March 04, 2025

Duckworth Reacts to Trump’s Joint Address to Congress

 

[WASHINGTON, D.C.] – Today, U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) issued the following statement in reaction to President Donald Trump’s Joint Address to Congress, in which he outlined his harmful agenda that would benefit already-wealthy billionaires at the expense of middle-class Americans:

“Donald Trump promised he’d lower costs for middle-class Americans, but clearly that was a lie he sold to get elected. In reality, we’re continuing to watch Trump and Elon Musk take a chainsaw to programs and services that middle-class families rely on—the same families Trump swore he’d protect—all while doing nothing to address the rising cost of eggs and groceries. Since day one, Trump has already damaged lifelines like Head Start, gutted cancer research, fired more Veterans than any President in our nation’s history and is making our country less safe by surrendering to Putin while abandoning our democratic partners and allies. Make no mistake: Trump and Musk will continue to ram through cuts to health care and critical programs that middle-class Americans depend on so they can fund tax breaks for already-wealthy billionaires. They don’t care about making government work better for families, they only want to make government work better for themselves. If Republicans won’t stick up for the middle class, Democrats will.”

As part of her ongoing efforts to push back against Trump’s illegal funding freeze that continues to inflict needless chaos, confusion and financial pain on Head Start programs and the middle-class families they serve throughout Illinois, Senator Duckworth invited Lauri Morrison-Frichtl, Executive Director of the Illinois Head Start Association, as her guest to Trump's Joint Address to Congress.

“Leaders like Lauri Morrison-Frichtl are on the frontlines of Trump’s needless chaos—which is continuing to cause irreversible damage and jeopardize Illinois Head Start’s ability to serve thousands of children and families,” said Duckworth. “I was proud to invite Lauri Morrison-Frichtl to the Joint Address to remind middle-class Americans and this Administration just how critical Head Start services are—not only for working parents trying to make ends meet, but also for the next generation of students. We cannot let Trump and Republicans tear down this lifeline for families in order to fund tax cuts for billionaires—full stop.”

With over 37 years of experience with Head Start, Executive Director Morrison-Frichtl is a steadfast leader and advocate for the wellbeing of the thousands of children and families in our state who face the most significant barriers to achieving success in school and in life. Additionally, nearly 70% of Illinois Head Start and Early Head Start parents are in the workforce and rely on Head Start’s programs in order to go to their jobs—allowing them to support their families and contribute to our economy. An official portrait photo of Illinois Head Start Executive Director Lauri Morrison-Frichtl can be found on the Senator’s website.

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