Local leaders condemn GOP’s ‘Big Ugly’ budget bill 

Local officials, advocates, and community leaders gathered at Sabathani Community Center this week to speak out against what they are calling the most harmful federal budget bill in modern history. Dubbed the “Big Ugly” by critics, the bill passed by congressional Republicans is being condemned as a direct assault on working families, students, immigrants, and the state’s most vulnerable residents.

Representative Ilhan Omar, who convened the press event, described the bill as an “immoral budget” that slashes funding for vital programs while delivering tax breaks to billionaires. “This bill kicks 17 million Americans off Medicaid and rips $186 billion from SNAP benefits,” Omar said. “That means tens of thousands of our neighbors in the Fifth District may lose access to food and health care.”

Omar criticized the bill’s delayed implementation, noting that most of the major cuts will not go into effect until 2027. “They know how unpopular this is,” she said. “That’s why they hid it from the public and pushed it through in the dark.”

A blow to counties, care networks

Hennepin County Commissioner Irene Fernando echoed the urgency, calling SNAP and Medicaid lifelines for thousands of residents. “SNAP is about food. Medicaid is about health care. And this bill rips both away while adding zeros to the bank accounts of the wealthy,” said Fernando. “Counties like ours will lose the tools we rely on to nourish and care for our communities.”

Fernando pointed to the $200 million in SNAP benefits that flowed through Hennepin County last year, serving one in nine residents. She warned that without these supports, hunger and health disparities will surge.

Higher education at risk

State Senator Omar Fateh, chair of the Senate Higher Education Committee, raised alarms over the bill’s devastating impact on Pell Grants and university funding. “We’re talking about a $3,000 average cut to Pell Grants,” Fateh said. “That means students of color, rural students, and working-class students will lose access to college.”

Fateh also highlighted the recent layoffs of 60 SNAP-funded nutrition educators from the University of Minnesota, a blow he described as both destabilizing and symbolic of the cascading consequences that will follow.

Schools, families under siege

Representative Sydney Jordan, a key education leader in the Minnesota House, emphasized the bill’s attack on school funding and universal school meals. “Billionaires getting tax breaks doesn’t feed kids or fund classrooms,” she said. “This bill creates uncertainty and rips holes in school budgets.”

Jordan noted that Minnesota Democrats have taken steps to buffer the blow, tying state education funding to inflation and increasing food assistance, but stressed that local actions cannot make up for lost federal funding.

Escalating immigration enforcement 

Moriah O’Malley of Unidos MN delivered a searing critique of the bill’s expansion of immigration enforcement. “ICE is already terrorizing our neighborhoods. Now, with a budget bigger than the military budgets of 188 countries, they are being handed unchecked power,” she said. “No one is safe when due process becomes optional.”

O’Malley urged Minnesotans to stand in solidarity with immigrant communities, calling the bill “fascist” and designed to instill fear.

Energy and environment sacrificed

Peter Wagenius of the Sierra Club criticized the bill for gutting clean energy investments and prioritizing fossil fuel profits. “This bill is corruption codified,” he said. “It will increase energy bills for working families, kill green jobs, and delay our transition to a clean energy future.”

Wagenius warned that while Minnesota’s local leadership continues to invest in renewable energy, progress will slow, and neighboring states may be hit even harder.

Health care fallout 

Planned Parenthood North Central States CEO Ruth Richardson shared grim projections for the health care system. “When President Trump signed the bill last week, more than 27,000 of our patients who relied on Medicaid were immediately affected,” she said. “These federal Medicaid dollars never covered abortion. They covered cancer screenings, birth control, STI testing, and primary care.”

Richardson clarified that the defunding affects core health care services, not abortion care, which is already excluded from federal Medicaid by the Hyde Amendment. “But this still devastates people who now face barriers to contraception, preventive care, and essential services that allow them to live healthy lives.”

She emphasized that Planned Parenthood is working to keep doors open and access affordable. “We’re doing everything within our power to see as many patients as possible,” Richardson said. “We’ve honored our sliding-scale fee despite frozen Title X funds, and we’re helping patients connect to abortion navigators and other resources, but these are real challenges.”

A call to collective action

The press conference concluded with a unified message: The stakes are too high for apathy. Local leaders urged residents to volunteer, speak out, and connect with their communities.

“We may not all have millions to donate to a presidential candidate,” said Omar, “but we have something more powerful — people power. And that is how we will fight back.”

Republican perspective

Republican leaders argue the cuts and tax adjustments are essential for economic vitality. “This is jet fuel for the economy, and all boats are going to rise,” said House Speaker Mike Johnson, framing the legislation as a boost for growth. 

Still, not all Republicans were on board. Rep. Thomas Massie of Kentucky was one of just two GOP dissenters. “I voted no…because it will significantly increase U.S. budget deficits in the near term, negatively impacting all Americans through sustained inflation and high interest rates,” he said via X.

Jasmine McBride welcomes reader responses at jmcbride@spokesman-recorder.com.