Video: Rep. Suhas Subramanyman (D-VA10) Says Federal Workers in His District Are “not just worried about their jobs,” but “about the work that they were doing and how important it was to the American people”

Rep. Suhas Subramanyam this morning on MSNBC had the following to say:

• “It’s powerful isn’t it? Just hearing the stories from the people directly; I have a lot federal workers in my district, but I have a lot of people too who are hurt that are not federal workers. And one thing I keep hearing from the federal workers is that they’re not just worried about their jobs, they’re worried about the work that they were doing and how important it was to the American people. When you’re talking about nuclear scientists who keep our nukes safe, right?”
• “I think what you’re seeing is the Trump Administration backtracking and they’re on defense now because we keep putting the pressure by telling the stories and by speaking up. And so I tell people you are not powerless – come out to the town halls or tell your story, we are listening and we will echo that story and we will make change.”
• “[Trump]’s trying to make everyone happy he’s making nobody happy right now. And he wanted to give Elon Musk a free rein to do whatever he wanted and the agency heads were pushing back, because again it’s bad for the American people and the American people are speaking up. And so I tell people keep speaking up, keep fighting back, because it’s working. I know I will, certainly.”
• “Well I’ll say this, one we have a pretty united message right now – we’re going to fight these cuts of Medicaid and Social Security, we’re going to fight this budget, we’re going to be fighting a lot of what’s happening at DOGE because it’s affecting all of our communities. So we have a united message. Now the way people deliver that message might be different, right? Some people might be more aggressive like Congressman Green, some people have a different way like  Senator Fetterman, right? But we have the same message, which is you know, what’s happening is not good for the American people and I think that’s really important. So the way I do it is I tell the stories, I get on the House floor and I point out the hypocrisy and the corruption, right? But you know we’ve got other people doing it in other ways and that’s okay.”
• “Actually, our caucus is quite united. I’m not just saying that; it’s true. We are all actually in this together, we’re pretty united. You know, when the leadership works with us, they understand that our districts are all pretty different. And for me…I mean honestly if I wasn’t here I’d be home yelling at the TV. Like, I’m glad I’m here to be able to fight back and push back and be in Congress. And so we all see that opportunity to be able to empower the American people, we’re just doing it in different ways, right? I’m sure Congressman Green is a hero back home in Houston and I’m sure Senator Fetterman has big fans in Pennsylvania. So we’re all doing it differently, but I think it’s working. As you’re looking at the results…it takes a little bit of time, but courts are overturning it, but more importantly the courts of public opinion are pushing back as well. So I say to people keep fighting in the way that you need to fight.”
• “One, it’s illegal, a lot of the stuff that they’re doing. But two, the folks that they’re firing are people who are irreplaceable, they are so essential to keeping people safe, keeping people healthy. We’re talking about scientists, we’re talking about veterans who have a ton of experience, many of them are disabled veterans. And so, you know, these folks deserve better, they had great reviews, they were doing the job that was asked them, they’ve done nothing wrong, they don’t even care who’s President, they just want to do a good job. And so we’re going to fight that in court. But you know, I say again, bring more light to it. We had a call the other day where 300 or 400 veterans came on and they shared their stories. And again, by hearing the stories, the administration starts to buckle, they start to to cede ground. And so I say keep fighting.”