Politics
Illinois Democratic Lawmakers React to Trump’s Agenda Ahead of Congressional Address
President Donald Trump is set to outline his policy agenda in a speech to Congress on Tuesday night.
It comes just over a month into his second term — which has brought an onslaught of cuts to federal spending, efforts to overhaul agencies and the ouster of swaths of the federal workforce.
His administration said it’s trying to make the government more efficient, but opponents call it a clear abuse of executive authority. With 76 executive orders already under his belt — the most in a president’s first 100 days in over 40 years — Trump will be coming before Congress with an unprecedented amount of presidential power.
U.S. Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-Illinois) said that despite Trump’s track record of showmanship in speeches, he hopes this speech helps address divisions and provides room for compromise.
“We need substance right now,” Krishnamoorthi said. “We need guidance; we need stability. We need to muster some unity. In light of all the challenges we have, we should be pulling together to deal with them, at least on a bipartisan basis, and that’s not happening right now.”
The address also comes before Mayor Brandon Johnson is set to testify before the U.S. House Oversight Committee, which Krishnamoorthi is a part of. Johnson will be joined by the mayors of Boston, Denver and New York City. Chicago is facing scrutiny for its Welcoming City ordinance, which prevents law enforcement from working with federal immigration authorities.
U.S. Sen. Elissa Slotkin, a freshman senator from Michigan, is delivering the Democratic response to Trump’s speech at a time when many voters have become disillusioned with Democrats and their messaging. But U.S. Rep. Delia Ramirez (D-Illinois) said the Democratic Party has stayed focused on policies such as housing and health care that target everyday people.
“I think the Democratic Party is reminding people of what they have been frustrated about,” Ramirez said. “They’re pissed off that they can’t afford their housing, the costs continue to increase and you have a president that, at his inauguration, talked about a golden age. But the golden age isn’t for working class people; it’s made for Elon Musk. He talks about unity, but he’s creating division.”
Trump’s administration said it is eliminating government fraud and waste through actions such as the attempted pause on federal loans and grants. But both Krishnamoorthi and Ramirez said these changes are only creating more fear and confusion among voters.
Krishnamoorthi said Trump is overstepping his role as president and missing opportunities to address “kitchen table topics” impacting voters.
“He has also put forward just flat-out unconstitutional executive orders, the most notable being the one banning birthright citizenship,” Krishnamoorthi said. “There hasn’t been a single executive order with regard to dealing with avian flu, which, unfortunately, is driving up the price of groceries and eggs.”
Ramirez said Trump’s actions show that he doesn’t respect congressional authority.
“We create these budgets; we give authority to these agencies to provide resources to the American people,” Ramirez said. “What he’s doing is using his executive orders or bullying Republicans into defunding things like Medicaid. For us as Democrats, we have to use every single tool in our authority and really stop seeing ourselves as a minority party, but the party that’s going to be obstructive to destroying this country’s democracy and taking away from the working class.”
WTTW News reached out to Republican members of the Illinois congressional delegation, but they either declined to join “Chicago Tonight” or didn’t respond.
