Dear Friends,

 This week, the current occupant of the White House graded the U.S. economy an “A-plus-plus-plus-plus-plus.” On camera. With a straight face. The President actually believes he’s doing a great job and refuses to hear about the affordability crisis — dismissing it as a “hoax,” his go-to for inconvenient truths. The arrogance of ignoring a crisis he created is matched only by the senselessness and cruelty of his tariff policy, immigrant labor crackdowns and health care sabotage. Trump promised to lower costs on Day 1, yet every action he has taken has driven up the cost of living and put our health and lives at risk.

Dear Friends,

The holiday season reminds us to count our blessings, to be kind to one another and to care for our communities – especially the most vulnerable among us. As we celebrate the best in us, we must recommit ourselves to creating a world full of peace and prosperity, love and joy that honors the vision of our founders, the service and sacrifice of our men and women in uniform, and the dreams and aspirations of our children. Though our current political situation may at times challenge our natural sense of optimism as a nation, it also presents a new opportunity to strengthen our faith and connection to one another and to always pursue what is right for all of us.

E pluribus unum – from many, one – is not only a national motto for our country but our guide to recognizing and honoring the fact that we are all in this together.

Dear Friends,

As we gather with loved ones this Thanksgiving, may we all reflect on the blessings of faith, family, friends and community that are the heart of our nation.

In challenging times, past and present, the spirit of America endures because we, the people, endure. Strengthened by our shared values, we fight alongside one another for a brighter and better future that is worthy of the vision of our Founders, of the service and sacrifice of our men and women in uniform, and of the dreams and aspirations of our children. Today and every day, I am thankful for your support and unwavering commitment, compassion and courage in this fight.

Dear Friends,

 This week, Democrats responded to the calls from the American people – particularly from women – to release the Epstein Files and to continue to insist on a vote to extend the Affordable Care Act premium credits. As we predicted before the election, California voters showed up overwhelmingly to pass Prop 50 and demonstrated the largest gender gap that Donald Trump has ever seen as a check on his authoritarianism and refusal to be silenced.

Dear Friends,

 One week after our historic and inspiring Democratic victories all across the country — including Proposition 50 right here in California — Congressional Republicans proceeded with their cruel agenda and repeated attempts to strip away health care access from millions of families, veterans, seniors and people with disabilities. I proudly voted NO on their monstrous spending bill this week.

 There is no end to the Republicans’ harm to the American people. Whether it’s Republicans gutting Medicaid — impacting tens of millions of Americans — or Republicans cutting half a trillion dollars from Medicare for seniors and people with disabilities, or Republicans doubling or even tripling the cost of health premiums that millions of Americans pay by refusing to extend the Affordable Care Act tax credits, the list goes on and on. Donald Trump is the worst President for children that America has ever seen — taking food out of the mouths of babies, decimating their education and adding trillions to the national debt to give tax breaks to his MAGA billionaire donors. His disastrous policies are harming the health and wellbeing of our veterans and working families to the same extent. Republicans in Congress who are doing his bidding instead of meeting the needs of their own constituents either don’t know what they’re doing, or they don’t care.

Dear Friends,

 Earlier this week, I announced that I will not be seeking re-election.

It seems prophetic now that the slogan of my very first campaign in 1987 was “A voice that will be heard.” And it was you who made those words come true. It was the faith that you had placed in me and the latitude that you had given me that enabled me to shatter the marble ceiling and be the first woman Speaker of the House whose voice would certainly be heard.

 Because of your trust, I was able to represent San Francisco and our country around the world with patriotism and pride. The Affordable Care Act, Wall Street reform, human rights abroad, and so many other priorities all sprang from the vision, values and voices of San Franciscans, and were made possible by your support.

We can be proud of what we have accomplished, but there's always much more work to be done.

 That work became a little easier this week with the resounding success of Democratic candidates across the country and the landslide victory of Proposition 50 here in California. With Prop 50, California is fighting back against Republicans’ attacks on our health care, communities and democracy, and we delivered a clear message that we will not back down in the face of tyranny. We didn’t agonize, we organized to draw the line and put working families on the map. 

Dear Friends,

Election Day is a special and sacred day in our democracy.  It is the day when we use the power of our vote to choose what kind of country we want to be.

In California, we have the power to fight back against Republicans’ cruel cuts to health care. With Prop 50, we have the power to defend our safety net, our communities and our democracy — we must use this power by voting YES.

We save democracy at the kitchen table — and one of the biggest expenses that families worry about at the kitchen table is health care. The Republicans’ Big Ugly Law that cuts health care and shreds our safety net to give tax breaks to billionaires is deeply unpopular. And they know it. So Republicans in Texas, North Carolina, and Missouri redrew their Congressional districts to try to stack the deck, steal the midterms and disenfranchise millions of voters to avoid accountability at the ballot box for what Republicans have done. With Prop 50, we are fighting back to level the playing field.

Dear Friends,

Last weekend, millions of Americans came together peacefully to protest the actions of a wannabe king and inspire their friends and neighbors to get more involved in the work of building the country we deserve. Everyday people from all corners of life organizing around issues that matter is the heart of our democracy and how we will endure and overcome this disastrous episode in our nation’s history.

With only 10 days to go, the stakes in this election could not be higher for working families in California and across America. After ripping away health care and food aid from millions of Americans and causing costs to skyrocket with their disastrous economic policies, Trump and his enablers in Republican-controlled states have rigged congressional maps to try and dictate the outcome of 2026 before a single vote in cast next year. They know their attacks on working families are deeply unpopular and that Democrats will take back the House in a free and fair election.

California voters can stop Trump and Republicans from rigging the 2026 midterms with the most powerful tool we have: our ballot. With the power of our vote, California voters will meet fire with fire in self-defense for our democracy. I voted last weekend. If you haven’t voted yet — do so today and tell every voter you know to turn in their ballot too!

This election is about saving our health care, feeding our children, building an economy that works for all people and having representation that is responsive to the needs of the people. The best antidote to the Republicans’ poisonous policies and undemocratic extremism is to win elections, starting with a big YES on PROP 50. That will take all of us doing our part to Get Out The Vote!

Dear Friends,

We are at a very important moment in history for voting rights in our country. In addition to the partisan gerrymandering by Texas Republicans at the request of the President, we are seeing the Supreme Court deliberate a case that could severely weaken key provisions of the Voting Rights Act. The same court that has eviscerated reproductive rights, affirmative action in higher education, worker and environmental protections is taking a hard right turn toward formalizing voter disenfranchisement.

The voter protections under review by the Supreme Court were championed by our dear John Lewis, crafted in my office when I served as House Democratic Leader, supported by Democratic and Republican Senators and House Members and signed into law by President George W. Bush. These very tactics that we sought to protect voters from are now the overt playbook of President Trump and Republicans — detailed in their Project 2025 manifesto and in their courts briefs — the tactics of a wannabe king and his court of enablers.

Dear Friends,

 his weekend marks 9 months since we launched our Save Our Health Care campaign, and what an extraordinary journey it has been. From the moment we kicked off in January to call out the threat Donald Trump posed to our American safety net, the stakes have been high – and we rose to meet them together.

Through our spring phone banks, through our Medicaid Summer push, and now fighting to extend the ACA tax credits and cancel the cuts to Medicaid into the fall, you have shown that every season is the season to fight for health care.

Dear Friends,

Donald Trump is the worst president for the children that we have ever had — taking food and health care away from millions, sabotaging public health and gutting medical research in favor of junk science, denying and exacerbating the climate crisis, racking up trillions in debt on the backs of future generations to give tax breaks to billionaires and shredding our Constitution.

Congressional Republicans committed to doing Trump’s cruel and corrupt bidding — instead of serving the interests of their own constituents — know that their  Big Ugly Law is a non-starter for  America’s working families and for our House Democrats. They shut down the government anyway to try to ram through their extremist agenda while refusing to lift a finger to stop massive health insurance premium hikes that will put health care coverage out of reach for millions of Americans. Republicans can say whatever they want but they control the House, the Senate and the White House — they own this shutdown.

House Democrats are united under the leadership of Hakeem Jeffries — we are not voting for anything that takes away lifesaving health care from America's working families.

Dear Friends,

Washington Republicans want to take away your health care and your voice — that is why they’re sabotaging the Affordable Care Act and gerrymandering districts to cling to power. 

But Californians have the compassion and courage to stop them. Use your voice — Vote Yes On Prop 50!

Dear Friends,

 This morning, I voted NO on the Republicans horrible budget because my vote is to cancel the cuts and Save Our Health Care — NOT to approve Trump’s cruel scheme to take care away from millions of Americans.

 A handful of swing district Republicans promised for months that they would not vote for a bill that cuts Medicaid — they broke that promise again and again. Today was another opportunity for them to do the right thing. Newsflash: they chose Donald Trump’s tax cuts for billionaires over health care for their constituents — again.

This — House Democrats’ fight for lifesaving health care for the American people — is why our support for Prop 50 in California is more important than ever. YES on Prop 50 is California’s opportunity to send a clear message of our Democratic values across our country.

 California will always put our health care first over Trump and MAGA Republicans’ power grab — which isn’t just about political power but about Republicans grabbing economic power to decide who gets healthcare, who gets food aid, who gets a decent education, who gets their hard earned benefits — literally, whether our country delivers for all of us or only for the privileged few.

Dear Friends,

This week, we remember the lives lost and families forever changed by the terror attacks on 9/11. We honor the emergency first responders, service members and veterans who valiantly answered the call of service then and continue to do so now.  

Democrats delivered vital benefits for our nation’s heroic 9/11 first responders and 9/11 era veterans and know that we have more work to do to ensure that all of America’s veterans and first responders are cared for not only when they answer the call of service, but when they need our help in the years that follow. That is our sacred responsibility and promise.

Our hearts were broken in recent days as our nation reeled, once again, from the devastation of senseless gun violence — we do not have to live like this! We must come together against hatred and violence in all of its forms and work to address the gun violence crisis that plagues our communities. Our prayers for healing must be coupled with action and the political will to make lasting change that is rooted in our collective wellbeing and commitment to making our communities safer For The Children. 

Dear Friends,

You, our VIPs — our grassroots Volunteers in Politics, have been making hundreds of thousands of calls into vulnerable Republican districts since our kickoff to Save Our Health Care in January! You have been organizing locally and inspiring action nationally.  You have been relentlessly focused on what we can influence and change with your outside mobilization.  So when Texas Republicans made their move to disenfranchise millions of voters in Texas and attempt to rig Congressional elections, we knew we could count on California voters to fight back with a YES vote on Proposition 50 on your November ballot. 

California has always stood up to Trump — and we are not backing down now.  Trump and his minions think they can steal Democracy district by district and silence voters’ voices — but we will fight back and we will win.

As we prepared to celebrate Labor Day weekend with our families and our communities last week, Texas Republicans signed their illegal redistricting plan into law — yet another action from Republicans that put politics over the needs of the people, not only in Texas but across the country.  We have long called this for what it is — an attempt by Republicans to escape accountability for what they have done.  Republicans know that their policies are not popular and are causing tremendous harm to millions of Americans and unnecessary destruction to our economy and social safety net – health care, jobs, food assistance and more.  They know they cannot and will not keep power without changing the rules in the middle of the game and outright cheating — and they are brazen enough to do so because they think they can get away with anything.

Dear Friends,

Wishing you and yours a Happy Labor Day Weekend!  Every day — and especially on Labor Day — we honor America’s workers and the unions that built America’s middle class. The middle class has a union label on it and is the backbone of our Democracy.  Labor unions built our country’s ladders of opportunity for countless people for generations — with values of community and dignity that bind us as Americans.  We are all in this together, and we are stronger when we stand together for justice, fairness and opportunity for all.

Since the current occupant of the White House and his minions barged back into office in January, his Administration has waged an all-out, illegal assault on the rights of workers. This anti-union, anti-worker attack has stripped away collective bargaining from hundreds of thousands of our public servants, including those who care for our veterans — many of whom are veterans themselves.  Washington Republicans have shown us exactly who they are — they voted to strip health care and food aid from more than 20 million Americans and pushed policies that are making it harder to afford groceries, gas and other everyday essentials.  All while giving billionaires massive tax breaks that will add trillions to the national debt.

This past week, we celebrated the 105th anniversary of the 19th Amendment.  With gratitude for all the women who struggled, fought, marched, starved and were starved before winning the right to vote — we must never take change for granted.  Republicans have openly discussed ways to make voting harder for women, and we will not stand for that — ever.  As we face monstrous threats to our health care, freedoms and Democracy from Republican extremists — let me be clear: we are not going back!

Dear Friends,

Americans already pressured by skyrocketing costs from Trump’s tariffs are bracing for the impact of the Republicans’ Big Ugly Budget which will make low-income people poorer and sicker while making the ultra-rich even richer – it’s sinful.

Dear Friends,

Thank you for being on the frontlines of our Democracy and fighting to defend our voices and our values and to Save Our Health Care. Together, we are continuing to help California voters connect with their Republican Representatives in Congress who voted to defund Medicaid — including David Valadao in the Central Valley who broke his vital promise to his constituents with eyes wide open after authoring or signing onto numerous letters detailing the harm that would be caused by the Big Ugly Bill.

Dear Friends,

Americans already pressured by skyrocketing costs from Trump’s tariffs are bracing for the impact of the Republicans’ Big Ugly Budget which will make low-income people poorer and sicker while making the ultra-rich even richer – it’s sinful.

Americans know Republicans ripped away health care to fund billionaire tax breaks. Republicans know they will lose the Midterm elections, so they decided to cheat — to change Texas' voting rules in the middle of the game. Rather than take care of flood victims and other constituents in need and address how to provide lifesaving health care and food for millions of Texans who will lose both, Texas Republicans have chosen to do the direct bidding of Donald Trump by redrawing their Congressional maps with a redlining mid-decade gerrymander that violates the Voting Rights Act by erasing representation for minority communities.

Dear Friends,

This week, House Democrats celebrated Honor Our Veterans Day of Action on Purple Heart Day — a time to honor those who have been wounded in the line of duty. It was also an opportunity to recognize all of our veterans for their service and to reaffirm our commitment to caring for those who have sacrificed for us. I began the week with my California colleague, Congressman Mike Thompson, CA-04, a decorated Purple Heart veteran of the Vietnam war who has been leading the way in the Congress for restoration of Trump‘s cruel budget that jeopardizes cuts to veterans’ cancer care in our PACT Act, to veterans suicide prevention in the COMPACT Act and to Inflation Reduction Act tax credits. 

On Thursday, I visited the San Francisco VA Medical Center. Unfortunately, recent changes made by Republicans to Medicaid and the SNAP program have made it more difficult for veterans to receive the assistance they also need and deserve.

Democrats are dedicated to providing our veterans with the highest quality care. We value the employees of the Veterans Administration and acknowledge their right to organize. Our mission will always be to leave no veteran behind. We will continue to push back against the harm that has been inflicted on veterans by the Trump Administration and Congressional Republicans.

Dear Friends,

This week, we celebrated the 60th anniversary of Medicaid. As you may know, Democrats delivered Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid and the Affordable Care Act despite Republican opposition — and Republicans have never stopped undermining these life-saving initiatives for our families, including Trump's Big Ugly Budget. So going into this past week, we were part of a sacred vigil to kick off Save Medicaid Summer with the Caring Across Generations coalition. Moms, dads, children with disabilities, patient advocates, health care workers, my daughter and I took turns sharing stories from across the country.

Friends, we must “Own August” by keeping the pressure on Republicans in Congress who chose to strip Medicaid funding, food and other vital services from millions of Americans on Trump’s orders — in order to give massive tax breaks to his ultra rich MAGA donors. They need to know that the American people will never get over this act of cruelty and depravity and will not be distracted by the Republicans’ attempts to evade and deflect responsibility for the harm they willingly caused.