Gillibrand Blasts New York House Republicans For Turning Their Backs On New Yorkers As Trump Administration Relentlessly Attacks State

Gillibrand Blasts New York House Republicans For Turning Their Backs On New Yorkers As Trump Administration Relentlessly Attacks State

Oct 30, 2025

Today, U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand sent a letter to New York's Republican members of the U.S. House of Representatives, urging them to stand up to President Trump's politically motivated attacks on New York State. The senator warned that the Trump administration's deliberate actions against the State of New York are endangering jobs, public safety, and access to health care for millions of New Yorkers.

The senator wrote, "The president of the United States is actively targeting New York State for partisan purposes, placing our constituents at risk, and undermining critical aspects of our state's economy, safety, and public health. You have continued to stay silent and allowed the president to cause chaos. New York is neither a punching bag nor a political pawn for the president, and as members of Congress, you have a duty to stand up for your constituents. It is time to set aside partisan interests and work collaboratively to safeguard the well-being and prosperity of the people we represent."

At the outset of the government shutdown, the Trump administration's Office of Management and Budget (OMB) took deliberate steps to withhold billions of dollars of federal funding for generational New York City infrastructure projects, including the Second Avenue Subway Phase 2 and the Hudson River Tunnel Gateway, contradicting prior commitments made by U.S. Department of Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy to Senator Gillibrand in May. The first phase of the Gateway Project alone is projected to create 72,000 jobs and improve critical transportation links for the region.

The administration also canceled nearly $8 billion for energy projects nationally, including 53 grants for projects in New York worth nearly $500 million, and paused an additional $11 billion in U.S. Army Corps of Engineers projects, $7 billion of which directly affect New York. The senator continued, "Put simply: President Trump is killing jobs in our state and leveraging billions of taxpayer dollars to play political games with New York."

Gillibrand also pointed to the $33 million from FEMA's Transit Security Grant Program that the administration withheld from the Metropolitan Transit Authority (MTA). The MTA depends on this federal support for security improvements and New York Police Department (NYPD) patrols. An emergency court order secured by New York Attorney General Letitia James was needed to protect this crucial funding.

In August and September, DHS and FEMA also sought to cut a combined $189 million intended for New York under the Homeland Security Grant Program, which supports local law enforcement and counterterrorism operations. Following bipartisan pressure from New York officials, the administration was forced to reverse these cuts.

Lastly, Gillibrand warned that failure to extend enhanced premium tax credits under the Affordable Care Act could cause substantial premium increases for 1.7 million New Yorkers and result in 80,000 New Yorkers losing coverage entirely. Across the seven Republican-held districts in New York, roughly 43,600 residents rely on these tax credits, and 383,200 are enrolled in the state's Essential Plan, which is supported by the credits. Gillibrand highlighted that the extension of these subsidies is particularly crucial for New York as the state confronts the devastating impacts of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, which is set to cut $7.5 billion annually in federal funding for the Essential Plan starting on January 1, 2026, due to changes in tax credit eligibility.

Gillibrand closed the letter by urging her Republican colleagues to reject partisan loyalty and stand up for New Yorkers. She wrote, "Everyone will lose from the reckless and dangerous actions taken by the Trump administration to target New York, and it is an abdication of your duty as representatives of our state to stay silent out of sheer blind loyalty to a vengeful president. I urge you to put your constituents first and not turn your backs on them by working with Democrats to find a bipartisan solution to protect health care coverage for all New Yorkers and advocate for our great state."

The full letter can be read HERE.

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