Watch: Senator Markey Town Hall
Boston (March 8, 2025) - Senator Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.) today hosted a town hall in Malden, Massachusetts to hear directly from residents concerned about Donald Trump and Republican attacks on Medicaid, Medicare, Social Security, and the programs that support families, workers, and small businesses. More than 1,500 people attended the session.
“Donald Trump is bringing out the Malden in me, and I’m ready to fight,” said Senator Markey. “The fight for this country right now is the fight for working-class Malden, and it is the fight for all of Massachusetts. Because Donald Trump is targeting us – our economy, our workers, our way of life – with his executive orders, closures, and illegal funding freezes and firings. That’s why in the courtrooms, in the halls of Congress, in boardrooms, at the ballot box, and on the streets, we need to make our voices heard and stand up to Trump’s unconstitutional power grabs.”
“Of the more than one million patients in Massachusetts that receive their primary care at a community health center, 48% rely on Medicaid to cover the cost,” said Michael Curry, President, and CEO of the Massachusetts League of Community Health Centers. “Health centers are deeply concerned about patients’ ability to continue accessing care if there are cuts to Medicaid at the federal level and their own ability to keep the doors open. Federal grants to health centers expire this month, and a loss of that funding coupled with any cuts to Medicaid would affect roughly half of health centers’ operating dollars. We are grateful for the robust conversation today, led by Senator Markey, to discuss the need to preserve funding for community health centers and protect Medicaid coverage for over 2 million people in Massachusetts that rely on it to access care.”
“Senator Markey knows that town halls are an important part of democracy — as is public education — and we appreciate his courageous leadership during unprecedented times to help everyone make sense of what is happening,” said Jessica Tang, President of the American Federation of Teachers Massachusetts. “Any attempts to dismantle the Department of Education and gut funding will result in students losing critical services and beloved teachers, with an entire generation of kids unable to access the opportunities they need to succeed in school and beyond. The reckless slashing of federal programs and services extends across the board and will impact every single American, one way or another. Whether it's eliminating billions in funding for lifesaving research or the gutting of local offices supporting our veterans and small businesses — there will be catastrophic consequences for generations to come. We remain committed to protecting our students, our public schools, and our communities and are grateful to champions like Senator Markey for bringing that fight to the federal level — day in and day out. He's a wonderful ally and we are proud to have him with us in our fight to safeguard the rights of working families and the support they need for a better life.”
“In the face of dramatic changes at the federal level, we are grateful for our Massachusetts leaders who remain committed to achieving energy independence through renewable resources and to supporting cutting edge climate tech solutions,” said Casey Bowers, Vice President of Government Affairs for the Environmental League of Massachusetts. “It is critical that the appropriated Inflation Reduction Act dollars are spent to make our Commonwealth’s communities cleaner and more resilient. We can ill afford to pause these necessary projects as we act with urgency to curb fossil fuel emissions and build our clean energy future.”
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