In May, House Republicans passed a budget bill that will hurt millions of working families, and not one California Republican lifted a finger to stop it.
These aren’t just numbers — they’re people. Kristen, a young woman in my district, lives with a genetic disorder that causes developmental, learning, and cardiovascular issues. Every four months, she travels from the Inland Empire to San Diego for vital testing, care made possible by Medi-Cal. She works hard, dreams of owning a bakery, and fights to stay healthy. This bill threatens her care and her dream.
Trump and Republicans call it “One Big Beautiful Bill,” but let’s be clear: it’s one big betrayal. The bill cuts healthcare coverage, slashes food assistance, and raises costs, choosing instead to fund extravagant trips for the super-rich on private jets and yachts.
This isn’t just a budget bill, it’s a statement of Republican values that puts billionaires over our families, a calculated effort to take from the many and give to the few. Nearly 16 million Americans will lose healthcare. Three million will lose food assistance. In the Inland Empire, cuts mean longer emergency room wait times, getting turned away from a shortage of hospital beds, and fewer doctors and nurses.
Republicans voted to slash over $1.2 trillion from healthcare— $700 billion from Medicaid (known as Medi-Cal to Californians) and $500 billion from Medicare — breaking promises to protect seniors, children, and people with disabilities. Our state has 15 million on Medi-Cal, and more than half are children. Medi-Cal also covers 2.7 million here in the Inland Empire and 1 in 5 working Californians. These cuts don’t just hurt the most vulnerable — they put hard-working Californians’ health in jeopardy.
For those relying on Covered California, Republicans voted to raise premiums by ending an Affordable Care Act tax credit. A family of four making $126,000 could see costs nearly double from $10,710 to $19,643.
Republicans didn’t stop there; they’re cutting funding that helps families put food on the table. While families are struggling, Republicans are slashing $300 billion from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) that helps low-income families buy groceries. Nearly 90 percent of SNAP participants are in households with either a child, a senior, or a person with a disability. In my district, over 112,000 people rely on these benefits. The average benefit is just $6 a day; no Member of Congress, regardless of party, should support taking that away.
Republicans claim they are helping the economy, but you can’t have a healthy economy without healthy people. These cuts are all to improve the quality of life for billionaires. People earning $4 million a year get $400,000 richer, while families earning less than $50,000 will pay more for healthcare and basic needs.
In the wealthiest country in the world, no one should go hungry or lose healthcare so the rich can get more handouts.
This is not what California stands for. In the Inland Empire, we take care of each other. Families, healthcare workers, business owners, unions, food banks, disability advocates, and faith leaders are standing up. I urge you to keep pushing my Republican colleagues. There are so many stories like Kristen’s — so many families who will suffer.
To my nine California Republican colleagues: Why didn’t you stand up for your own constituents? Just one vote was needed.
When this bill returns from the Senate to the House for a final vote, you’ll have one more chance to do right by the families you represent. I hope you’ll put people over politics. If you don’t, the constituents you’ve abandoned will remember.
Norma J. Torres represents California’s 35th congressional district.
