John,

Remember when President Trump promised we would all see a big, beautiful bill of all the things he wants Congress to do? Well, Republican leadership in Congress just revealed it—and it's a far cry from beautiful!

Republicans in Congress want to finalize a bill that slashes healthcare and food assistance (Medicaid and the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, known as SNAP) from families while funneling public funds into private school voucher programs—and making permanent the tax breaks to corporations and billionaires that Trump made in his first term.

We believe they will try to pass it in committee as soon as the ink is dry.

I cannot emphasize enough just how damaging it would be to kids and communities if this bill makes it into law.

Please contact your members of Congress immediately to oppose legislation that cuts Medicaid, SNAP, or otherwise leaves working families behind while the rich get even richer.

Here’s why this week is such a big deal:

• The House Energy and Commerce Committee will debate Medicaid cuts. The Republican proposal takes a hatchet to Americans’ access to healthcare with hundreds of billions in cuts, including the largest cut to Medicaid in history. Who will be hurt? Students and adults with disabilities, retirees, 40 percent of newborns, nearly 1.6 million veterans, more than 2 million military attached children, workers receiving low wages, and millions of people on Medicare receiving supplemental support from Medicaid.
• The House Committee on Agriculture will debate SNAP cuts. At a time when Americans are struggling to put food on the table, the Republican proposal would cut $230 billion from SNAP, the most effective U.S. program to fight hunger and poverty. SNAP helps over 42 million individuals put food in the refrigerator and meals on the table, including families, children, older adults, people with disabilities and our community members who fall on hard times. And when families lose access to SNAP, their children lose access to school meals.
• The House Ways and Means Committee will debate expanding tax giveaways to billionaires and corporations, pouring public funds into private school vouchers, and failing families by removing support for the Child Tax Credit and economic relief for those mired in debt. If Republicans succeed in enacting this legislation, it will be a massive windfall for billionaires like Elon Musk and create little to no benefits for working people, stagnant economic growth, a ballooning deficit and draconian cuts to vital public services.

Our country should be a place where everyone has an opportunity to thrive and where a middle-class job is a reality, not just an aspiration.

Please send a letter to your members of Congress to tell them we need a tax code where the wealthy pay their fair share, so critical investments in education, healthcare, retirement programs and infrastructure can be made.

Believe me, I know this isn’t as exciting as hitting the streets to protest or as fun as posting witty things on Bluesky, but your engagement in this will help millions of people who truly need your advocacy—for their families, for their communities, and for our nation to be a place where the people have the power, not the elites.

So, send a letter. Follow up with phone calls. Share this action with your friends and family.

Millions of people are counting on us.

Thank you.

In unity,
Randi Weingarten
AFT President