Sen. Raphael Warnock walked into a Senate Banking Committee hearing on June 23 armed with an unlikely weapon, a devastating Fox News poll. Before opening the Book of Matthew, the Georgia Democrat made sure the room understood where the American people stood on President Donald Trump’s economy.
“According to a recent Fox News poll, more than half of all voters feel that President Trump’s economy only helps rich people, with an additional 15% saying his economy helps no one,” Warnock said. “Consumer sentiment is near record lows. Ordinary Americans know Donald Trump’s economy isn’t working for them.”
Then he put the poll down and picked up something else entirely.
“I’m a Matthew 25 Christian,” he said, “meaning I like to center my work on the least among us — the poor, the most marginalized.”
He then invoked the verse directly: “It says, ‘For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat. I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink.’”
Turning to witness Dr. Julie Margetta Morgan, he asked how Trump’s policies have affected hungry Americans.
“The president’s policies have pushed more and more Americans into hunger,” Morgan answered, noting that “4 million people” lost SNAP benefits, including “about 700,000” children.
Warnock moved to the next verse. “The text goes on to say, ‘For I needed clothes and you clothed me,’” he said, asking about poor and unhoused Americans. Morgan responded that “low income families actually lost money under H.R. 1 to the tune of about $1,200.”
On health care, Warnock cited Matthew’s line “for I was sick and you looked after me. What about the president’s health care policies, especially when it comes to healthcare affordability?”
“This is really an acute problem for families right now. We’ve seen cuts to Medicaid that have taken insurance away from families,” Morgan responded.
Pointing to Medicaid cuts and expired ACA tax credits, telling Warnock plainly when asked if Republicans had cut more than “waste, fraud and abuse”: “That is correct. They cut care for American families.”
Finally, Warnock turned to immigration, quoting, “‘For I was a stranger, and you invited me in.” Morgan described a “xenophobic attack on our immigrant neighbours.”
Warnock then asked who actually benefits. “It serves the rich, right?” Morgan said. “It serves Donald Trump himself … and it serves the banks who are represented here.”
Warnock closed forcefully: “This Trump economy isn’t just bad; for me, it’s a moral abomination. This is bigger than politics. It’s about humanity.”
Watch the full clip here.
