Congresswoman Brown Vows to Continue Fight for Northeast Ohio During Trump Era in State of the District Address

Cleveland, OH – Congresswoman Shontel Brown (OH-11) held a State of the District event Monday at the historic Karamu House in Cleveland. Congresswoman Brown highlighted the work done by her office since 2021, outlined how Trump Administration policies could hurt Northeast Ohio, and vowed to oppose harmful budget cuts to health care, social services, and other programs, including Medicaid, SNAP, Medicare and Social Security. 

“A storm is coming and we need to be ready. In just days Trump has made clear he wants to pull back our progress and dismantle our democracy. Trump’s agenda is an economic threat to working people unlike anything we have seen in decades. He wants big cuts to the programs that people here need. I will use my vote and my voice to fight for Northeast Ohio, advance a positive legislative alternative, and work house by house, street by street, to help my constituents receive the benefits they need,” said Congresswoman Shontel Brown. 

Video of the program available here.

Taking place during Black History Month, the event also included recognition of the upcoming 100^thanniversary of the birth of former Congressman Louis Stokes, Ohio’s first Black member of Congress, and the late Alma Gladys Minter, a Clevelander who served as a tech sergeant in the historic 6888^th Central Postal Directory Battalion, an Army unit consisting of all African-American women who delivered mail during World War II. Members of the Stokes and Minter family attended the event. 

Key Excerpts from Congresswoman Brown’s Address: 

Since last November – it has been clear to me that we would need to come together for a meeting like this. 

Because here’s the plain truth - 

Trump’s White House will be the biggest challenge to working people in Northeast Ohio since the Great Recession. 

The storm is headed our way – and as the last week has shown, it is going to be a big one. 

So if you aren’t ready…it’s time to get ready. 

Here’s what I also know. 

The people in this room – you’re not going anywhere. 

And neither am I. 

I respect the results of the last election. 

But I also respect the people of this district. 

While the White House has changed, the needs have not. 

There are still kids in Southeast Cleveland that need food on the table… 

There are still moms and dads on the West Side that are worried about paying their bills…

There are still uncles in Warrensville Heights trying to start a business…

There are still grandmothers in Euclid who are worried about their medical bills… 

There are still families in Clarke-Fulton worried about mass deportation…

The bottom line is – here in Northeast Ohio – we do not have the luxury of giving in to despair or defeat… 

I believe we have a responsibility to fight for this community… 

To stand up for the rights and dignity of the people here… 

… and defend the progress that we have made. 

[….]

Thanks to the work of the Biden-Harris Administration and Democrats in Congress – it wasn’t just the wealthy and the well-connected that prospered. 

Under President Biden, the Black unemployment rate hit a record low last year. 

And according to the data, we’re not just working… we’re owning, and now we’re hiring. 

Because Black business ownership is growing at the fastest rate in 30 years. 

Is that decline and disrepair? 

Now I’ll admit…A Black Business Boom might feel like a crisis to billionaires like Elon Musk – but it sure doesn’t feel like one to me. 

[…]

Trump and his allies are trying to reshape the country and remove all checks and balances. 

They’ve pardoned the people that attacked the Capitol on January 6. 

They’ve repealed a Biden Administration program to give seniors access to $2 copays for generic drugs. 

They’ve repealed federal policies supporting diversity, equity, and inclusion, federal hiring and contracting for minorities and women. 

They’ve fired inspector generals - the watchdogs tasked with actually rooting out waste, fraud and abuse.

They’ve bullied our federal workers relentlessly and tried to buy them out.

And just a few days ago, they botched an attempt to illegally freeze -essentially all federal grants and funding streams. 

And here is where it’s all going. 

The number one priority for President Trump and Republican leadership is to pass massive new tax cuts for the wealthy and big corporations.

What happens when you cut taxes for the people with all the money? 

The government has less money to spend. 

[…]

Do you see why we should be very worried? 

They are going to look at every single part of the federal budget that deals with seniors, health care, education, and social services. 

In order to make their math work, they have to go very big. 

So, here’s what I’m most worried about: 

Number 1: Fewer people on Medicaid - with smaller coverage

Number 2: Fewer people on Affordable Care Act plans, with smaller coverage

Number 3: Fewer people on SNAP, with smaller payments

And on top of that…  

Number 4: Massive federal divestment in Northeast Ohio

Because they want to freeze, repeal, or redirect as much of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and the Inflation Reduction Act as they can. 

Here’s what that means for us: 

Over 290,000 people in our district are on Medicaid. 

Over 160,000 people in our district are on SNAP. 

Over 41,000 people are on an Affordable Care Act plan. 

And 21% of our district is in poverty.

Those are also the folks that need Head Start… that need federal funding for schools… that need heating assistance.

And just when those folks are seeing a little progress… Donald Trump sees decline. 

[…]

But this is how we’re going to respond:

Number One: I’m going to use every platform I have to speak out and speak up for the people of Northeast Ohio. 

I truly believe the majority of people wouldn’t want this agenda – if they knew about it. 

The President has a bully pulpit – but we will have a megaphone. 

Number Two: We’re going to advance a positive legislative agenda to expand opportunity. We are going to show people there’s an alternative. 

We should empower working families and ensure that everyone has the chance to build a better future. 

[…]

And Number Three: we are going to win the ground game. 

Donald Trump is going to post. He’s going to talk. He’s going to make impossible promises. And he’s going to say demeaning and insulting things. Wash.Rinse.Repeat….We know it, we have seen it. 

But we are going to fight for every constituent, every neighborhood, every school, every city in this district. 

I talked about our casework numbers at the top – if that’s where we have to fight, that’s where we’ll fight. 

By doing everything we can to get people enrolled in programs they need. 

That’s the ground game. 

[…]

Help us call out what needs to be called out. 

Help us find solutions. Help us find alternatives. And help us let people know they have not been left behind. 

Because I REFUSE to slip into despair, dejection, and desperation. 

Because most of you know, we have been here before and as Dr. King told us, “Only when it is dark enough can you see the stars.”