents, businesses and our economy. The Governor has consulted with federal partners, economists and heard from business owners, trade groups, agribusiness and other stakeholders on the hardships tariffs will have on New York State.
It took almost three hours for all the protesters to get to the starting line on Fifth Avenue at 42nd Street for the march to Madison Park at 25th Street in midtown Manhattan – I’m guessing some 50,000. There were no speeches, only chants and periodic roars that rang through the cavern of skyscrapers, releasing pent up anger, frustration, hostility to an administration – headlined by Trump, his billionaire hatchet man Elon Musk and the DOGE bros – that has been so contemptuous of human rights, civil rights, voting rights, workers rights, allies and alliances, that has upended people’s lives and inspired such fear, anxiety, insecurity. Hands Off! They chanted. Hands Off….! (fill in the blank) their hand-written signs declared.
It was an anguish that could only be extinguished by being in community with thousands of others.
The New York City march was one of some 1,300 taking place in all 50 states and even abroad, organized by a coalition of some 150 organizations, headed by Indivisible, Moveon, Public Citizen, women’s groups, veterans groups and others.
It was the biggest day of protest since the 2017 Womens March that greeted Trump’s first term. But after a period of frustration that the biggest single day of protest did not protect women’s reproductive freedom, with the capitulation of Republicans in the Senate, in the House, in the states and localities, with the capitulation of media moguls, universities, law firms, and with Democrats banished from having any impact on governance, as Trump unleashed his assault on constitutional rights, it was decided that the people have to take power, and take it back where they live.
And that was before Trump, with a stroke of a Sharpie, undermined the economic order that has underpinned peace and prosperity for 75 years, and unleashed the worry of a global recession, erasing $4 TRILLION in wealth in two days, the sharpest two-day decline since he was last occupying the office. He is the only individual in history to have caused that kind of damage. On purpose.
There is no constituency – even the MAGAs who fell for Trump’s BS (the Big Lie of Election 2024: “I never saw Project 2025”) – that has not been harmed by Trump and his enforcer, Elon Musk and the DOGE bros: women, seniors, children, students, the disabled, scientists, doctors, teachers, federal workers (he ended rights for 1 million civil servants), veterans (Trump, who had no idea that four American soldiers had been “lost” in Lithuania, went to his golf club rather show respect and receive their bodies), academics, union workers, farmers, immigrants, refugees, migrants WITH LEGAL STATUS (who have I left out?).
Trump has trampled on free speech, free press, free assembly, the right to a trial by jury, the right to due process (except for abusing that privilege for himself, while conveniently tearing up the other part of the 14th amendment: no insurrectionist can hold federal office), equal protection, the right to vote and have that vote counted. He has even teased that he would run for a 3rd term (“I’m not joking.”).
I’ll let the people and their posters speak for themselves:
In this, President Joe Biden’s first major speech of 2024, on January 5 marking the third anniversary of the January 6 insurrection which he delivered at Valley Forge, he highlights what is at stake in the upcoming 2024 election: nothing short of whether the United States will be ruled by democracy or a despot. “Is democracy still America’s sacred cause” he askedin what may well be considered Biden’s “Gettysburg Address.”
In this, President Joe Biden’s first major speech of 2024, which he delivered at Valley Forge on January 5, marking the third anniversary of the January 6th Insurrection, he highlights what is at stake in the upcoming 2024 election: nothing short of whether the United States will be ruled by democracy or a despot. “Is democracy still America’s sacred cause” he askedin what may well be considered Biden’s “Gettysburg Address.”
In contrast, Donald Trump’s first campaign speech committed himself to “retribution, revenge,” weaponizing the Department of Justice to persecute anyone who looks like they are doing well against him, literally tearing up the Constitution, enacting the Insurrection Act, pardoning the January 6 insurrectionists (he calls “hostages”) and being dictator (for the first day). And by suggesting that his own top military general be executed (for showing loyalty to the Constitution instead of him), he has laid down the gauntlet of weaponizing and routinizing political intimidation to insure his power.
As President Biden has said so many times, “this is not hyperbole” but a real call out to the existential crisis Americans must confront.
“Whether democracy is still America’s sacred cause is the most urgent question of our time, and it’s what the 2024 election is all about.” “Democracy is on the ballot. Your freedom is on the ballot.”
“Without democracy, no progress is possible. Think about it. The alternative to democracy is dictatorship — the rule of one, not the rule of ‘We the People.’”
“Democracy means having the freedom to speak your mind, to be who you are, to be who you want to be. Democracy is about being able to bring about peaceful change. Democracy — democracy is how we’ve opened the doors of opportunity wider and wider with each successive generation, notwithstanding our mistakes.”
“But if democracy falls, we’ll lose that freedom. We’ll lose the power of “We the People” to shape our destiny. If you doubt me, look around the world. Travel with me as I meet with other heads of state throughout the world.”
Here is a slightly edited, highlighted transcript of President Biden’s remarks at Valley Forge, Blue Bell, Pennsylvania, on January 5 –Karen Rubin/news-photos-features.com
In this, President Joe Biden’s first major speech of 2024, on January 5 marking the third anniversary of the January 6 insurrection which he delivered at Valley Forge, he highlights what is at stake in the upcoming 2024 election: nothing short of whether the United States will be ruled by democracy or a despot. “Is democracy still America’s sacred cause” he askedin what may well be considered Biden’s “Gettysburg Address.”
AUDIENCE: Four more years! Four more years! Four more years!
THE PRESIDENT: Thank you. Please. Thank you. Please. Thank you very, very much.
Today — the topic of my speech today is deadly serious, and I think it needs to be made at the outset of this campaign.
In the winter of 1777, it was harsh and cold as the Continental Army marched to Valley Forge. General George Washington knew he faced the most daunting of tasks: to fight and win a war against the most powerful empire that existed in the world at the time.
His mission was clear. Liberty, not conquest. Freedom, not domination. National independence, not individual glory.
America made a vow. Never again would we bow down to a king.
The months ahead would be incredibly difficult. But General Washington knew something in his bones, something about the spirit of the troops he was leading, something — something about the soul of the nation he [that] was struggling to be born.
In his general order, he predicted, and I quote, “with one heart and one mind,” “with fortitude and with patience,” they would overcome every difficulty — the troops he was leading.
And they did. They did.
This army that lacked blankets and food, clothes and shoes. This army whose march left bloody, bare footprints in the snow. This ragtag army made up of ordinary people. Their mission, George Washington declared, was nothing less than “a sacred cause.” That was the phrase used: “a sacred cause.”
Freedom, liberty, democracy. American democracy.
I just visited the grounds of Valley Forge. I’ve been there a number of times from the time I was a Boy Scout years ago. You know, it’s the very site that I think every American should visit because it tells the story of the pain and the suffering and the true patriotism it took to make America.
Today, we gather in a new year, some 246 years later, just one day before January 6th, a day forever shared in our memory because it was on that day that we nearly lost America — lost it all.
Today, we’re here to answer the most important of questions. Is democracy still America’s sacred cause? I mean it. (Applause.)
This is not rhetorical, academic, or hypothetical. Whether democracy is still America’s sacred cause is the most urgent question of our time, and it’s what the 2024 election is all about.
The choice is clear. Donald Trump’s campaign is about him, not America, not you. Donald Trump’s campaign is obsessed with the past, not the future. He’s willing to sacrifice our democracy, put himself in power.
Our campaign is different. For me and Kamala, our campaign is about America. It’s about you. It’s about every age and background that occupy this country. It’s about the future we’re going to continue to build together.
And our campaign is about preserving and strengthening our American democracy. Three years ago tomorrow, we saw with our own eyes the violent mob storm the United States Capitol. It was almost in disbelief as you first turned on the television.
For the first time on our history, insurrectionists had come to stop the peaceful transfer — transfer of power in America — first time — smashing windows, shattering doors, attacking the police.
Outside, gallows were erected as the MAGA crowd chanted, “Hang Mike Pence.”
Inside, they hunted for Speaker Pelosi [of] the House, was chanting, as they marched through and smashed windows, “Where’s Nancy?”
Over 140 police officers were injured. Jill and I attended the funeral of police officers who died as a result of the events of that day.
And because Donald — because of Donald Trump’s lies, they died because these lies brought a mob to Washington.
He promised it would be “wild,” and it was. He told the crowd to “fight like hell,” and all hell was unleashed.
He promised he would right them — right them. Everything they did, he would be side by side with them. Then, as usual, he left the dirty work to others. He retreated to the White House.
As America was attacked from within, Donald Trump watched on TV in the private small dining room off my Oval — off the Oval Office.
The entire nation watched in horror. The whole world watched in disbelief. And Trump did nothing.
Members of his staff, members of his family, Republican leaders who were under attack for the — at that very moment pled with him: “Act. Call off the mob.”
Imagine had he gone out and said, “Stop.”
And still, Trump did nothing. It was among the worst derelictions of duty by a president in American history: an attempt to overturn a free and fair election by force and violence.
A record 81 million people voted for my candidacy and to end his presidency. Trump lost the popular vote by 7 million.
Trump’s claims about the 2020 election never could stand up in court. Trump lost 60 court cases — 60. Trump lost the Republican-controlled states. Trump lost before a Trump-appointed judge — and then judges. And Trump lost before the United States Supreme Court. (Applause.) All of it, he lost.
Trump lost recount after recount after recount in state after state. But in desperation and weakness, Trump and his MAGA followers went after election officials who ensured your power as a citizen would be heard. These public servants had their lives forever upended by attacks and death threats for simply doing their jobs.
In Atlanta, Georgia, a brave Black mother and her daughter, Ruby Freeman and Shaye Moss, were doing their jobs as elected workers until Donald Trump and his MAGA followers targeted and threatened them, forcing them from their homes and unleashing racist vitriol on them. Trump’s personal lawyer, Rudy Giuliani, was just hit with $148 million judgment for cruelty and defamation that he inflicted against them.
Other state and local elected officials across the country faced similar personal attacks. In addition, Fox News agreed to pay a record $787 million for the lies they told about voter fraud.
Let’s be clear about the 2020 election. Trump exhausted every legal avenue available to him to overturn the election — every one. But the legal path just took Trump back to the truth that I had won the election and he was a loser. (Applause.)
Well, knowing how his mind works now, he had one — he had one act left — one desperate act available to him: the violence of January the 6th.
And since that day, more than 1,200 people have been charged for their assault on the Capitol. Nearly 900 of them have been convicted or pled guilty. Collectively, to date, they have been sentenced to more than 840 years in prison. (Applause.)
And what has Trump done? Instead of calling them “criminals,” he’s called these insurrectionists “patriots.” They’re “patriots.” And he promised to pardon them if he returns to office.
Trump said that there was “a lot of love” on January the 6th. The rest of the nation, including law enforcement, saw a lot of hate and violence. One Capitol police officer called it a “medieval battle.” That same officer called vile — was called vile, racist names. He said he was more afraid in the Capitol of the United States of America, in the chambers, than when he was fighting as a soldier in the war in Iraq. He said he was more afraid inside the halls of Congress than fighting in the war in Iraq.
In trying to rewrite the facts of January 6th, Trump is trying to steal history the same way he tried to steal the election. But we knew the truth because we saw it with our own eyes. It wasn’t like something — a story being told. It was on television repeatedly. We saw it with our own eyes.
Trump’s mob wasn’t a peaceful protest. It was a violent assault. They were insurrectionists, not patriots. They weren’t there to uphold the Constitution; they were there to destroy the Constitution.
Trump won’t do what an American president must do. He refuses to denounce political violence.
So, hear me clearly. I’ll say what Donald Trump won’t. Political violence is never, ever acceptable in the United States political system — never, never, never. It has no place in a democracy. None. (Applause.)
You can’t be pro-insurrectionist and pro-American.
You know, Trump and his MAGA supporters not only embrace political violence, but they laugh about it. At his rally, he jokes about an intruder, whipped up by the Big Trump Lie, taking a hammer to Paul Pelosi’s skull and echoing the very same words used on January 6th: “Where’s Nancy?”
And he thinks that’s funny. He laughed about it. What a sick — (laughter and applause). My God.
I think it’s despicable, seriously — not just for a president, for any person to say that. But to say it to the whole world listening.
When I was overseas — anyway. (Laughter.)
Trump’s assault on democracy isn’t just part of his past. It’s what he’s promising for the future. He’s being straightforward. He’s not hiding the ball.
His first rally for the 2024 campaign opened with a choir of January 6th insurrectionists singing from prison on a cell phone while images of the January 6th riot played on a big screen behind him at his rally.
Can you believe that? This is like something out of a fairy tale — a bad fairy tale.
Trump began his 2024 campaign by glorifying the failed violent insurrectionist — insurrection at our — on our Capitol.
The guy who claims law and order sows lawlessness and disorder.
Trump’s not concerned about your future, I promise you. Trump is now promising a full-scale campaign of “revenge” and “retribution” — his words — for some years to come. They were his words, not mine. He went on to say he would be a dictator on day one.
I mean, if I were writing a book of fiction and I said an American president said that, and not in jest —
He called it, and I quote, the “termination of all the rules, regulation, and articles, even those found in the U.S. Constitution,” should be terminated, if it’s his will.
It’s really kind of hard to believe. Even found in the Constitution, he could terminate?
He’s threatened the former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff with the death penalty. Says he should be put to death because the Chairman put his oath to the Constitution ahead of his personal loyalty to Trump.
This coming from a president who called — when he visited a cemetery, called dead soldiers “suckers” and “losers.” Remember that?
Sometimes, I’m really happy the Irish in me can’t be seen. (Laughter.)
It was right around the time I was at Beau’s grave, Tommy.
How dare he? Who in God’s name does he think he is?
With former aides, Trump plans to invoke the Insurrectionist Act — the Insurrection Act, which would allow him to deploy — which he’s not allowed to do in ordinary circumstances — allow him to deploy U.S. military forces on the streets of America. He said it.
He calls those who oppose him “vermin.” He talks about the blood of Americans being poisoned, echoing the same exact language used in Nazi Germany.
He proudly posts on social media the words that best describe his 2024 campaign, quote, “revenge”; quote, “power”; and, quote, “dictatorship.”
There’s no confusion about who Trump is and what he intends to do.
I placed my hand on our family Bible, and I swore an oath on the very same steps of the Capitol just 14 days after the attack on January the 6th.
As I looked out over the capital city, whose streets were lined with National Guard to prevent another attack, I saw an American that had been pushed to the brink — an America that had been pushed to the brink.
But I felt enormous pride — not in winning. I felt enormous pride in America because American democracy had been tested and American democracy had held together. And when Trump had seen weakness in our democracy and continues to talk about it, I saw strength — your strength. It’s not hyperbole. Your strength. Your integrity. American strength and integrity.
Ordinary citizens, state election officials, the American judicial system had put the Constitution first and sometimes at their peril — at their peril.
Because of them, because of you, the will of the people prevailed, not the anger of the mob or the appetites of one man.
When the attack on January 6th happened, there was no doubt about the truth. At the time, even Republican members of Congress and Fox News commentators publicly and privately condemned the attack.
As one Republican senator said, “Trump’s behavior was embarrassing and humiliating for the country.” But now, that same senator and those same people have changed their tune.
As time has gone on, politics, fear, money, all have intervened. And now these MAGA voices who know the truth about Trump on January 6th have abandoned the truth and abandoned democracy.
They made their choice. Now the rest of us — Democrats, independents, mainstream Republicans — we have to make our choice.
I know mine. And I believe I know America’s.
We will defend the truth, not give in to the Big Lie. We’ll embrace the Constitution and the Declaration, not abandon it. We’ll honor the sacred cause of democracy, not walk away from it.
Today, I make this sacred pledge to you. The defense, protection, and preservation of American democracy will remain, as it has been, the central cause of my presidency. (Applause.)
America, as we begin this election year, we must be clear: Democracy is on the ballot. Your freedom is on the ballot. (Applause.)
Yes, we’ll be voting on many issues: on the freedom to vote and have your vote counted, on the freedom of choice, the freedom to have a fair shot, the freedom from fear. And we’ll debate and disagree.
Without democracy, no progress is possible. Think about it. The alternative to democracy is dictatorship — the rule of one, not the rule of “We the People.”
That’s what the soldiers of Valley Forge understood. And so was me — was what we have to understand it as well. We’ve been blessed so long with a strong, stable democracy. It’s easy to forget why so many before us risked their lives and strengthened democracy, what our lives would be without it.
Democracy means having the freedom to speak your mind, to be who you are, to be who you want to be. Democracy is about being able to bring about peaceful change. Democracy — democracy is how we’ve opened the doors of opportunity wider and wider with each successive generation, notwithstanding our mistakes.
But if democracy falls, we’ll lose that freedom. We’ll lose the power of “We the People” to shape our destiny. If you doubt me, look around the world. Travel with me as I meet with other heads of state throughout the world.
Look at the authoritarian leaders and dictators Trump says he admires — he, out loud, says he admires. I won’t go through them all. It would take too long.
Look, remember when he refers to what he calls the “love letter” exchanges between he and the dictator of North Korea? Those women and men out there in the audience who ever fought for the American military, would you ever believe you’d hear a president say something like that?
His admiration for Putin — I can go on.
And look at what these autocrats are doing to limit freedom in their countries. They’re limiting freedom of speech, freedom of press, freedom to assemble, women’s rights, LGB[T]Q rights, people are going to jail, so much more.
It’s true: The push and pull of American history is not a fairy tale. Every stride forward in America is met with a ferocious backlash, many times from those who fear progress and those who exploit that fear for their own personal gain; from those who traffic in lies told for power and profit; from those who are driven by grievance and grift, consumed by conspiracy and victimhood; from those who seek to bury history and ban books.
Did you ever think you’d be at a political event talking about book banning for in a presidential election?
The choice and contest between those forces — those competing forces, between solidarity and division — is perennial. But this time, it’s so different.
You can’t have a contest — you can’t have a contest if you see politics as an all-out war instead of a peaceful way to resolve our differences. All-out war is what Trump wants.
That’s why he doesn’t understand the most fundamental truth about this country. Unlike other nations on Earth, America is not built on ethnicity, religion, geography. We’re the only nation in the history of the world built on an idea — not hyperbole — built on an idea: “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men and women are created equal.”
It’s an idea declared in the Declaration, created in a way that we viewed everybody as equal and be — should be treated equally throughout their lives.
We’ve never fully lived up to that. We have a long way to go. But we’ve never walked away from the idea. We’ve never walked away from it before. But I promise you, I will not let Donald Trump and the MAGA Republicans — (applause) — force us to walk away now.
We’re living in an era where a determined minority is doing everything in its power to try to destroy our democracy for their own agenda. The American people know it, and they’re standing bravely in the breach.
Remember, after 2020, January 6th insurrection to undo the election in which more Americans had voted than any other in American history? America saw the threat posed to the country, and they voted him out. In 2022, historic midterm election, in state after state, election after election, the election deniers were defeated.
Now, in 2024, Trump in running as the “denier-in-chief” — the election denier-in-chief. Once again, he’s saying he won’t honor the results of the election if he loses.
Trump says he doesn’t understand. Well, he still doesn’t understand the basic truth, and that is you can’t love your country only when you win. (Applause.) You can’t love your country only when you win.
So, I’ll keep my commitment to be president for all of America, whether you voted for me or not. I’ve done it for the last three years, and I’ll continue to do it.
Together, we can keep proving that America is still a country that believes in decency, dignity, honesty, honor, truth. We still believe that no one, not even the President, is above the law. We still believe — (applause) — the vast majority of us still believe that everyone deserves a fair shot at making it. We’re still a nation that gives hate no safe harbor.
I tell you from my experience working with leaders around the world — and I mean this sincerely, not a joke — that America is still viewed as the beacon of democracy for the world.
I can’t tell you how many — how many world leaders — and I know all of them, virtually all of them — grab my arm in private and say, “He can’t win. Tell me. No, my country will be at risk.”
Think of how many countries, Tommy, you know that are on the on the edge. Imagine.
We still believe in “We the People,” and that includes all of us, not some of us.
Let me close with this. On that cold winter of 1777, George Washington and his American troops at Valley Forge waged a battle on behalf of a revolutionary idea that everyday people — like where I come from and the vast majority of you — not a king or a dictator — that everyday people can govern themselves without a king or a dictator.
In fact, in the rotunda of the Capitol, there’s a giant painting of General George Washington — not President Washington — and he is resigning his commission as Commander-in-Chief of the Continental Army.
A European king at this — at the time said, after he won the revolution, “Now is the time for him to declare his kingship.”
But instead, the mob that attacked the Capitol, waving Trump flags and Confederate flags, stormed right past that portrait. That image of George Washington gave them no pause, but it should have.
The artist that painted that portrait memorialized that moment because he said it was, quote, “one of the highest moral lessons ever given to the world.” End of quote.
George Washington was at the height of his power. Having just defeated the most powerful empire on Earth, could have held onto the power as long as he wanted. He could have made himself not a future president but a future monarch, in effect.
And, by the way, when he got elected president, he could have stayed for two, three, four, five terms, until he died. But that wasn’t the America he and the American troops at Valley Forge had fought for.
In America, genuine leaders — democratic leaders, with a small “d” — don’t hold on to power relentlessly. Our leaders return power to the people. And they do it willingly, because that’s the deal. You do your duty. You serve your country.
And ours is a country worthy of service, as many Republican presidents and Democratic presidents have shown over the years.
We’re not perfect. But at our best, we face on — we face head on the good, the bad, the truth of who we are. We look in the mirror and ultimately never pretend we’re something we’re not. That’s what great nations do. And we’re a great nation. We’re the greatest nation on the face of the Earth. We really are. (Applause.)
That’s the America I see in our future. We get up. We carry on. We never bow. We never bend. We speak of possibilities, not carnage. We’re not weighed down by grievances. We don’t foster fear. We don’t walk around as victims.
We take charge of our destiny. We get our job done with the help of the people we find in America, who find their place in the changing world and dream and build a future that not only they but all people deserve a shot at.
We don’t believe — none of you believe America is failing. We know America is winning. That’s American patriotism. (Applause.)
And it’s not winning because of Joe Biden. It’s winning.
This is the first national election since January 6th insurrection placed a dagger at the throat of American democracy — since that moment. We all know who Donald Trump is. The question we have to answer is: Who are we? That’s what’s at stake. (Applause.) Who are we?
In the year ahead, as you talk to your family and friends, cast your ballots, the power is in your hands. After all we’ve been through in our history, from independence to Civil War to two world wars to a pandemic to insurrection, I refuse to believe that, in 2024, we Americans will choose to walk away from what’s made us the greatest nation in the history of the world: freedom, liberty. (Applause.)
Democracy is still a sacred cause. And there’s no country in the world better positioned to lead the world than America.
That’s why — (applause) — I’ve said it many times. That’s why I’ve never been more optimistic about our future. And I’ve been doing this a hell of a long time. (Laughter.)
Just have to remember who we are — with patience and fortitude, with one heart. We are the United States of America, for God’s sake. (Applause.)
I mean it. There is nothing — I believe with every fiber that there is nothing beyond our capacity if we act together and decently with one another. Nothing, nothing, nothing. (Applause.) I mean it.
We’re the only nation in the world that’s come out of every crisis stronger than we went into that crisis. That was true yesterday and it’s true today, and I guarantee you will be true tomorrow.
God bless you all. And may God protect our troops. (Applause.)
Thank you. Thank you.
(The First Lady joins the President onstage.) I understand power. (Laughter.)
Thank you all so very much. (Inaudible.) Thank you, thank you, thank you. (Applause.)
Partisan camps faced off in dueling protests the morning of Donald Trump’s arraignment in Manhattan Criminal Court he was charged with 34 felony counts of falsifying business records, compounded by tax issues, for the purpose of concealing information that might have swayed the 2016 election. The twice impeached Trump was the first president or ex-president to be indicted for felony crimes.
Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene, promoted prominently by the New York Young Republicans Club, made a 10-minute appearance, but was drowned out by whistles and jeers. Another disgraced Congressman, George Santos, who apparently has modeled his campaign frauds on Trump’s ability to lie and cheat with impunity, also made an appearance.
For most of the day, the two camps were separated by a “neutral zone” set up by the New York Police Department.
