Washington, D.C. – Today, Congresswoman Maggie Goodlander, a former Deputy Assistant Attorney General at the U.S. Department of Justice, where she took on corporate monopolies that are jacking up costs across the board, helped launch the Lowering Costs Caucus in the United States House of Representatives. This caucus is dedicated to tackling the cost crisis that is standing between hardworking people and the American Dream.
Congresswoman Goodlander spoke at a press conference announcing the caucus. Her full remarks are printed below and available here.
I’m here today really because my great-grandfather, who was a family farmer, came to this country at the age of 16. Didn’t speak a word of English. He came to this country because he believed in the American dream, and he lived it. Today, as we look around, it’s the cost crisis that is standing between hardworking people in this country and the American dream.
Before I came to Congress, I worked at the Department of Justice in the antitrust division on the front lines of one big piece of the cost crisis in this country, taking on corporate monopolies that are jacking up costs across the board, I enforced the laws that Congress wrote, and in doing that, I heard from the people who I work for today who aren’t able to buy a home, because the American dream, this cornerstone of the American dream, having a home, is out of reach.
Whether you’re a renter or trying to buy a home, it’s just not possible for most people in this country. I saw it when we take a look at health care costs. 70% of people in my state are having to skip out on doctor’s appointments. They are deciding that they cannot afford to fill a prescription because the costs are just too high. That’s not right. Child care. I hear about it everywhere I go. It’s a crisis that has a set of solutions, and that’s going to take the kind of focus that this caucus is bringing to the cost crisis.
You know, we live in a moment where we’ve got a President who is waging chaotic and lawless trade wars that are jacking up costs, across the board, for hard-working people, that are putting small businesses out of business. Every single day on this job, I’m hearing from small businesses that are feeling the pain of these chaotic and lawless trade wars. Congress can do something about that. We also have a chance to take on what is the biggest giveaway to billionaires and big corporations that we have seen in our lifetimes, in generations, a giveaway that is being paid for on the backs of hard-working people with the biggest cuts to health care in American history.
Look, we live in chaotic and noisy times. I’m so proud to be a part of this caucus, because we are muting out the noise and we are focusing on the core mission, the crisis that is standing in between the American people and the American dream. And that is why I’m so grateful to you, Congresswoman Scholten, for bringing us together today, Congressman Landsman, all my colleagues who are mission-driven and ready to get to work.
Congresswoman Goodlander has dedicated her life to fighting for a fair deal for the people of New Hampshire. Before taking the oath to represent the Second District in the People’s House, Congresswoman Goodlander served as a Deputy Assistant Attorney General in the Justice Department, where she took on the corporate monopolies that are jacking up the cost of healthcare, housing, food, and more for hardworking people across New Hampshire and America.
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