RELEASE: Constituents Deliver Petitions and Rally Outside of Rep. Miller-Meeks’s and Sen. Ernst’s Davenport Office Calling Out Their Support to Cut Medicaid & SNAP in The ‘One Big Beautiful Bill’

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Josh Schrader

josh@citizenaction-il.org

Constituents Deliver Petitions and Rally Outside of Rep. Miller-Meeks’s and Sen. Ernst’s Davenport Office Calling Out Their Support to Cut Medicaid & SNAP in The ‘One Big Beautiful Bill’

DAVENPORT, IA – Today Iowa Citizen Action Network, Citizen Action/Illinois, Fairness for Iowa, Operation Swing State, the Illinois Alliance for Retired Americans, and advocates from across the Quad Cities region hosted a brief press conference before delivering petition signatures to Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meek’s and Senator Joni Ernst’s Davenport offices. The petitions condemn Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks and Senator Joni Ernst for voting in favor of the so-called ‘One Big Beautiful Bill,’ which includes devastating cuts to Medicaid and SNAP.

Sue Dinsdale, Executive Director of Iowa Citizen Action Network, called out Rep. Miller-Meeks and Sen. Ernst directly: “Your constituents are hurting: Your vote for Trump’s Big Brutal Bill is a betrayal, plain and simple. It slashes Medicaid and food assistance. It punishes clean energy innovation and supercharges tax breaks for the ultra-wealthy. It trades the promise of freedom and fairness for dependence on monopolies and billionaire donors—while sticking working families with the bill. This isn’t just policy. It is a betrayal. One we will have to live with every day. And we will remember…”

Illinois State Senator Mike Halpin stated, “Men, women, and children in the Quad Cities, both in Iowa and Illinois will be gravely harmed by this disaster of a budget. Health care is a fundamental right, and Republicans in Congress have made it that much harder for Americans to access it.”

Illinois State Representative Gregg Johnson also joined from across the state border and stated, “This isn’t about which state you live in or which side of the political aisle you are on, this bill impacts us all. If Republican lawmakers like Mariannette Miller-Meeks and Joni Ernst won’t stand up for us, we as citizens must make changes next November.”

“This moment calls on all Americans to stand up and fight back for everyday people across state lines. Rep. Miller-Meeks and Sen. Ernst may represent Iowa, but their votes threaten families in Illinois and all Americans across the country. Americans are already struggling with the rising cost of everyday essentials like groceries, housing, and healthcare. And the table scraps in taxes that Trump just proudly signed into law are eclipsed by ripping away healthcare for 16 million, food assistance for 3 million, and jacking up healthcare premiums for millions more, in order to give away $1.1 trillion to the rich,” stated Anusha Thotakura, Executive Director of Citizen Action/Illinois.

Ben Head, with Operation Swing State, also released a statement saying, “What you’re seeing outside Senator Ernst’s and Representative Miller-Meeks’s offices is the raw power of grassroots democracy. These are working people standing up and saying, ‘We will not be sacrificed so billionaires can get tax breaks.’ This movement is organized, it’s energized, and it’s not going away.”

Iowans in District 1, Represented by Mariannette Miller-Meeks (and Senator Joni Ernst), that could be affected by the passage of the ‘One Big Beautiful Bill’ include:

  • Over 150,537 residents who rely on Medicaid, including:

    • 70,860 children

    • 13,000 seniors

    • Individuals with disabilities and low-income adults benefiting from the ACA expansion

  • 62,000 IA-01 residents depend on SNAP to feed their families.

  • Meanwhile, the wealthiest 1% in the district would receive an average tax cut of $308,763 and corporations stand to gain trillions in federal tax breaks.

Citizen Action/Illinois is the state’s largest public interest coalition, dedicated to advocating for healthcare access, economic justice, and consumer rights. Through grassroots organizing and coalition building, we work to ensure policies that protect Illinois families, seniors, and communities.

The Fairness for Iowa coalition is committed to fighting for a fair economy and holding Congressman Zach Nunn accountable for turning his back on everyday Iowans.

Iowa Citizen Action Network (ICAN) is a grassroots public interest organization committed to creating social change in Iowa and across the nation. ICAN has united Iowa’s progressives for nearly 40 years, and is leading efforts to change the public climate for progressive change. ICAN works in coalition with  organizational affiliates from a wide range of constituencies, including religious, community, labor, senior, family farm and environmental organizations as well as with thousands of individual members.

Operation Swing State is a grassroots coalition of Chicago and Illinois volunteers, Democrats, ward and township parties, elected leaders, and concerned citizens who refuse to let Donald Trump and his MAGA movement destroy American democracy.

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For Media Inquiries:

Contact

Josh Schrader

Citizen Action/Illinois

(402) 860-0689

josh@citizenaction-il.org