1. United States
2. Pa.
3. Letter

This ongoing budget stalemate is more than a fight over numbers — it’s a test of whether our government still serves the people or bends to executive manipulation and secrecy. As you work toward a new resolution, I urge you to include three essential provisions that restore fairness, transparency, and constitutional balance. First, make the enhanced Affordable Care Act premium tax credits permanent. These expanded benefits have made health insurance affordable for millions of Americans. If allowed to expire next year, families across the country will face crushing premium hikes or lose coverage entirely. Health care security should never be held hostage to partisan negotiations. Second, restore the money cut from Medicare and Medicaid. These cuts are highly unpopular and will only become moreso as Americans feel the pain they cause and can't jump through all the hoops in order to get benefits they deserve. Third, prohibit the president’s use of so-called “pocket rescissions” to withhold or cancel spending that Congress has already approved. This tactic violates the Constitution’s separation of powers and undermines the authority of the legislative branch. No president should be allowed to override Congress’s decisions by refusing to spend appropriated funds. The next budget resolution must protect not only our economy, but also the principles that define our democracy — fair access to health care, a safety net for our most vulnerable people, and respect for Congress’s constitutional power of the purse. Please act now to ensure these three protections are included in any final agreement.