ICYMI: Moulton Sounds Alarm on Trump’s Whiplash Policies, Tariffs, Ukraine, and Rising China Tensions during Friday, weekend interviews

In a series of recent interviews, Congressman Seth Moulton (D-MA-06) spoke out about the consequences of President Trump’s policies, tariffs, Ukraine, and the growing risk of conflict with China. Summaries and links are below:

• On Friday, Moulton appeared on the popular MeidasTouch podcast, where he discussed how the Trump’s administration’s foreign policy blunders have emboldened U.S. adversaries, weakened alliances, and left American leadership in a precarious position.
   
• Also on Friday, Seth joined CNN’s “The Lead with Jake Tapper,” where he talked about the repercussions of this administration’s tax policies and trade wars on local communities: “We could have a legitimate debate about whether tariffs are good or bad, and there are positions on both sides of this. But right now the business community… they don’t even know what to expect, so they can’t plan… There’s no consistency just chaos, and that makes it very hard to run a business.”
   
• On MSNBC’s Weekends with Alex Witt, Moulton discussed the consequences of cuts to the VA for veterans’ healthcare and warned that the likelihood of conflict with China is “going up dramatically” as a result of Trump administration policies in Ukraine. He called for urgent investments in deterrence and diplomacy to avoid a catastrophic war.
   
• On Newsnation, Seth warned of the implications of Musk’s erratic social media posts on Ukraine:  Elon musk is selling out America… “just imagine if President Roosevelt had responded to Germany’s attacks on Britain by saying ‘ you guys are probably going to lose, so we’re only going to help you if you give us a whole bunch of your mineral resources… that’s not how we do business as a country, and it’s sending a message to Xi Jinping and terrorist organizations that the U.S. is out.”

“You get peace through strength, not by showing weakness, not by giving in,” he argued in the same interview.  

And in a new op-ed in the Eagle-Tribune, Seth argues why DOGE’s approach to government efficiency will only make the government less efficient: “no responsible business leader would run their company like this,” he writes. The piece continues:

“So how is this all going to impact us? First we can expect delays in small business loan processing, longer waits for veterans’ services, backlogs at the IRS, weaker disaster response, and fewer resources for national security.

Cuts in EPA funding will mean less support for cleaning up the Merrimack River and putting a stop to CSOs. Cuts in Department of Transportation and FEMA funding will limit our coastal communities’ ability to build more resilient shorelines capable of protecting our residents from the havoc wreaked by more intense storms and flooding.

In Massachusetts, more than 2 million people rely on MassHealth, including 45% of all children. MassHealth keeps low-income families healthy and out of emergency rooms, where costs are quickly passed on to all of us. Medicaid is also a key source of end-of-life care, providing peace of mind when families need it most. 

This is all bad. But if you agree with me that we do need government reform, this just isn’t the way to do it, how should we do it? Actually there’s a good example from not all that long ago. Look at what President Clinton and Vice President Al Gore did in the 1990s. They cut wasteful spending, streamlined programs, and modernized agencies—without simply gutting the workforce. They actually got federal workers to buy into the process, encouraging them to help find efficiencies themselves.”

Moulton continues to be one of the most outspoken members of the Democratic caucus about the implications of the Trump presidency and Democrats’ path to winning again. As always, please be in touch anytime by responding directly to this email or at the number below.