Maya

Comms person on Capitol Hill. Thoughts are my own.

[Michael Calderone @mlcalderone]

Starting today at Intelligencer — drop a line [email protected]

[Alexandra Sifferlin @acsifferlin]

Some personal news — I’ll be moving to the newsroom later this month as deputy editor for the Science desk. I’m very excited! https://t.co/1g39acSkh3

[Hunter Woodall @HunterMw]

Thrilled to be starting at @MSNOWNews today where I'll be covering politics and all things 2026/2028. Email is [email protected]

[Stephen Neukam @stephen_neukam]

⭐️ Today is my first day @NOTUSreports / The Star

House and Senate friends, add me to all of your email lists: [email protected]

[Senator Lisa Blunt Rochester @SenLBR]

This week, we acknowledged the unsung heroes.

The ones who work every single day to make people safer in our communities.

[Senator Lisa Blunt Rochester @SenLBR]

Iran is a dangerous regime and must never be allowed to obtain a nuclear weapon. For decades, it has been the primary financier and supporter of terrorism around the world. The threat Iran poses to the region, our allies, and the United States is real.

But President Trump’s reckless actions demonstrate a troubling lack of clear foreign policy strategy. He has inched us closer to war on a whim and the last thing we need is another open-ended war in the Middle East. The American people have made it abundantly clear that they are done with forever wars.

The safety of our troops and innocent civilians across the Middle East must come first. I am praying for their protection. Escalation without a clear strategy risks putting Americans in harm’s way and sets a dangerous precedent, signaling to adversaries like China and Russia that there are no consequences to aggression.

Additionally, these strikes were carried out without meaningful consultation with Congress or the American people. There is currently a bipartisan War Powers Resolution, and Congress should immediately return to Washington to hold a debate and vote. The Constitution is clear: decisions that risk drawing our nation into war cannot be made unilaterally. If further military action is necessary, the administration must come to Congress and seek explicit authorization. This is our constitutional duty.

I will continue to monitor the situation and am keeping our service members in my prayers.

[Barack Obama @BarackObama]

Celebrated Valentine's Day with my forever dance partner. Love you, Miche!

[bryan metzger @metzgov]

2026 House/Senate calendar, courtesy of @rollcall 🙏

[Robert Reich @RBReich]

SNAP has existed for 60 years. Benefits have gone out every single month over those six decades, including during government shutdowns. Until now.

Make no mistake: The money is available to fund SNAP during this shutdown. Trump is making a choice to withhold it.

Don’t forget this.

[Elizabeth Warren @SenWarren]

Not enough people are talking about this:

Even before Trump cut off SNAP funding, he and Republicans in Congress made the biggest cuts to food assistance in U.S. history.

[Meredith Lee Hill @meredithllee]

Scoop: Dem Sens. Andy Kim + Lisa Blunt-Rochester will huddle w/ GOP Reps Brian Fitzpatrick + Van Drew tmrw to discuss a bipartisan ACA extension

Senate Dems for now aim to block tmrw's shutdown vote - largely over ACA

w @Reporter_Mia @nicholaswu12

https://t.co/GQ8ACiRVRH

[Andrew Desiderio @AndrewDesiderio]

NEWS — Senate Dem freshmen met today on the shutdown endgame, specifically the thorny issue of how to get an ACA subsidies bill thru the House given Johnson’s posture

Nearly all of them are ex-House members & are reaching out to their former R colleagues to find a path to a vote

[Senator Lisa Blunt Rochester @SenLBR]

Energy costs are up
Housing costs are up
Food costs are up
And soon, health care costs will skyrocket.

The President said on day one he would lower costs, but the reality is he's making things more expensive for everyone.

[Senator Lisa Blunt Rochester @SenLBR]

Well, at least they're finally being honest about their priorities.

[Senate Democrats @SenateDems]

Democrats have been very clear about two things:

We want to open the government, and we want to restore people’s healthcare.

We just need Trump and Republicans to come to the table.

Via @SenLBR

[Senator Lisa Blunt Rochester @SenLBR]

They may not act like it, but even Republicans know we have to take on skyrocketing health care costs.

To prove it, @Rep_McBride and I got together to connect Republicans with their own words about this crisis.

It's time for them to put their money where their mouths are.

[Senator Lisa Blunt Rochester @SenLBR]

I'm hearing from community members and care providers alike: Delawareans can't afford Republicans' health care crisis.

We need a solution—now.

Katheryn is right: we cannot give up on our friends and neighbors.

[Senator Lisa Blunt Rochester @SenLBR]

Now that Trump and his allies are back in power, they're showing us what weaponization of the federal government looks like.

Using the government to harass and intimidate political rivals is absolutely unacceptable.

[Senator Lisa Blunt Rochester @SenLBR]

These cruel threats do nothing to bring down the temperature, bring people back to the table, or reopen the government.

The law is clear— federal workers shouldn't suffer because this administration refuses to negotiate.

[Senator Lisa Blunt Rochester @SenLBR]

Republicans control the House, the Senate, and the White House.

They could end this shutdown if they wanted to.

Instead, they keep trying to pass a bill that pushes us closer to a health care catastrophe.