Capital-Star Q&A: Congressman Brendan Boyle talks budget, ‘DOGE bros,’ and blue collar workers

After Republicans secured a trifecta in November 2024 by winning the White House and gaining majorities in both the U.S. House and Senate, Democrats find themselves as the minority party in Washington D.C.

U.S. Rep. Brendan Boyle (D-Philadelphia), first elected to Congress in 2014, is the senior Democrat in Pennsylvania’s congressional delegation. He also holds an important role for the party during the 119th Congress as the top Democrat on the House Committee on the Budget.

“Over the last few months, it has been probably the busiest committee in Congress, because Republicans reconciliation plans, which is the vehicle that they have to use in order to extend the 2017 Trump tax cuts, that comes through our committee,” Boyle told the Capital-Star on Monday. “So, as you can imagine, it has been an incredibly time-intensive time.”

He says he feels “truly privileged to be the leading Democrat on a committee that is so important at this time.”

Boyle spoke about a wide range of issues including the challenges facing the panel, the impact Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency is having on Pennsylvanians, winning over blue collar workers, and his optimism that Democrats will win the House back in 2026.

This interview was edited for length and clarity.

Capital-Star: What do you see as the most pressing issue facing the House Budget Committee right now and for the foreseeable future?

Boyle: There’s no question, it is the question of what to do about the Trump tax cuts from 2017.

This is really a once in a decade opportunity to shape tax policy.

Now, given that we are in the minority, a lot of what I’ve been doing thus far is in opposition and trying to figure out every which way we can in order to get just one or two Republicans to join with us to stop what I believe will be enormously destructive economic policies for this country.

For example, the reconciliation bill that passed out of Budget Committee and passed out of the House a few weeks ago, included $880 billion worth of cuts to Medicaid.

That’s the largest cut in Medicaid in American history.

If that becomes final, it will have a devastating impact on the almost one in three Americans who rely on Medicaid for their health care.

And in Pennsylvania, that’s an even larger percentage of our population.

In my congressional district, which of course, is based in Philadelphia, 44% of my constituents get their health care through Medicaid.

So, the Republican plans will be very destructive, and that is probably the greatest example of why I say that.

Capital-Star: Roughly one-third of federal workers in Pennsylvania, over 25,000, lived in Philadelphia as of September 2024.

What would you say to federal workers in your district who may be worried about losing their jobs due to Elon Musk leading the Department of Government Efficiency? And…is there any upside for the average Americans for what Trump and Musk are doing for those government programs?

Boyle: I’m glad that you pointed out that statistic, because I fear that many Americans watching the news or reading things online might hear about federal jobs and automatically assume that all of these jobs are based in Washington, DC.

In fact, more than 80% of them are based outside of Washington, DC metro area.

In the Philadelphia area, as you pointed out, we actually have a disproportionately high number of federal jobs.

So, the cuts that have already happened, and that have been well documented so far, they have been a loss of jobs, not just for Washington, DC, but for Pennsylvania and for Philadelphia.

We lost more than 400 jobs at the IRS center, right by 30th Street Station in Philadelphia. Those are Philadelphia based jobs that are now gone.

So, this will have an impact in my congressional district, but also throughout our state, and we’re already seeing that.

In terms of my message to the federal workforce, I have tremendous sympathy for what they’re going through. This is no way to treat your workers.

If there’s a worker who is not performing up to standard, then obviously that worker should be dealt with. If there are ways that we can find how to do things more efficiently, then I am all for that.

But, what Elon Musk and his DOGE bros are doing, is not a way of driving greater efficiency. It is just haphazardly and seems maliciously, going about shutting down huge swaths of our federal government. It’s a great mistake.

Capital-Star: Ultimately, do you think there’s any upside of what Musk and Trump are doing with DOGE?

Boyle: If there is one upside, it is that the American people are paying attention to the importance of what government does and the importance of these positions.

I held a town hall last week down at the Philadelphia AFL-CIO. I met with a ton of federal workers who, right now, are very afraid.

There was one woman who spoke toward the end of our meeting, during the Q&A period, she had joined TSA right after September 11th. She’s been working there ever since, approximately 23 years.

All of a sudden, one morning a few weeks ago, she got an email telling her that was going to be her last day and then suddenly there was a knock on her door, and she was marched out of her office, and she told the crowd this and me this, while tears were streaming down her face.

Again, this is no way to treat your workers who have given you so much for decades.

Capital-Star: President Donald Trump signed an executive order on Thursday that has begun the process of dismantling the Department of Education. Is there anything that Democrats in Congress are planning to do in response to this executive order, and do you ultimately believe that the department will no longer exist in the near future?

Boyle: So first, he cannot eliminate the Department of Education or any department, by executive order. It has to be an act of Congress.

I think the best way to fight back against this and all of these other measures that Trump is undertaking is really three ways.

First, legislatively. Second, through litigation, which we’re seeing now work its way through the courts. And then third, through public mobilization.

Toward that last point, I know some people can be sometimes skeptical or even cynical about whether or not ordinary citizens have a voice and can make a difference.

Exactly eight years ago, when Republicans also had the House, Senate and White House, and they were planning to get rid of the Affordable Care Act, or Obamacare, I saw how thousands and tens of thousands and even millions of people rising up and getting active ended up swaying just enough Republican senators to vote to save the Affordable Care Act.

So, I do believe in the power of ordinary citizens to make a difference.

I think you will have a number of Republican colleagues of mine in swing districts, who will be paying very careful attention to the polls in their districts and throughout the nation, and who very much have a vested interest in making sure that their voting the will of the people of their district, and not just what Donald Trump tells them to do.

Capital-Star: You mentioned in the answer, it is an act of Congress, but Republicans do have a majority in the House and Senate. Do you think they will ultimately have the votes to dismantle and dissolve the Department of Education?

Boyle: I do believe that that would be subject to the filibuster in the Senate. So, I think that Senate Democrats would have an active role to play in that. But even in the House, the margin is so close.

Literally right now, Republicans can only afford to lose one Republican member voting with Democrats in order to pass anything.

So, I’m not going to give up in this fight.

I think we have to fight back aggressively against all of this.

And so the fact that it would literally only take a couple House Republicans out of over 200 to join with us gives me reason for optimism, and I have to say, Democrats, despite all the doom and gloom recently, are actually in a much better position than we were eight years ago, when we were facing a 47 seat Republican majority. That’s what it was in 2017-2018, today, we’re just talking about low single digits.

Capital-Star: You’re also the co-chair of the Blue Collar Caucus in the House, and you represent a district that has its fair share of workers in the building trades.

Can you talk to me about the impact that you think tariffs that President Donald Trump has announced will have on your district, and do you think using tariffs, in certain circumstances, can help preserve blue collar jobs?

Boyle: This is a very important strategic question.

I believe that in certain circumstances, targeted tariffs can be an instrument both of our economic policy as well as our national security. But what Trump is doing, beating up on Canada for no apparent reason at all, I mean, literally our closest ally, makes absolutely no sense.

These sort of broad based tariffs against Canada, Mexico, Europe; they are going to drive up costs dramatically, not just for people in my district and not just union members, but for all Americans.

I am worried, and the Fed has already come out, made clear they’re worried that we are going to see a resurgence in inflation because of this incredibly stupid Trump policy, when it comes to tariffs.

If you’re attempting to drive down costs, this makes no sense. It will literally achieve the opposite.

Capital-Star: What are the tariffs that you think could be used strategically that could potentially benefit the American worker, though? Because you mentioned you think there are some, perhaps?

Boyle: I mean before, for example, in response to a tremendous amount of steel dumping from Asia, I have thought that certain tariffs on steel and on countries that were participating in dumping made a lot of sense.

I think there may be some other targeted areas where we see a country engaging in an unfair labor practice, that it is legitimate to use tariffs as one of many tools to defend American jobs and defend our national security.

But, let’s be clear: what Trump is doing is light years away from the sort of narrow, tailored approach that I’m talking about, and I have to say specifically with respect to national security, the last countries that I would tariff are those like Canada and in Europe who are literally our closest allies.

Capital-Star: We’ve seen in recent elections that the Republican Party with Donald Trump at the helm, has made some inroads with blue collar workers. Why do you think the Democratic Party, to some degree, has lost credibility with these blue collar workers in recent elections?

Boyle: Let me be blunt. My party has got to do a better job of winning votes among working class voters.

I’m the first of my family to go to college. Both my parents were lifelong union members. My dad was a teamster warehouse worker for 25 years, and then a janitor for SEPTA for another two decades. My mom was a crossing guard, a member of AFSCME. They were both loyal Democratic voters.

While I’m glad to see Democrats doing better among college educated voters than ever before, I have long been deeply concerned over the last decade about our declining vote share from working class voters.

I formed the Blue Collar Caucus eight years ago, right after Trump’s initial victory, to attempt to address this issue and to wake up some in my own party that this was a real problem, and it’s not just a problem among working class white voters.

We have seen declines over the last decade among working class voters of all races and ethnicities.

So, there’s a lot to really understand and figure out coming out of the last election, but to me, the single biggest question moving forward for the Democratic Party is, how can we again truly win the votes of a majority of working class people in this country?

Because I genuinely believe that our economic policies are best for all Americans, but especially those who are working class in this country and I am completely convinced that the Republican Party, while every election, they talk a good game about being the party of blue collar voters, then when they’re in office, their number one priority is always tax cuts for billionaires and corporations.

Capital-Star: Just this past weekend, President Donald Trump was in Philly at the NCAA Wrestling Championship, along with a few of your Republican colleagues in the House. 

The New York Times published a story earlier this month about how some Democrats are now attempting to reach voters through some sports media.

I know you’re a big fan of Notre Dame sports, and, of course, Philadelphia teams. I remember interviewing you almost a decade ago. Believe it or not, it has been that long,… it was Notre Dame versus Temple for college football, College Gameday (was there). 

Boyle: And both were ranked in the top 20. It was a great game. Sell out at the Linc.

Capital-Star: Great game. President Trump has been at a fair share of sporting events over the past few years. It increases his visibility.

Do you think Democrats can use it as an effective strategy moving forward? And do you think they’re not doing it enough at this point in time?

Boyle: I think you have to be authentic to who you are.

I mean, look, I’m a WIP listener. I listen to a lot of sports radio. I’ve called into WIP at different points before I was in elected office, and since I’ve been in elected office.

When I do that, I’m not attempting to be anything, you know, that I’m not. It’s because it’s a part of who I am.

So in my view, as long as you are being your authentic self, it makes sense to figure out ways to reach voters, wherever they are.

There are a lot of people in the country today who are not watching broadcast news. They’re not watching cable news, they’re not reading newspapers, and are basically getting all of their information online, either through podcasts or YouTube or TikTok or other social media apps.

I think Republicans, frankly, did a good job last election of recognizing that and showing up everywhere all the time.

I think over the last couple months, you’ve immediately seen congressional Democrats attempt to do that.

For example, a couple weeks ago, and this was the first time I’d ever seen this happen before, the House Democratic Caucus invited in something like over 50 journalists who have their own online presence, again on TikTok, Instagram, X, whatever the case may be, and they interviewed a ton of House Democrats, myself included.

Just last year and all the years before that, that event would have been a traditional press conference for TV cameras and print journalists.

So, we’re seeing a tremendous change in the media landscape, and as always, if you’re in public office or running for office, you need to adapt to that and be showing up where voters are watching and listening.

Capital-Star: There was an NBC News poll from this month that showed only 27% of registered voters said they had a positive view of the Democratic Party. What do you think can be done to boost those numbers, of course, to get it in a different direction?

Boyle: It reminds me of the scene from Dumb and Dumber, “So you’re saying there’s a chance?”

Look, interestingly enough, Republicans in 2014 were in an enormously similar position as the Democrats right now, and a poll showed they were at a similar level, I believe.

In that very next congressional election, Republicans picked up a ton of seats, and, of course, the next presidential election, they won the White House and had a trifecta.

I remember, in this moment in 2017, exactly eight years ago, when Republicans have the House, the Senate and the White House, there was a lot of doom and gloom about where the Democratic Party was and whether Democrats were going to be permanently in the minority and then the very next congressional election, Democrats won 40 seats and took a majority in the House.

And then, of course, the next presidential election won the White House.

So, you can go all the way back the last 50, 60, 70, years and beyond.

Republicans were wiped out in the 1964 presidential election. Democrats were wiped out eight years later in the ‘72 presidential election.

The reality is, our two party system is incredibly durable, and at every moment, there’s been a prediction that a certain political party was wiped out, not only did they come back, they tended to come back fairly quickly.

And I fully expect that the agenda that Donald Trump and Elon Musk are pushing now will be so unpopular among the American people, it’ll be one of the biggest reasons why Democrats win the House Majority next November.