U.S. Rep. Nydia Velázquez during a speech at Sunnyside Community Services on Saturday. Photo: Shane O’Brien
Feb. 4, 2025 By Shane O’Brien
U.S. Rep. Nydia Velázquez delivered a powerful message at Sunnyside Community Services on Saturday, accusing President Donald Trump of “preying upon the most vulnerable” in society.
Speaking at the ceremonial inauguration of Assembly Member Claire Valdez, Velázquez urged New Yorkers to “fight back” against the Trump administration and called on the state legislature to shield the state from the harmful policies emerging from Washington.
Velázquez described Trump as “shameful” for targeting minority groups, alleging that the President is specifically targeting vulnerable groups to distract people from “the real issues.”
She accused Trump of selecting people who are unfit to lead government agencies, contending that the main requirement to head a government agency under the Trump Administration is to not believe in the mission of that agency.
“They don’t believe in climate change. They don’t believe that working people deserve an increase in the minimum wage,” Velázquez said during Saturday’s speech.
Lee Zeldin, Trump’s pick to head the Environmental Protection Agency, often voted against environmental legislation while serving in Congress and pledged to reverse New York’s ban on fracking during an unsuccessful run for Governor in 2022. Zeldin, however, who was confirmed by the Senate last week, did state that he believes climate change is real, stating that he has a moral responsibility to be a good steward of the environment.
Velázquez additionally accused Trump of distracting the public from the fact that Elon Musk is now the “shadow President” of the United States.
“Everything that the President is doing is just to distract us from the fact that Elon Musk is holding the string of the President and other federal agencies,” Velázquez said.
Musk, who heads the newly created Department of Government Efficiency, has drawn strong criticism for his efforts to shut down the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), which administers billions of dollars of humanitarian, development, and security assistance in more than 100 countries worldwide.
Musk announced the closure of USAID early Monday, earning a strong rebuke from Democrats, who described the move as illegal and vowed to fight the closure in the courts. Several Democrats also contended that Musk wields too much power in the Trump Administration.
Democrats also responded angrily to reports that the Trump Administration has granted staff affiliated with Musk to the federal system that handles trillions of dollars in payments. The Treasury payments system, which disperses Social Security and Medicare, is run by non-political staff and is also responsible for paying out grants and payments to government contractors, some of whom compete with Musk-owned companies.
Velázquez called for Democrats to be “courageous” in the face of the Trump Administration and “instill a faith” in voters so they don’t “jump to the other side”.
“Democracy is vulnerable,” Velázquez said. “With a blink of an eye, we could have an oligarch turn this country in a way that we never thought could happen. It is up to us, the people, to fight for what is right.”
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