The president slammed congressional Republicans for blocking legislation in a fundraising pitch on Wednesday.
“Their willingness to say no to everything — the fact that since 2007, they have filibustered about 500 pieces of legislation that would help the middle class just gives you a sense of how opposed they are to any progress — has actually led to an increase in cynicism and discouragement among the people who were counting on us to fight for them,” Obama said of the opposing party at a DCCC event in California, according to Politico.
The president has repeatedly slammed the party for obstructing his agenda; in his January State of the Union address he said he would begin using executive power to accomplish some of his to-do list because of it. Republicans, in turn, have slammed him for circumventing Congress.
“The conclusion is, well, nothing works,” the president continued. “And the problem is, is that for the folks worth fighting for — for the person who’s cleaning up that house or hotel, for the guy who used to work on construction but now has been laid off — they need us. Not because they want a handout, but because they know that government can serve an important function in unleashing the power of our private sector,” Obama said.
The event benefitted the House Senate Victory Fund; House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi and DSCC Chairman Michael Bennet also spoke to the roughly 90 guests, who paid between $10,000 to $32,400 per person.