According to the group, the Congressional Black Caucus will have a record 62 members for the upcoming congressional session, helping to achieve the largest number of Black federal politicians in history.
There will be 67 Black representatives in Congress overall. The CBC does not list five Republicans as members.
The CBC’s mission will be to hold President-elect Donald Trump and his congressional allies accountable, Rep. Gregory Meeks, D-N.Y., stated, despite the caucus members’ intention to promote a policy agenda for Black and marginalized people under a Kamala Harris administration.
Meeks, the leading member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, told NBC News that we have always been the conscience of the Congress, regardless of who is in power. Whenever possible, we aim to collaborate with others. However, we also call them out. More of these leaders are now available to ensure that the voices of the voiceless are heard and to call truth to power.
Although all of its members are Democrats, the Congressional Black Caucus was founded in 1971 and is not affiliated with any political party. Voter enfranchisement, health care access, increased educational opportunities, employment, criminal justice system reform, and international relations with mostly Black countries have all been part of its purpose to represent Black and marginalized populations.Members of the CBC today represent 41% of Black Americans and 120 million individuals in the United States, according to their website.
According to Meeks, the CBC’s goal for the 119th session of Congress will be to oppose the Trump administration on problems that disproportionately impact Black people, such as prescription medication prices and health care access. And he shouted it loudly.
“You now have a whole choir instead of just a quartet,” Meeks remarked. Additionally, we will be vocal, unambiguous, and consistent because this government poses a threat.
Meeks attacked Trump’s Cabinet choices and policies, specifically the appointment of Linda McMahon as Trump’s secretary of education and Dr. Mehmet Oz as his Medicaid and Medicare administrator. Meeks stated that he anticipates the organization would actively concentrate on measures that will impact common people while maintaining vocal dissent when needed.
A request for comment from NBC News was not answered by the Trump transition team.
The CBC would strongly oppose proposals to repeal the Affordable Care Act, as Meeks pointed out. He stated that since it will directly impact our neighborhood, we will be demonstrating who is involved in that endeavor.
The potential influence of the CBC and congressional Democrats in general will be limited because Republicans will control both the House and the Senate. This makes the CBC’s expansion from 60 members in the 118th Congress all the more remarkable, according to Niccara Campbell Wallace, executive director of the Rolling Sea Action Fund.
“You feel good about what these historic number of Black Congress members can do in terms of helping influence what comes down the pipe,” she added, even though the Republicans will control the House and the Senate in the upcoming session.
The Rolling Sea Action Fund is a hybrid political action committee that funds advertisements and other election-related costs in addition to supporting Black congressional candidates.
Wallace claimed that despite not always having a place at the table or being at the center of the Founding Fathers’ thoughts, Black Americans have believed in the ideals of what America can and will be, which is why her work and the CBCs are so important.
Meeks stated that he is already anticipating the 2026 midterm elections in addition to enacting legislation and opposing the Trump administration.
“Two years pass by very quickly,” he added. For this reason, we will continue to campaign and take action for the full two years.
He added, “We’ll be making it clear that in just two years, we can reverse and stop some of the things, some of the tragedies, of the administration-elect,” and that their policies will be causing our communities, as well as impoverished white neighborhoods, to suffer greatly. The entire nation will be impacted by it.
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