“The priorities are upside down,” Rep. Shontel Brown (D-Ohio) said in a pointed critique of the Trump administration and Republican lawmakers on the House floor recently.
The outspoken Congresswoman condemned cuts to healthcare and food assistance programs while billions are earmarked for military operations abroad.
In an Instagram post, Brown wrote: “Trump and Republicans have cut health care and food assistance and people are suffering. But for war, for the wealthy – there’s always money. I had to speak out.”
In a video of her speaking on the House floor accompanying her post on Instagram, she compared Trump’s budget choices to the 2003 Iraq War, when tax cuts for the wealthiest Americans coincided with a multi-trillion-dollar military effort.
Brown highlighted a new $200 billion proposal for U.S. military involvement in Iran, calling it “unauthorized and unacceptable” and warning it would drive up living costs for ordinary Americans.
At the same time, she noted cuts to domestic programs: $186 billion slashed from nutrition assistance, reduced Medicaid funding, and rescinded Affordable Care Act tax credits. Brown contrasted these reductions with continued tax breaks for the wealthy and billions allocated to agencies like ICE.
“After we were told there was no money to help families afford groceries, not to educate our kids, not to lower health care costs… suddenly there’s always money for war, for the wealthy, for ICE,” Brown said. “This isn’t really about scarcity—it’s about priorities.”
Brown’s remarks come amid renewed debates in Congress over federal spending, domestic program funding, and the U.S. role in the Iran war, as working families face rising costs for everyday essentials.
