Lois Frankel

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Protecting Social Security and Medicare

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I support comprehensive immigration reform that provides a pathway to citizenship for undocumented immigrants, strengthens legal protections for immigrant communities, and secures our borders while ensuring humane treatment and due process. This is about who we are as Americans. As I have said many times, "Security does not require brutality. Enforcement does not require lawlessness. And our immigration policy should reflect our values, not force us to abandon them." In Congress, I co-sponsored the American Dream and Promise Act of 2025, providing a pathway to citizenship for Dreamers and TPS holders, repeatedly voted against funding ICE's illegal and un-American attacks on our communities, and introduced the No Cages in the Everglades Act to prohibit inhumane immigration detention facilities, including "Alligator Alcatraz." Recently, I have spoken out against the Trump Administration's decision to terminate TPS protections for people from countries such as Haiti and Venezuela.

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Yes, I do, and this is particularly true in South Florida, where many of our coastal homes and businesses are at risk of inundation from rising sea levels. Across my district, climate change is already increasing the severity of flooding and hurricanes/tropical storms, making it harder for people to get to work, school, and their daily lives. Simply put, climate change is a financial threat because no economy can thrive when businesses are underwater, families are rebuilding after storms, and homeowners are forced to spend more on insurance premiums. That's why I was proud to support the Inflation Reduction Act, which invested nearly $370 billion in clean energy and climate initiatives. And when President Trump withdrew the US from the Paris Climate Agreement, I used my position as the lead Democrat on the Appropriations Subcommittee on National Security to oppose that decision, warning that it "isolates the United States from nearly 200 nations united in combating climate change."

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Protecting Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid from cuts and lowering costs for working families are my top priorities. These programs are the backbone of America's social safety net, and I am committed to reversing the more than $1 billion in Medicare and Medicaid cuts passed by President Trump and congressional Republicans. I also support expanding these programs through the Social Security 2100 Act, which would increase benefits for seniors, while lowering the Medicare eligibility age and expanding coverage. At the same time, I am focused on lowering the cost of living by making housing, health care, child care, and elder care more affordable. That includes ending Trump's inflationary tariffs, supporting universal pre-K and tax cuts for working families, and backing the American Affordability Act to expand affordable housing, reduce energy costs, strengthen the Child Tax Credit, and lower health care costs.

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To me, freedom of speech is about more than the right to speak. It's about ensuring every person has an equal opportunity to be heard, whether they're advocating for their community, standing up for LGBTQ+ equality, or speaking out against discrimination and injustice. I oppose efforts to censor educators, dismantle diversity and inclusion initiatives, or silence marginalized voices because those actions undermine the free exchange of ideas that strengthens our democracy. And I believe our democracy works best when everyone can exercise not only the freedom to speak, but also the freedom to vote without unnecessary barriers or intimidation.

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The Constitution establishes a system of checks and balances that gives both Congress and the President important, but distinct, roles in overseeing the federal government. The current Trump Administration has repeatedly upset that balance by taking actions that bypass Congress and undermine its constitutional authority. I stand with my Congressional colleagues in calling out these abuses of presidential power, including freezing funds that Congress had already appropriated for medical research, public radio, USAID, and Head Start. This is to say nothing of DOGE, which effectively dismantled Congressionally authorized programs by slashing budgets and laying off staff without Congressional approval. Among many other examples, the Trump Administration has launched military strikes in Iran and conducted brutal immigration enforcement operations in Venezuela without meaningful consultation with or authorization from Congress, further eroding Congress's Constitutional role.

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The federal government must continue enforcing our nation's civil rights laws in schools. However, decisions about curriculum and day-to-day classroom instruction should remain primarily the responsibility of state and local education authorities. I oppose Republican efforts to use the federal government to dictate what local schools can teach or discuss, including restricting honest conversations about race and racism or preventing students from talking about their gender identity. At the same time, I oppose efforts to weaken federal civil rights protections by rolling back safeguards for LGBTQ+ students, undermining enforcement of our anti-discrimination laws, or reducing the federal government's ability to ensure every child has equal access to a quality education.

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To protect our planet, strengthen our economy, and maintain global leadership, the U.S. must remain steadfast in its commitment to the Paris Agreement.