Inhumane’ Trump funding freeze threatens health, locals say

Concerns

Jeffrey Schultz said his daughter, 41, is a seven-time cancer survivor first diagnosed as a child. She has had a mastectomy, thyroid cancer, melanoma, sarcoma, metastatic breast cancer, lung cancer, and recently was diagnosed with glioblastoma.

Schultz, who is not related to the congresswoman, was alarmed at the prospect that medical research funded by the National Institutes of Health was, for a time, jeopardized.

So was his daughter, Lainie Jones. Just home from an out-of-town cancer treatment, she was advised by doctors not to attend, so Schultz read a statement in which she credited her being alive today to cancer research.

“I have survived seven primary cancers — seven. That’s not luck, that’s science,” she said. “When I see stories about critical NIH meetings being canceled without explanation, it’s terrifying… It’s life or death for millions of us who are alive today because of research and for the millions who will hear the words you have cancer every 15 seconds. Cancer does not wait. Science can’t either.”

Shallel Satchell participates in the Women, Infants and Children nutrition program for low-income pregnant and breastfeeding women, infants, and children to age 5.

Satchell’s daughter, also named Shallel Satchell, now 8 weeks old, was born prematurely. She said the program is essential.

“Please, we definitely need the help,” she said.

Plantation Mayor Nick Sortal said he was concerned that money for police body cameras wouldn’t come through. He said the cameras are something that the public, and police officers, want.

Politics

Schultz is a Democrat, but said he was concerned only about his daughter, not politics.

“It is inhumane in my mind as a father … I don’t care what politics is involved, because politics should not be involved in research or in anything to do with medicine and finding cures for any diseases that are out there,” he said. “It just makes no sense to me that the current administration would even consider removing funding.”

Sortal is also a Democrat, but said he wasn’t speaking out as a partisan. Local government elected officials aren’t Democratic blue or Republican red, he said, explaining he wore a purple shirt on Thursday to emphasize that point.

Galvanizing opposition to Trump’s spending plans is, in fact, highly political. Wasserman Schultz’s news conference was one of many Democratic actions taking place throughout the country, she said afterward.

“Colleagues across the country are all doing civic events like this because we want to make sure we keep the spotlight on this Republican ripoff and that the Republicans are hell-bent on stealing funds that are federal law that were appropriated by Congress and signed into law and hurting cancer patients and new moms and homeless people and people who are at risk of suicide,” she said.

Besides highlighting people and programs she said would have been harmed by the now-paused funding freeze, Wasserman Schultz decried what she said was Trump’s motivation: freeing up money to pass on to his billionaire friends via tax cuts, a point she made repeatedly.

“This Republican rip-off is far from over. Looking at the bigger picture, the billionaire tax breaks that this cruel, illegal funding freeze is designed to pave the way for, those are still on the way. They are not done,” she said.

“They focus on taking care of the wealthiest, most fortunate Americans while denying funds to new mothers with 8-week-old babies, who are going to have trouble maintaining their newborn’s nutrition, all in the name of tax cuts for billionaires.”

The result, she said, “devastates families like Jeffrey’s and Shallel’s.”

Conclusion

The threat posed by Trump’s plans to radically reduce government spending without congressional approval has caused widespread concern and outrage. The beneficiaries of programs highlighted, and many more, were thrown into chaos when Trump ordered a freeze in federal grant and loan programs. Although the immediate threat has passed, the concern from individuals, businesses, nonprofits, and local governments has not. It is crucial that the administration and Congress prioritize the needs of the most vulnerable populations and work together to find a solution that benefits all Americans.

FAQs

Q: What programs were threatened by Trump’s funding freeze?

A: The programs highlighted in the article included medical research funded by the National Institutes of Health, the Women, Infants and Children nutrition program, and funding for police body cameras.

Q: Why did Trump order a freeze in federal grant and loan programs?

A: Trump ordered the freeze as part of his plan to radically reduce government spending without congressional approval. He claimed that this would help to reduce the national debt and create a more efficient government.

Q: Was the funding freeze legal?

A: The funding freeze was deemed illegal by Wasserman Schultz, a senior member of the House Appropriations Committee, as it went against federal law and the power of the purse. The freeze was eventually paused, but the concerns about its legality and impact remain.