During a virtual Town Hall Monday evening, Rep. Jared Huffman (D – San Rafael) addressed a curated mix of questions from constituents expressing concern about possibly losing their retirement income provided by Social Security, losing their health care provided by the Veterans Administration and losing the protection from wildfires provided by federal firefighters.
“I know that people are worried and concerned, and I am not going to sugarcoat this – there is reason to be concerned,” said Huffman during an online broadcast Feb. 24, describing the culling of the federal workforce as “thoughtless and cruel mass layoffs” that were already affecting his fire-prone 2nd Congressional District in California, given that “crucial fire safety programs” were currently unfunded and “we may lose an entire season of wildfire mitigation work.”
One caller who said he lived near the Mendocino National Forest described being very concerned about cuts to the U.S. Forest Service leaving his property and the surrounding area more vulnerable to wildfires, adding that he was even more concerned about the mental health of his neighbor, whom he described as “very depressed” about the current status of certain federal programs.
“Giving up is not an option,” said Huffman, urging the caller and all other concerned citizens not to “doom scroll” on social media, but rather to find real-life “community groups to join and opportunities to volunteer. That is a more productive and impactful use of your time, and will help us keep our sanity.”
When another Town Hall viewer wrote that she was worried about losing the Social Security benefits that “both my husband and I rely on,” Huffman said he was going to do “everything I can to not let that happen. There is just no way that I would ever support anything that reduced our earned benefits under either (Social Security or Medicare), that is a sacred trust, that you should be able to depend on receiving the retirement benefits that you paid into your entire working life. I think we can and will prevail (in our efforts to protect these programs), but I also think that there’s a very good chance that (the current administration) is going to try to cut one or both of these programs in the months ahead, so all of us are going to need to be engaged.
“Here are the dots you need to connect,” Huffman continued. “When you say that you gotta look at the federal budget and save $4.5 trillion dollars, there’s only a few places you can go in the federal budget to find that kind of money… so it is inevitable that they will find their way back to Medicare and Social Security – there’s no way to get there without touching Medicare and Social Security, so we are going to need to be on high alert,” particularly with a new federal budget needing to be passed by March 14 to avert a government shutdown.
When another viewer expressed concern about losing their job with the U.S. Postal Service, Huffman said that the talk about “privatizing the Postal Service has everyone involved with it concerned right now. The Postal Service was the first government agency created in the United States of America, it’s in the Constitution, and Congress passed a statute that creates autonomy for the Postal Service. So they will need to change the law, but I’m absolutely certain they’re going to try, and it’s just an awful, awful idea, and I’m going to oppose it with everything I’ve got.”
To address another woman’s concern about losing the healthcare provided to her by the Veterans Administration as a military retiree, Huffman said he would “do everything I can to” preserve the current healthcare benefits for veterans.
“This is not business as usual,” Huffman said, urging people who were concerned about losing programs, benefits, and even the ability to visit National Parks this summer, to “speak up and show up, because public opinion is a powerful force, and collectively our voices should make a difference.”
Editor’s Note: All of the questions and comments presented for Huffman to address Monday evening, reportedly on behalf of his constituents, were expressing concern and dismay, and there were none presented to him during the Town Hall Feb. 24 that expressed support for any of the current federal administration’s actions.
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