Press Releases

Progressive Caucus Leaders Reiterate Urgent Need for an Ambitious Pandemic Relief Package of at Least $1.9 Trillion

January 27, 2021

Washington, D.C. – Today, the Executive Board of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, led by Chair Pramila Jayapal (WA-07) and Deputy Chair Katie Porter (CA-45), sent a letter to Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer reiterating the strong progressive support for a urgent and ambitious pandemic relief package of no less than $1.9 trillion.

“With the economy in crisis, rock-bottom interest rates, and no sign of inflation, the economic consensus is clear: the best hope for the economy is a massive public investment to create jobs, raise wages, and keep people out of poverty,” the letter notes. “If we aim too low, the financial consequences will be catastrophic, long-lasting, and borne by the American families who can least afford it.”

“President Biden’s rescue package, which comes in at $1.9 trillion, is a critical first step meeting the economic need, but if anything, it doesn’t go far enough. Congress should be building off of this opening offer, not weakening it. Given the clear economic consensus and urgent need for government spending, we are deeply concerned that lawmakers – including a handful in our own party – are advocating to scale back the President’s rescue package,” the letter continues. “Deficit-financed investments, especially those targeted toward poor, working-class, and middle-class communities, will drive broad-based economic growth. Manufactured concerns about the debt will only get in the way of urgently-needed action and delay relief for millions of families.”

The letter was signed by 25 members of the Congressional Progressive Caucus Executive Board. The full letter is available here.

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Congressional Progressive Caucus Applauds Executive Actions on Pandemic Economic Relief, Including Food Assistance, Enhanced Labor Protections, and Pay Raises for Federal Contractors

January 23, 2021

Washington, D.C. – Congressional Progressive Caucus Chair Pramila Jayapal (WA-07) released the following statement applauding President Joe Biden’s executive actions to provide economic relief for families, including expanding food access for hungry children and families, ensuring survival checks reach the American people, restoring and expanding labor protections for workers, and beginning the process to raise the minimum wage to $15 an hour for federal contractors:

“The pandemic has unleashed a level of financial distress across the country unseen since the Great Depression. An estimated one in four children are food insecure and nearly a million Americans are still losing their jobs each week. The executive actions signed by President Biden are a critical and long-overdue step to help families weather this financial crisis, keep food on the table, and survive the pandemic.

“The expansion of SNAP and other nutrition programs will help millions of people feed their families. We also applaud President Biden’s efforts to ensure low-income families can access their survival checks and expand labor protections so workers aren’t forced into taking unsafe jobs and putting themselves at risk of contracting COVID-19.

“Since 2014, the Progressive Caucus has led the charge to make the federal government a model employer by raising the poverty minimum wage for federal contractors and expanding paid family and sick leave. We have also been champions in pushing for a $15 federal minimum wage — taking the movement started by fast-food workers who helped make Seattle became the first major city in the country to pass a $15 minimum wage all the way to Congress with the Raise the Wage Act. In the coming weeks, building on President Biden’s critically important executive order to raise the wage for federal employees and contractors, I will join my colleagues in the House and Senate to re-introduce the Raise the Wage Act to lift the wages of millions of workers across the country.

“As we work to pass an ambitious and transformative pandemic relief package, these executive actions will help workers and families get by in the midst of this crisis. But ultimately, we must do more to help families thrive – not just survive this pandemic.”

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Congressional Progressive Caucus Applauds President Biden’s Day One Executive Actions

January 20, 2021

Washington, D.C. – Congressional Progressive Caucus Chair Pramila Jayapal (WA-07) released the following statement on the Day One Executive Actions signed by President Joe Biden:

“For four years, Donald Trump wreaked havoc on our nation, governing with lawlessness, cruelty, and chaos. Today, we turned a new page with the inauguration of Joe Biden and Kamala Harris – restoring decency, empathy, and justice to the White House.

“But much work remains to undo the damage of the last four years. We are pleased to see that President Biden is wasting no time in undoing many of the worst policies of the Trump Administration – including ending the Muslim Ban, restoring DACA for Dreamers, reinstating a fair census count, beginning to reverse cruel immigration policies that separated families, advancing racial equity within the federal workforce, and rejoining the Paris Accords – and pro-actively providing relief for the American people during this pandemic.

“As we mark the tragic milestone of 400,000 American lives lost to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Biden Administration is acting with urgency to expand public health and financial relief measures. We applaud the extension of the eviction, foreclosure and student loans moratoriums, the institution of a 100 day mask mandate, and the rejoining of the World Health Organization, and are ready to work with President Biden, Vice President Harris, and our Senate partners to build on these measures with the swift passage of a comprehensive and bold relief package that meets the scale of this crisis.

“This is a promising start, and we look forward to working with President Biden to build on these executive actions and pass transformative legislation through Congress. We have no time to waste.”

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Congressional Progressive Caucus Releases 116th Congress in Review Report

January 19, 2021

Washington, D.C. – Ahead of the inauguration of President-elect Joe Biden, the Congressional Progressive Caucus (CPC) Co-Chairs for the 116th Congress, Representative Pramila Jayapal (WA-07) and Representative Mark Pocan (WI-02), released a report detailing the CPC’s accomplishments from the past two years.

The Progressive Caucus 116th Congress in Review report identifies the major legislative, communications, and procedural victories for the Progressive Caucus over the past two years and opens with a letter from the CPC Co-Chairs.

“The Progressive Caucus has spent the last two years fighting for policies that restore power to the hands of the people. We became the first Caucus to endorse impeaching this lawless President, advocated for low-wage workers during and in the wake of the longest-ever government shutdown, fought for sweeping policies to protect families and workers in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic, and demanded transformative and structural reforms to our criminal justice system and federal institutions as part of the long-overdue reckoning on racial justice,” write Representatives Jayapal and Pocan. “We have also looked inward to improve our functioning as a caucus and ensure we are a nimble and member-driven organization prepared to leverage power as we welcome President-elect Joe Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris to the White House.”

Read the full report here.

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Congressional Progressive Caucus Applauds Selection of Rohit Chopra to Lead CFPB

January 18, 2021

Washington, D.C. – Congressional Progressive Caucus Chair Pramila Jayapal (WA-07) released the following statement applauding President-elect Biden’s decision to appoint FTC Commissioner Rohit Chopra to lead the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB):

“President-elect Biden has made an excellent decision in selecting Rohit Chopra to lead the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. Throughout his career – including his previous work at the CFPB and at the Federal Trade Commission – Rohit Chopra has been an unwavering advocate for everyday families and demonstrated a consistent willingness to challenge concentrated corporate power. Under his leadership, the CFPB will be able to once again live up to its mission as a bulwark against predatory lending and abuse and restore power to the hands of consumers.

“We also encourage President-elect Biden to appoint a successor to Commissioner Chopra at the Federal Trade Commission who shares his strong commitment to vigorously enforcing our nation's antitrust and consumer protection laws.”

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Congressional Progressive Caucus Statement on $1.9 Trillion Biden Pandemic Relief Proposal

January 15, 2021

Washington, D.C. – Congressional Progressive Caucus Chair Pramila Jayapal (WA-07) released the following statement on the $1.9 trillion pandemic relief package proposed by President-elect Joe Biden:

“The COVID-19 package proposed by President-elect Biden is a promising start to help crush the virus, provide relief to the American people, and rescue our economy. At a moment when cases continue to rise, it provides critical funding to build out our public health infrastructure and workforce, includes critical family and medical leave, and targets aid to communities of color who have been hardest hit by the pandemic. At a time when nearly one million additional people are losing their jobs each week, it delivers direct aid to families, invests in state and local governments, expands the child tax credit, and extends relief for the unemployed and those on the brink of eviction. Importantly, this package would also cut child poverty in half across the United States.

“The Progressive Caucus has long cautioned against going too small in a moment of crisis that demands urgent and sweeping action. We know that the challenges facing the American people are enormous and structural – and the policies we pass as a Congress must reflect that. In our People’s Agenda, we identified pandemic relief as a key pillar of our agenda, and we remain committed to addressing this crisis through ambitious and transformative policies that help families thrive, not just survive.

“We look forward to working with the Biden Administration to strengthen this proposal and deliver comprehensive and swift relief to families suffering across the nation.”

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Congressional Progressive Caucus Statement Denouncing Harmful, Counterproductive Designation of Houthis as a Terrorist Organization

January 15, 2021

Washington, D.C. – Congressional Progressive Caucus (CPC) Chair Pramila Jayapal (WA-07), CPC Chair Emeritus Mark Pocan, (WI-02), CPC Peace & Security Task Force Chair Barbara Lee (CA-13), and CPC Deputy Whip Ro Khanna (CA-17) released the following statement on the Trump Administration’s decision to designate the Houthis as a Foreign Terrorist Organization:

“The Trump Administration’s reckless decision to designate the Houthis as a Specially Designated Global Terrorist and Foreign Terrorist Organization only further imperils hope for a peaceful solution to the conflict in Yemen and exacerbates the world’s worst humanitarian crisis for the millions of Yemenis on the brink of starvation.

“An estimated 24 million people – nearly 80 percent of the population – are in dire need of food and medicine. The people of Yemen cannot afford another obstacle to receiving the assistance they need. That is why the Congressional Progressive Caucus has consistently supported an end to unconstitutional U.S. participation in the Saudi-led coalition’s brutal war, spearheading the first-ever War Powers Resolution to pass the House and Senate in 2019. The imminent end of Trump’s lawless administration opens the possibility for robust engagement with the UN-brokered peace talks to diplomatically resolve the crisis.

“We call on the incoming Biden Administration to reverse both designations and remove all obstacles that prevent the Yemeni people from accessing food, medicine, fuel and other necessary goods and services. We are committed to reasserting Congress’s rightful constitutional authority over war and peace, and look forward to working with the Administration to secure the immediate end to all military and political support for the Saudi-led coalition, a major increase in humanitarian aid to prevent a full-blown famine, and full support for the UN-brokered peace negotiations led by UN Special Envoy Martin Griffiths to finally end to this crisis.”

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Congressional Progressive Caucus Statement on Second Impeachment of Donald Trump

January 13, 2021

Washington, D.C. — Congressional Progressive Caucus Chair Pramila Jayapal (WA-07) issued the following statement after voting to once again impeach President Donald J. Trump — this time for incitement of insurrection:

“It is indisputable that Donald Trump incited insurrectionists to launch the most deadly and destructive assault on the United States Capitol since the War of 1812. He told these domestic terrorists — many associated with white nationalist groups — to 'stand by.' Then he urged them to 'fight like hell.' Next, he proclaimed, 'we are going to the Capitol.' The insurrectionists followed these orders from the President of the United States, and carried out a violent attack on our country with the intent of overtaking Congress, overturning this election and undermining our democracy.

“We must urgently remove Donald Trump from office to protect our country, our Constitution and our very democracy. We must send a clear message to the President that the United States Congress and the American people will not stand by and allow one man to turn our democracy into an autocracy; that we will not stand by while that man incites insurrectionists to launch a deadly assault on our country. We must hold him accountable.

“Just over a year ago, I voted to impeach this president. My vote was for the Constitution and for ‘We, the People.' The threat that Donald Trump posed to America then has only continued to escalate. The Senate must immediately vote to convict Donald J. Trump for incitement of insurrection and remove him from office."

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Congressional Progressive Caucus Congratulates Senators-Elect Warnock and Ossoff: “Let’s Get to Work”

January 6, 2021

Washington, D.C. – Congressional Progressive Caucus Chair Pramila Jayapal released the following statement congratulating Senators-elect Raphael Warnock and Jon Ossoff on their pivotal wins in Georgia:

“Congratulations to Senators-elect Warnock and Ossoff on their victories. This isn’t just a victory for Democrats – it’s a win for working families across the nation who have suffered at the hands of Mitch McConnell’s obstruction and cruelty for far too long.

“As Senators-elect Warnock and Ossoff have rightly pointed out, a Democratic Senate means that families across the nation will receive $2000 survival checks. But it also means that Congress can finally act to pass bold climate legislation that creates jobs, saves our planet, and helps frontline communities. It means that we can pass COVID-19 relief that meets the scale of the crisis – with robust aid for the unemployed, families on the brink of eviction, health care for everyone in the midst of a pandemic, and aid for state and local communities. It means we can finally fix our broken immigration system, raise the minimum wage, begin to dismantle structural racism, and restore power to the hands of workers. It means we can strengthen our democracy by ending corruption and protecting access to the ballot box. It means we can finally address the real racism that exists in our institutions, and pass bold policies that help us achieve justice in policing. Progressives have laid out an ambitious People’s Agenda for the first six months of this year, and we’re ready to work with our Senate and White House partners to make it a reality.

“Let us be very clear on how last night’s victory happened. It was the result of years of dogged — often unrecognized — on-the-ground organizing in Black, Latinx, and AAPI communities. It was about delivering hope again to people, letting them know that their voices matter and that our democracy can never achieve its potential without their voices. Both Senators-elect ran campaigns built on big ideas; they challenged the corruption and self-dealing in Washington, took on Big Pharma, fought for debt-free college, and ran on an inclusive and pro-immigrant agenda. Now, we must keep our promise to these voters by governing with conviction and delivering relief and opportunity so families across the nation can thrive, not just survive. Let’s get to work.”

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Progressives Secure Crucial Reforms to PAYGO and the Motion to Recommit in the House Rules Package

January 4, 2021

Washington, D.C. — Congressional Progressive Caucus Chair Pramila Jayapal (WA-07) released the following statement on the passage of the House Rules for the 117th Congress, which included critical progressive priority reforms to the PAYGO Rule, the Motion to Recommit, and Truth in Testimony rules:

“As we begin the 117th Congress, millions of people across the country are living on the brink. ICUs are at capacity in big cities and small towns. Families are months behind on the rent. The climate crisis continues unchecked.

“This is not a time for incrementalism. We need bold and visionary action from Congress that meets the scale of the crises we face. That’s why the Progressive Caucus has spent the last several months working with House leadership to reform the House Rules for the 117th Congress, so big ideas don’t get bogged down by procedural hurdles or harmful, outdated austerity measures.

“We are very pleased that our top priorities for the Rules package reforms were all included and are important wins for the progressive movement. The House Rules package automatically exempts all climate change, pandemic relief, and related public health measures from the House PAYGO Rule. It reforms the Motion to Recommit, restoring it to a procedural vote instead of a poison-pill gotcha amendment designed to water down or delay critical legislation. It strengthens Truth in Testimony disclosures to require individuals testifying before House committees to reveal any conflicts of interest. It builds upon important diversity initiatives from the previous Congress, including making the Office of Diversity and Inclusion permanent and examining the diversity of witnesses at House committee hearings. And it protects privilege for War Powers Resolutions, so any member can bring up and demand an up-or-down vote on critical issues of war and peace.

“For far too long, Congress has undermined its own ability to govern effectively by allowing archaic procedural hurdles like PAYGO and the Motion to Recommit to derail our agenda. We can’t afford to continue to govern this way. We thank Chairman McGovern and Speaker Pelosi for working with us to secure these reforms to the House Rules. Progressives are ready to govern with vision and urgency, and these reforms will help us do just that.”

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