Congressman tells Republicans to be 'less pathetic' in fighting against Trump cuts
Republican lawmakers are facing off against angry constituents at town hall meetings amid the purging of government workers — and one Democrat is urging them to do something about it.
President Donald Trump tasked Elon Musk with making massive government cuts to eliminate "waste, fraud, and abuse" through his Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE). Since then, lawsuits have plagued the White House over the cuts DOGE made, apparently without congressional involvement or oversight.
ALSO READ: 'Gobsmacked' senators demand to know extent of Elon Musk's access to Americans' data
On X, Rep. Adam Smith (D-WA) blasted the White House's decision to cut funding in areas including nuclear safety, school lunches, and cancer research.
"Look the biggest thing, Republicans in Congress need to start being less pathetic. I mean, that's where we need to start," Smith said about his colleagues during a discussion with MSNBC Tuesday. "They have turned the entire government over to the cult of personality that is Donald Trump and to some extent, Elon Musk. They have completely abdicated any responsibility because they are deathly afraid of saying anything that Donald Trump doesn't want to hear."
He encouraged them to change it and "stand up for this institution" and "representative democracy and say, no, Donald Trump is not a king."
One of the biggest claims Smith wants to see Republicans hold Trump accountable for is "the absolute lie" that he wants to cut government waste as the GOP budget is continuing to explode. Republicans are currently trying to find ways to extend deep tax cuts for the rich.
Smith called it outright "idiocy."
He was then asked about recent protests outside the U.S. Capitol, and argued that more are needed.
"No one thing is enough, and I think that's part of the problem," Smith said. "Look, there's a certain sense of exhaustion. I mean, we've been fighting Trump for five years now, trying to stop this from happening. And people are trying to figure out what's going to work.
"And I also think people are, like you said, it's like, well, I'm going to protest. No one thing is going to turn this around," said Smith. "It has to be a series of collective actions and individual actions, and there has to be a fierce desire to get that out, but also not a feeling of, oh my gosh, if we haven't solved the problem by tomorrow, what's the point?"
He urged the opposition to "keep at it."
See his full comments below or at the link here.
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