Mondaire Jones

It came as a surprise when PP leader Kyrsten Sinema (D-AZ) said that she will not support the $3.5 trillion spending package that President Biden and other Democrats support. To pass the budget resolution and the subsequent $3.5 trillion bill, all 50 Senate Democrats will need to support the measures. Mondaire came out and said if the Democrat only bill falls short he won’t support the $1.2 trillion bipartisan infrastructure bill. And likewise, Speaker Pelosi said she will not take up the bill until the Senate Democrats have passed the bill. Do you agree with this no or is this just a political game?

All seven of the transportation projects Mondaire requested for his district have been approved for funding as part of the INVEST in America Act. This $715 billion transportation bill also includes an amendment Mondaire added which would direct the Government Accountability Office to conduct a study on the economic benefits of commuter rail services between urban and suburban areas. If passed in the senate, the bill would allocate over $10 million for repairs and enhancements to bridges, roadways, bike lanes, and tunnels throughout Jones’ district. NUMTOTs of New York’s 17th, rejoice!

Mondaire is amongst the many Democrats concerned about the failure to pass the most recent federal voting rights bill through Congress. In a recent visit to the White House for the confirmation of the Juneteenth holiday, Mondaire told President Biden that the executive branch needed to be more involved in passing voting legislation. Biden’s response – an awkward silence. “He just sort of stared at me,” Mondaire said. The reaction only made Mondaire more frustrated with the president’s lackluster support. In a bit of a blow, he also said, “President Obama, for his part, has been doing more to salvage our ailing democracy than the current president of the United States of America.”

Mondaire has been called one of the most active members of the freshman class and his most recent fight is against Senator Joe Manchin (D-WV) who has publicly said he wants a bipartisan voting rights and anti-corruption bill. In an op-ed, Mondaire pointed to the January 6 insurrection committee in which not one Republican Senator voted in favor of. As Mondaire puts it “if there aren’t 10 Republicans willing to investigate an insurrection that almost claimed their lives, there aren’t 10 Republicans willing to protect democracy.” Sounds harsh, but is there a bit of truth behind that statement?

Mondaire got a nice pat on the back this week, being named the most active freshman Congressman so far, in an analysis report by Axios. By the numbers, Mondaire has introduced or sponsored more than 278 pieces of legislation in only 140 days. He beat the previously held legislative record by more than 60. Among his bills include the SALT Deductibility Act, which would restore state and local tax deductions to levels prior to the Trump Tax plan, the Universal Child Care Act, which has been a signature issue for him so far, and the Juror Non-Discrimination Act, which more formally prohibits LGBT discrimination among jury selection. Suffice it to say that Mondaire is off to the races and reflecting on that, he said. “My team and I have wasted no time in getting to work for the people… but our work has only begun.”