Demand Congress use its “power of the purse” to hold Trump accountable
Article 1, Section 9, Clause 7 of the U.S. Constitution says: “No Money shall be drawn from the Treasury, but in Consequence of Appropriations made by Law.”
The President of the United States does not have unlimited authority to decline congressional appropriations and decide what gets funded and by how much depending on his whims and which political adversaries he wants to punish.
By hijacking congressionally appropriated funds, Donald Trump and Elon Musk (and his unqualified, unscreened team) are yanking funding from people and programs in our communities―which will have a real impact on many of our neighbors as they face frozen funding for critical human needs programs that people rely on to survive.
Congress must stand up to stop this lawless power grab.
A new analysis from the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities shows that the 2018 House GOP budget proposal would cut programs serving low- and moderate-income people by 36 percent in 2027 alone. In total, the budget blueprint would slash these programs by $2.9 trillion over a decade. The proposal,…
On August 2, faith leaders, other advocates, and young people who have legal immigrant status as part of the DACA program gathered together in front of the White House. They were there to urge the President to maintain the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program. DACA was instituted by…
Editor’s note: Raquel Douglas, CHN’s Summer 2017 intern, recently concluded her internship with us. Before leaving, she penned the following piece on her thoughts on her summer in D.C. On July 26, President Trump tweeted that people who are transgender are banned from serving in the military. For many weeks,…
Editor’s note: July 24 marked the beginning of the National Housing Week of Action. In recognition, Michigan’s Children, a statewide independent child advocacy organization, launched “Safe and Stable”, a guest blog series to shine a light on the systems and policies that keep foster-affiliated young adults from achieving safe, stable, and…
Editor’s note: The following statement was issued by CHN Executive Director Deborah Weinstein Friday in response to the Senate’s rejection of the health care repeal bill. Senators Collins, McCain and Murkowski deserve our profound thanks, along with the entire Democratic Caucus. They voted in the interests of their constituents; they…
Almost within the shadow of the U.S. Capitol, supporters of the Coalition on Human Needs gathered Tuesday evening for the 14th annual Human Needs Hero Reception. This year’s honorees were UnidosUS (formerly known as the National Council of La Raza) and the National Immigration Law Center, both pillars in the…
On the eve of a key procedural vote on health care, 7,150 Catholic Sisters from all 50 states and Washington, D.C. have sent a message to the Senate: Don’t pass any proposal that repeals the Affordable Care Act or cuts Medicaid. The 7,150 Sisters each signed a letter to all…
The CHN office is always a flurry of activity. With a small staff and so much to do to protect and expand programs that help our low-income neighbors, there’s no time to sit still. This week is even busier as we take care of final preparations for our Human Needs Hero…
CHN just released our latest edition of the Human Needs Report. Read on for articles on the Senate’s latest efforts to repeal the Affordable Care Act, the House FY18 budget blueprint, House and Senate spending work, and efforts to repeal a new consumer financial protection rule. Click here for a…
Editor’s note: This post was written by Julie Vogtman, Senior Counsel and Director of Income Support Policy at the National Women’s Law Center. It was originally published on NWLC’s blog on July 20. This week, House Budget Committee Chair Diane Black (R-TN) released a budget resolution for fiscal year (FY) 2018 and beyond, titled…
Pop quiz: Question: What’s worse than the American Health Care Act (AHCA) of 2017, which passed the House on a 217-213 vote? Answer: The Senate’s Better Care Reconciliation Act (BCRA) of 2017. Question: What’s worse than the BCRA? Answer: The second version of the BCRA, which included “the Cruz amendment.” …
Chanting “Cruz care is fake insurance!”, “Stand up! Fight back!”, and “Shame!”, hundreds of opponents of the Senate health care legislation rallied near the U.S. Capitol Monday. The “People’s Filibuster to Stop #Trumpcare” was organized by MoveOn, Planned Parenthood, SEIU and the Center for American Progress Action Fund. The crowd…