Key portions of Senator Kim’s remarks as delivered: 

“The entire nation is talking about health care right now, and for good reason. It is literally the top thing on the minds of everybody that I’ve been talking to…We did a town hall where just person after person was telling us about how fearful they are about losing their care, to be able to provide for their kids and their grandkids.” 

“I remember one person said, just very meaningful, how important it was and how meaningful it was for them to see us standing up for their health care, standing up for their priorities, because they certainly don’t see this with the Trump administration right now.” 

“The second thing that really became apparent over the course of the last week is that we see that the Republicans know that they are on the wrong side of the American people” 

“[Speaker Johnson is] silencing his own members. 
He’s preventing negotiations from happening. Not only do I know those 10 members who came out publicly for support of extending the ACA subsidies, but I know many more of Republicans that I know personally, from my time over there that support extending the ACA subsidies. Speaker Johnson knows that he’s on the losing side of this argument, but he’s more interested in keeping his job than thinking about the 750,000 furloughed federal workers or the troops that are not getting paid.” 

“Trump came out, Russ Vought came out, threatening and saying that they’re gonna stop the funding to the Gateway Tunnel Project. I can tell you, people in New Jersey, but around this country, are just sick and tired of these mob boss tactics. It’s honestly something that really shows just how crass and just how far the Trump administration is going… They are punishing American families in order to get political retribution and revenge against those of us trying to stand up for Americans’ health care.” 

“I was a career civil servant in the federal government. I worked under two different shutdowns before. 
I didn’t get paid. I had just show up to work every single day. So when Trump talks to the how furloughed employees are not guaranteed their pay, I have to just say that is not only illegal and wrong, but it is something that’s sending a signal far and wide about just how much he doesn’t care about the American people and the families that are really struggling right now.” 

“I’ll just end with this. One of the women that I talked to in New Jersey this past weekend, she was an independent voter, and I asked her, if you had a chance to talk to Donald Trump, what would you tell him? And she said, “I would tell him that it’s our money.” It’s the American people’s money. 
It is not Donald Trump’s personal bank account. You cannot use it for political revenge. He should be using it to help support the American people for what they’re struggling with most. 
And right now, that’s about affordability, about paying their health care costs for their families.” 

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