Adrift in a sea of uncertainty, more than 3,500 New Hampshire residents recently took part in a telephone town hall hosted by Congresswoman Maggie Goodlander (D-NH) who vowed to do everything in her power to protect them from President Donald Trump and his administration.
“Over the past two weeks, I have heard from thousands of our fellow citizens who are feeling a lot of pain and a lot of uncertainty right now because of the actions of the Trump Administration,” said Goodlander. “From a freeze on federal funding to a proposal for tariffs that may well start a trade war to executive actions that threaten to upend our rule of law, I want the people of New Hampshire to know that my team hears you, we support you and we are fighting for you every single day in the People’s House.”
During the Feb. 7 town hall, Goodlander reiterated that the funds in the current federal budget have been signed into law and are promised to the American people. She said that in New Hampshire, an additional 60,000 homes will be needed by 2030 to assuage the state’s shortage.
“We’ve got to get to work on that,” she said. “Those efforts rely on federal dollars.”
Goodlander also emphasized that federal funds are protected under Sec. 9 Art. 1 of the U.S. Constitution which states: “No money shall be drawn from the Treasury, but in consequence of appropriations made by law; and a regular statement and account of the receipts and expenditures of all public money shall be published from time to time.”
“The Constitution couldn’t be any clearer,” said Goodlander.
However, she said some of her colleagues on Capitol Hill have opined that despite the language in the Constitution, appropriations laws are not laws at all.
“This is one of the most chilling statements I’ve heard,” she said. “What we see is an attack on government itself. What we see is a danger to our way of life — and I don’t say that lightly.”
Goodlander has also signed on as a co-sponsor of the Taxpayer Data Protection Act in an effort to oppose Elon Musk, director of the new Department of Government Efficiency. Since taking the helm of the DOGE last month, Musk has gained access to every American’s Social Security Number and to the U.S. Treasury Department’s payment system.
“Social Security is a bedrock promise,” said Goodlander. “Your data and your dollars should not be disrupted.”
