Today, Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-CA), the top Democrat on the House Financial Services Committee, delivered the following opening statement during a hearing with the Task Force on Monetary Policy, Treasury Market Resilience, and Economic Prosperity, entitled, “U.S. Treasury Debt in the Monetary System.”

While we examine ways to strengthen the resilience of the Treasury market, it is impossible to ignore the impact of Trump’s harmful policies and the damage they are inflicting on the economy.

After Trump announced his tariff plan last week, a record $6.6 trillion in wealth was erased in two days in the stock market. And there’s more pain to come. In fact, Fed Chair Powell has warned that, quote, “We face a highly uncertain outlook with elevated risks of both higher unemployment and higher inflation.” So much for lower costs for consumers.

Now, Republicans are trying to pass a budget loaded with $7 trillion in tax cuts for the wealthy while they slash Medicaid by $880 billion.

If we want lower prices, more jobs, and a stable market, Trump and Republicans should promptly reverse course.

Thank you. There’s a lot more that I can say, but I yield back the balance of my time.

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