Trump Executive Orders

Floor Speech

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Mr. WELCH. Mr. President, I thank my colleagues.

You know, President Trump likes to think that chaos is a useful tool. He can create disarray and disruption, and things will end up all right. There is another word that more aptly describes what he did: ``cruel,'' deeply cruel.

You know, on Sunday night in Vermont, it is really a special night. You have got the work of the week behind you. The errands of the weekend are done. If you are fortunate and have a family, you have dinner; you are watching the football game; you are gathering yourself for the week ahead.

The week ahead for people is different. It is a mom who has a dentist appointment that she finally got after 8 months on Medicaid. It is a dump truck driver who is looking forward to getting back and seeing his friends at work and getting that construction project in town completed. It is a Medicaid doctor who, as tired as he was from the week before, is excited about the week he faces or she faces. It is the Meals on Wheels recipients--folks who have had a quiet weekend who are lonely and are anticipating the delivery of that meal, not only for physical nourishment but for the emotional comfort that comes with having that contact with the person who is delivering that meal.

These are the everyday things that people do. They are living their lives, where they do work; they make appointments for their kids; they see them to childcare; they help their neighbors. Out of the blue--with no discussion--an announcement goes out. It is illegal. It is sent out by a person who hasn't even been empowered to act.

It says to that mom who is going to the Medicaid appointment: It is off.

It says to that person who was going to get a Meals on Wheels delivery: It is not coming.

It says to that construction worker: That project you are so proud of that you are working on in that you are making a contribution to your community, don't show up for work.

It comes out of nowhere--with no explanation, with no discussion. It is cruel taking away the expectations that people depend on to live the hard lives that a lot of people have.

By the way, I talk about people who have a fair amount of stability in their lives. There are women who are getting beaten, and they have refuge because they can call a hotline, and they can go to a shelter-- closed. It is some kids who are homeless and have a shelter that they can go to because of the incredible effort of people in our communities--in your community and in mine--who care about that, when it is invisible to so many others. So the jeopardy of those people-- taking away their security in the name of showing how chaos works to accomplish your goals--that is cruel. That is cruel.

You know, it is also cruel because of the folks who volunteer at some of these places. You are depriving them of the opportunity that makes so much of a difference in their lives when they see their lives being fulfilled by being able to help others.

I got a ride from an Uber driver, and I was talking to him. He told me that he was retired. He is retired like a lot of people where they have a job or two, and his was driving. But the other thing he did was he delivered Meals on Wheels, and he told me about his mother-in-law who, until she was 91, delivered Meals on Wheels, oftentimes to people 30 years younger. The joy he had in doing that is what made life so vivid and worthwhile for him to live. It is the joy of helping your neighbors. The President's order took that away from him--no meals to deliver. That is cruel.

It is also totally illegal and totally unconstitutional, and this is the test that we face. If we are U.S. Senators and we believe that the Constitution is important, not in the abstract but in the role it has played in preserving and protecting the freedom of all Americans, and if we believe that freedom is preserved when there is a check and balance against unbridled power, then we are the ones who have to act in order to protect the well-being of this country against the illegal actions by a President who just doesn't care whether it is legal or it isn't.

He worships power, and he is creating a new culture where, if you worship community service, if you worship generosity, forgiveness, empathy, you are a sucker. That is the emotional message from this President Trump.

Our people in Vermont, our people in Utah--they want and they do better that, when they see injustice, when they see suffering, they respond to it. They don't intensify it.

So we have a decision as U.S. Senators to stand up for what this institution requires, and that is that we are a separate and coequal branch of government, and when the responsibilities are being subverted by an overreach by the Executive, we resist, and we resist because it is absolutely vital to the well-being of this country that our democracy prevail with three branches of government and checks and balances.

But it is really fundamentally important to the well-being of the people we represent--in their opportunity to live with stability, in the ability to help their neighbors, to have confidence that promises made are promises kept, that we defend the good work, the good will, and the integrity of the people of Vermont, of the people of Utah, and of all of our 50 States.

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