WASHINGTON —Today, U.S. Sens. Mark R. Warner and Tim Kaine (both D-VA) slammed the U.S. House of Representatives’ passage of President Donald Trump and congressional Republicans’ partisan budget megabill:

“With today’s vote, Donald Trump and congressional Republicans are one step closer to passing their bill to explode the debt and kill tens of thousands of jobs and rip health care and nutrition assistance away from hundreds of thousands of people in Virginia alone. Our constituents deserve better than a Congress and President willing to sell out America’s well-being and future to give the ultra-wealthy a tax handout. The consequences of this legislation will be stark—and Americans will know who is to blame.”

Sens. Warner and Kaine introduced a series of amendments in an attempt to improve the legislation. Republicans blocked them.

The senators have been sounding the alarm about the effects of the GOP plan on Virginia families, noting that the GOP plan will strip health insurance from about 323,000 Virginians, saddle families with medical debt, cut SNAP benefits for more than 204,000 Virginians, and devastate rural communities. The legislation will also explode the deficit, jeopardize more than 20,000 Virginia jobs, raise energy costs, give the richest 0.1% a $255,125 tax cut, and eliminate a program allowing Americans file federal taxes for free.

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