Pushing Back on the Trump Administration

Since inauguration, the Trump Administration has brought fear and confusion to our communities in San Diego County and across the country. I have received hundreds of calls and messages from constituents saying they feel trapped in a never-ending crisis with new emergencies and unprecedented chaos unfolding every single day. 

I hear you and I agree. What the Trump Administration has been doing is unacceptable. Here are a few things I’m doing to fight back against Trump and Musk’s attacks on Social Security, Medicaid, Head Start, and other government programs to give tax cuts to billionaires.

  • Demanding a STOP to Trump’s Dismantling of Government Services in San Diego County and Across the Country:
    • Joined union, health, and community leaders in San Diego to rally for Medicaid and stand up against harmful cuts; 
       
    • Demanded entry to the Department of Education to conduct oversight on DOGE’s illegal attempts to dismantle the agency;
       
    • Stood with seniors and community members in Chula Vista to call for a stop to Elon Musk and Trump’s repeated threats to Social Security; 
       
    • Filed an amicus brief challenging the Trump Administration’s efforts to close the Department of Education in State of New York v. Linda McMahon. Twenty states, including California, have moved to sue the Administration for its plans to place fifty percent of the Department’s workforce on administrative leave, effectively shuttering a congressionally authorized agency;
       
    • Joined my colleagues in demanding answers on Head Start funding interruptions;
       
    • Joined my colleagues to introduce the Keeping Our Field Offices Open Act to stop Trump and Musk from closing any SSA field or hearing office for the duration of this Administration; 
       
    • Called on Department of Housing and Urban Development Secretary Scott Turner for answers on agency and DOGE actions to dismantle civil rights enforcement in housing, potential breaches of personal identifiable housing discrimination data, and funding cancellations; and
       
    • Joined my colleagues in filing an amicus brief in support of a lawsuit seeking to block the dismantling of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.
       
  • Standing Up Against Trump’s Anti-Immigrant Agenda:
    • Led my colleagues and local San Diego leaders in demanding accountability for an ICE raid in South Park on May 30th. During the raid, heavily armed ICE agents stormed a local business, shoved people against walls, and handcuffed every worker - an unacceptable show of aggression and intimidation aimed at stoking fear in our communities;
       
    • Hosted a 'Know Your Rights' training so that everyone in our communities understand the protections they have under the Constitution;
       
    • Continued to advocate for due process rights for everyone in this country, and raise awareness about Trump's attacks on immigrants and this right;
       
    • Joined colleagues in introducing legislation to repeal the Alien Enemies Act, a 1798 law that Trump has invoked to detain and deport people from a specific country; 
       
    • Brought the fight against the Trump Administration’s illegal attacks on the constitutional principle of birthright citizenship to the highest court in the land—filing an amicus brief for the three birthright citizenship cases currently before the U.S. Supreme Court;
       
    • Demanded answers from the Department of State on revoked student visas without any transparency;
       
    • Joined colleagues in pressing U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) for answers explanation on troubling reports alleging due process violations, mistreatment, prolonged detention, and politicized denials of entry at air and land ports since President Trump took office;
       
    • Opposed efforts to gut the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program (USRAP) and the life-saving assistance that resettlement agencies provide to the most vulnerable populations;
       
    • Stood against the use of taxpayer information being used for immigration enforcement purposes;
       
    • Cosponsored legislation to repeal the President’s authority to require undocumented immigrants to register with the federal government; and
       
    • Helped reintroduce the American Dream and Promise Act, legislation that would provide a pathway to citizenship to Dreamers, undocumented immigrants who were brought to the United States as children. It would also include protections for recipients of Temporary Protected Status and Deferred Enforced Departure beneficiaries.
       
  • Demanding Answers about Elon Musk’s Power Grab and Access to Confidential Data:
    • Reaffirmed that Elon Musk must leave his government role by May 30th; 
       
    • Co-sponsored the Taxpayer Data Protection Act to block Musk and his team from accessing the Treasury payment system and the private data of Americans; and
       
    • Joined colleagues to demand answers from Secretary Bessent about Musk’s hostile takeover;
       
  • Fighting Trump’s Theft of Federal Funds:
    • Sent a letter with 150 Democrats to the Office of Management and Budget and National Economic Council to demand a list of infrastructure and other projects that Trump’s illegal spending freeze put on hold; 
       
    • Supported court cases that blocked Trump’s attempts to divert resources; and
       
    • Sent a letter to Speaker Johnson demanding he reject any cuts to Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid in light of DOGE and Trump Administration actions and reverse course on any legislation that takes away these benefits.

The Trump Administration is also continuing to lose in the courts. Over 220 lawsuits have been filed directly challenging Trump’s orders. Here are some notable developments: 

  • Fighting for the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau — On April 28th, the U.S. D.C. Circuit Court of Appeal denied the Trump Administration’s appeal of a preliminary injunction issued by a district court judge to immediately suspend the RIF announced for the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. The Circuit Court ruled in a 2-1 decision to reject the Trump Administration’s efforts to shut down the CFPB.
     
  • Alien Enemies Act — On May 1st, a Trump-appointed federal district court judge ruled that the Trump Administration cannot remove individuals under the Alien Enemies Act. The district court judge ruled that the Trump Administration has “exceeded the scope of the statute.”
     
  • Collective Bargaining — Last month, President Trump signed an Executive Order to terminate federal employees’ collective bargaining agreements. Following a lawsuit by the National Treasury Employees Union, a federal district court judge granted a preliminary injunction to block implementation of the EO on April 25th.
     
  • Federal Workers Reinstated — A federal judge in Maryland ordered the reinstatement of tens of thousands of probationary federal workers illegally fired by Trump at 18 federal agencies. The ruling came hours after a judge in California ordered the reinstatement of fired workers at six agencies. 
     
  • Birthright Citizenship Upheld — Courts have handed Trump multiple losses in his lawless crusade to strip citizens of their birthright citizenship. 
     
  • Right to Counsel Protected — A federal judge blocked several provisions of Trump’s executive order targeting the law firm Perkins Coie for representing clients the Trump Administration dislikes and warned that Trump’s actions “threaten the very foundation of our legal system.” 
     
  • Critical NIH Research, Treatment Continued — A court further halted cuts to NIH-funded research, determining the cuts created an “imminent risk of halting life-saving clinical trials, disrupting the development of innovative medical research and treatment, and shuttering of research facilities, without regard for current patient care.”