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The Brooklyn Democratic Party submitted paperwork with at least two forged signatures to the city Board of Elections as part of a bid to knock fellow Democrats off June primary ballots, a grassroots political organization alleges.

On Thursday, Rep Your Block, a volunteer organization, lodged a complaint with the board, citing sworn affidavits from two registered Democrats in Brownsville and East New York who said the signatures on ballot challenges to candidates filed in their names werent theirs.

The filing of these objections with your agency amounts to the criminal act of filing a false instrument, the complaint to the BOE states. These objections and any resulting specifications should be dismissed by your agency.

Rep Your Block, which aims to get more residents to participate in the boroughs Democratic party, also communicated to THE CITY concerns about the validity of at least a half dozen other signatures submitted on formal objections to candidates ballot petitions filed with the board.

They point to a similarity in the handwriting among the signatures, obvious discrepancies between the submitted signatures and voter signatures already on file at the Board of Election, and even misspellings of some of the names.

We just want to be a part of our own political party. It shouldnt be that hard. And to have to go to a criminal end to block us is just shocking, said Maggie Moore, campaign director for Rep Your Block. Its really, really unfortunate and disappointing.

The flagged challenges were among dozens linked to the Brooklyn Democratic Party targeting the ballot petitions of nearly 200 candidates who are seeking party positions.

Both opponents and allies of the party leadership described the wave of objections to candidates, mostly for low-level party posts, as part of an effort to consolidate power under county party chair Rodneyse Bichotte, who is also a state Assembly member.

The organizations attorney, Ali Najmi, said the alleged fraud constitutes a crime and calls into question the validity of all the challenges submitted by the Brooklyn Democratic Party which he asked the Board of Elections to toss.

Here theyve committed actual fraud on multiple ones, said Najmi, an election lawyer. They should strike them all.

The ballot challenges in question all listed Anthony Genovesi Jr., an attorney who serves as law chair for the Brooklyn Democrats, as a contact person.

Genovesi Jr., who is also a partner at Abrams Fensterman, a law firm with close ties to Mayor Eric Adams and the Brooklyn Democratic Party, did not respond to an email seeking comment. A call transferred via Genovesis office directory was disconnected after a reporter for THE CITY identified himself to the man who answered.

Adams chief of staff, Frank Carone, is also a former partner at Abrams Fensterman and the former law chair of the Brooklyn Dems.

Bob Liff, a spokesperson for the Brooklyn Democratic Party, said in a statement on Friday after this storys publication: Claims that the Party knowingly filed a false instrument are fallacious, and frankly libelous. Any allegations of fraudulent activity should be investigated through the proper legal channels.

Michael J. Ryan, executive director of the citys BOE, did not respond to requests for comment.

John Booker is one of the two Brooklyn residents who swears his signature was forged on ballot objection forms.

The 66-year-old makes a living selling hats, handmade bead strings and other knickknacks outside the Broadway Junction train hub. After years of pushing a cart with his merchandise, Booker injured a finger on his right hand, making it difficult for him to write.

So when the street vendor saw his name written in elegant cursive on a ballot objection form, he knew it was a fraud, he said.

I couldnt possibly sign this neatly, Booker told THE CITY on a hot afternoon standing next to his table. My signature is more of a scribble.

Booker insisted that he did not and could not have accidentally signed the form on April 6, the date that appears next to the signature. He said he is always careful about what he signs, and would have no interest in a blind effort to kick fellow residents off the ballot.

Because I dont know these people. I dont know what they represent, what their platform is, he said. So I wouldnt, you know, I just would never do this. April 6th? Wasnt that like last week? No, no, believe me, this is fraud.

The other voter who signed an affidavit stating that the signature on the petition challenge wasnt his is an 85-year-old retired maintenance worker who originally hails from Guyana, and who asked that his name not be published.

He confirmed to THE CITY that an electronic copy of the signature shown to him by a reporter wasnt his.

Moore, of Rep Your Block, said she found something fishy among the objections in the 55th Assembly district that includes Brownsville and East New York because all six of the Rep Your Block-aided candidates petitions for county committee had been challenged.

That district has 208 county committee seats in all for the coming term.

Challenges of petitions for those posts are often difficult to secure because the objector needs to be a registered Democrat who lives in the same small election district typically the size of a few blocks as the candidate.

Najmi said he commissioned a former NYPD member now working as a private investigator to track down some of the alleged objectors. The investigator found that two, including Booker, had registered their voting address at a self-storage site near Broadway Junction.

Booker told THE CITY he uses the storage site as his mailing address.

The objection signature submitted in Bookers name was one of nearly 70 residents signatures filed last week with the Board of Elections and linked to Genovesi Jr., targeting nearly 200 Democratic candidates for offices across the borough.

About half of those political hopefuls are running to join the ranks of the roughly 4,000 Democratic county committee members, who serve for two-year terms as party representatives.

While the positions are unpaid, county committee members serve critical functions that shape the party agenda and influence which Democrats get elected into state offices in Brooklyn.

They help pick nominees in special elections that take place following sudden vacancies in the state legislature, often giving county-backed candidates a leg up by putting their names on the party line in low-turnout elections in a borough where Democratic voters dominate.

Historically, the Kings County Democratic Committee has been able to maintain significant majority control of county committee members, limiting the ability for dissident opinions to be heard.

But as groups like Rep Your Block have boosted their organizing work, and with majority control of county committee members increasingly up for grabs, those races have become a key point of struggle inside the Democratic party.

In a 13-hour Zoom meeting held in December 2020, for the first time in recent memory a vote by more than 2,000 county committee members swung in favor of reforms pushed for by dissident members of the Kings County Democratic Committee including rule changes intended to decentralize power within the party.

That rare victory was short-lived, however, after party leaders nullified the vote in a continuation of the adjourned meeting a week later. A judge tossed a lawsuit challenging the reversal based on a technicality.

The petition challenges are just part of a ground game by the partys top leadership to push out critics. Last month, Bichottes communications and legislative aide at the state Assembly, Sabrina Rezzy, petitioned to run for the post of district leader in Bay Ridge despite living miles away in Brooklyn Heights.

While running for the seat out of district is allowed because of pending changes to district lines, the move was viewed by incumbent district leader Joanne Seminara as an attempt to punish her for sometimes bucking the partys wishes.

Its really an obvious move by County to choose a district leader for our district, which is backwards, Seminara told THE CITY earlier this month. Its the people of our district who should choose their district leader.

Seminaras petitions were among those challenged in the batch linked to Genovesi.

Bichotte herself challenged petitions for two candidates in her 42nd Assembly District, including an opponent for her district and legislative seats, Victor Jordan.

Targeting the Opposition

Miriam Robertson, a county committee member from Brownsville, was taken aback on Thursday when THE CITY informed her that a ballot objection filed against her included an alleged forgery.

You just chose somebody, put their signature, and said Oh, we object!, she said.

The objection petition reminded the 57-year-old of why she was inspired to first run for county committee back in 2020: the feeling that people in back rooms were making the real decisions.

At her day job running a cultural center inside the Stone Avenue Library, Robertson could help her fellow residents find their voices: acting in plays, performing in jazz concerts and producing stories in writing workshops.

But outside, when she would attend community and school council meetings, she saw proposals about public renovations, city contracts and space decisions in schools being rubber-stamped.

So when a friend of a friend reached out about running for county committee, saying Brownsville needed more grassroots representation in the Democratic party, she was in. She collected signatures and won her election.

As a county committee member, Robertson had to participate in long Zoom meetings where she and fellow members voted on new rules proposals. Despite how chaotic and tiring it could feel, she says it was important to participate.

I believe when we are really sitting at the table, being part of decision-making policies, it really does improve the quality of life, she said. You begin to see the changes in the community.

Though showing up to meetings was hardly a radical course of action, Robertson says she believes the party moved against her because they prefer members who sit back and follow orders.

They want to keep things the status quo, she said. They dont want change. They say they want change, but at the end of the day they want things to stay the way they are.

The apparent forgery, she said, added insult to injury, assuming that people in Brownsville wouldnt notice.

You think were a bunch of idiots, that we dont know anything. Were so wrapped in our daily lives that, Oh I dont have time to worry about that, she said. And thats why we got to change the culture. We have to stop saying, Oh thats just the way things are. No, thats not how things are. We have to stop and take a stand somewhere.

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Brooklyn Democratic Party Filed Forged Signatures to Knock Rivals Off Ballots, Fellow Dems Allege - THE CITY

DENVER (CBS4) Imagine being able to go online and shop around for health care like you do anything else. Under a federal rule that took effect last year, hospitals should be posting the prices they negotiate with insurers online, but many have dragged their feet.

Some state lawmakers say if fines dont get their attention, maybe litigation will.

Representatives Patrick Neville, a Republican, and Daneya Esgar, a Democrat, are sponsors of a bill thats aimed at hospitals that have refused to post prices to protect profits greater than the federal penalties they face.

Their bill would allow people to sue and have their bill dismissed if, on the day they received care, the hospital wasnt in compliance with the federal rule. The hospital would also have to pay a penalty and the patients attorney fees.

Neville says, After three or four lawsuits, theyll all come into compliance and well probably never use this bill again.

Look no further than Mason Kochel of Avon to understand how a little price transparency can make a huge difference, in his case, a $15,000 difference. David Kochel says his son went to an emergency room with a severe allergic reaction and left with an Epi-pen that, he says, the hospital posted online for $600, but billed him for $15,000.

It was outrageous, egregious, maybe fraudulent. They called it a glitch in the billing system but thousands of Coloradans every year experience glitches like this.

Removing the secrecy around hospital pricing is one of the few issues where Republicans and Democrats are on the same page. The federal rule was written by the Trump administration and implemented by the Biden administration.

Neville says price transparency is the best way to drive up competition among hospitals and drive down prices for all of us.

This also gives employers the ability to go back and look and shop and say man, my employees are going to be paying a lot less if I choose this policy or this hospital so its like true negotiating power for employers, even the labor groups, the state government could probably save a ton of money with this, said Neville.

Kochel supports the bill that he hopes makes hospitals think twice before billing 15,000 for an Epi-pen, In our case, the story has a happy ending. Thats not the case for most Coloradans, many of who would not know how to go about challenging the bill and many of whom would have just paid it, so I think its really important that hospitals are held accountable.

The Colorado Hospital Association says it supports transparency but the bill, it says, needs work including a clear definition of what it means for a hospital to be in non-compliance. It argues federal regulators, not the courts, are best positioned to decide that.

The Hospital Association says based on a survey it conducted, 90% of hospitals here are in compliance with the federal rule. Deciphering the data, however, can be difficult, if not impossible, for consumers.

A federal rule taking effect this summer will enable tech companies to aggregate the data and develop apps that allow people to easily compare prices for individual procedures.

Neville suggests that will be a game-changer, Theres a lot of companies out there developing apps, so just like you can go to Gasbuddy.com and find the best gas station, youre going to have different companies out there developing these apps so, if you want to go shop for service, you can hop on there and see oh, if I drive another 10 miles I can save $3,000 on my MRI and guess whats going to happen? Youre going to go save $3,000 and then the company thats charging $3,000 more is going to look at losing all that business and say I need to lower my prices.

Neville says one study found 30% of hospital costs are negotiated with insurance companies and 20% of insurance company costs are negotiated with hospitals.

The bill passed the House Health and Insurance Committee unanimously and is now headed to the floor.

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Republicans And Democrat Want To Empower Patients To Sue Hospitals That Dont Post Prices - CBS Denver

MUNCIE, Ind. Special Judge Gail Dues, of Jay County Superior Court, granted a motion Thursday to dismiss an appeal from three would-be Democrat precinct committeemen candidates over their removal from the May 3 Delaware County primary ballot.

According to Ralph E. Dowling, the attorney representing the three,her ruling camea little more than an hour before he was set to argue the case at a hearing that had been repeatedly rescheduled. Later Thursday, Dowling filed a motion to reconsider the dismissal.

The motion to dismiss the appeal contended the election board was within its rights toremoveHeather Williams, Jayne Beilke and Molly K. Robertson from the ballot at a Feb. 20board hearing, and that the issue was now moot, because early voting in the primary has already started.

Election 2022: Find more local primary election coverage here

Delaware CountyDemocratic PartyChairman Ana Quirk Hunter had asked the board to remove thethree candidates based onmatters such as errors on election filing forms, address changes and lack of proofregarding past voting..

Hunter had originally requested 16 committeeman candidates be removed. All of them, Dowling said, were members of a group called theNew Democrat Coalition, which is opposed by the establishment wing of the county party organization.Nine of thosecandidates were kept on the ballot after candidates discussedtheir individual cases before the board,made up of sitting Delaware County ClerkRick Spangler, Republican PartyrepresentativePete Drumm andDemocratic Party RepresentativeAshley Nichols.

Democratic precinct committeemen are selected by Democratic primary voters to help run the county party organization and elect the county central committee.

The appeal on behalf ofthree of the people removed from the ballotwas filed weeks ago in Delaware County Circuit Court 3, where Judge LindaRalu Wolf presides. Dowling said Wolf had recused herself from the case, which involves local political and elected officials. The appeal went before two other area judges; one was rejected by the defense and another chose not to hear it,before the case camebefore Dues.

Earlier: Several would-be Democrat committeemen axed from Delaware County ballot

Donald K. McClellan, the attorney who is representing theelection board, said he made his motion to dismiss as soon as he reasonably could ahead of the hearing set by Dues for Thursday afternoon.

In his motion to reconsider, Dowling noted the hearing had been set for 1 p.m. Thursday.

"At 11:22 a.m., Respondents filed a motion to dismiss the appeal," Dowling wrote in his motionafter discovering the decision. "…At some point before noon, the Court issued an order dismissing the appeal. It is currently 12:08 p.m. and the undersigned has not been served a copy of the order and has learned of it only because court staff was courteous enough to call to tell us the hearing, set less than an hour from now, was not taking place."

Dowling said the dismissal was made without giving his clients any chance to respond to the motion to dismiss.

"The dismissal violated the Petitioner's due process rights under the Indiana and U.S. constitution," his motion read.

McClellan said that little in this case has gone as usual, given the time constraints and the effort to find a judge.

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Dowling argues that the respondents delayed the case.

"When the first judge on this case recused herself, Mr. McClellan refused to return a call… to discuss (or) agree on a special judge, which led to an eight-day delay in the appointment of a special judge, until April 1."

A hearing was then set for April 5, he said, but the attorney forthe election board waiteduntil April 4 to request a change of judge. Then Judge Dale Arnett, Randolph County Superior Court, declined jurisdiction in the case on Tuesday, sending the matter to Dues on Thursday.

"Having successfully delayed the hearing from April 4 to April 14, Respondents now claim that April 14 is too late for relief," the motion to reconsider said.

In addition to the issue of the appeal having to be considered after voting has begun, McClellan says Dowling's argument in his appeal seeks to have the court essentially redo what the election board already did, which is considerwhether the people involved should be placed on the ballot.

An appeal of the matter, he said, shouldbe based on whether the election board correctly followed its procedures, not on the final determinations it made.

The appeal document states efforts of the New Democratic Coalition are to rid the county organization of "insidiouscorruption" and said the decisions made by the election board were "unreasonable, lacked factual support, and were inconsistent with the law,"

Dowling is asking the court to rescind its dismissal and set an immediate hearing on the merits of the appeal.

He said he doesn't know how soon to expect a response but the judge would have 30 days to study his motion. He also said that, ideally, the matter could be resolved before Election Day.

It mightbe, Dowling said, that the Democratic primary election would have to be conducted again just in the three precincts involved,which he characterized asan expensive remedy.

David Penticuff is the local government reporter at the Star Press. Contact him at dpenticuff@gannett.com.

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Without hearing, judge nixes appeal of Democratic reform candidates struck from ballot - The Star Press

Democrats fear a Supreme Court ruling to overturn Roe v. Wade would seriously endanger womens health and disintegrate one of their most sacrosanct political rights.

But for all the anger and concern, some in the party see a way to turn the shared anxiety into action in November.

They say the possibility expected by many court-watchers that abortion could suddenly become illegal in states across the country could galvanize voters in a way few other issues could, particularly as President Biden remains plagued by low approval ratings and predicaments at home and abroad.

Reproductive freedom is poised to have a tremendous impact on the midterm elections, said Ally Boguhn, acting communications director for NARAL Pro-Choice America. Voters are increasingly being confronted with the reality that the constitutional right to abortion recognized for nearly 50 years could be eviscerated just a few months before they cast their ballots.

Bidens inability to rise from the low 40s in approval polls has caused many Democrats to write the House off as a loss and cast the Senate as a danger zone. Surveys indicate his efforts to control inflation have left voters unimpressed, and his focus on Russias foreign war in Ukraine ranks lower as a matter of interest than domestic issues such as the economy and the high price of gas.

The looming threat to abortion rights, however, has caused Democrats in both wings of the party to prioritize the issue more rigorously. They see it as something that not only motivates their base, but can also bring infrequent or less-committed voters into the fold at a critical moment.

Surveys consistently show that most voters back abortion rights. In more than three decades of Gallup polling, support for overturning Roe v. Wade has never crossed above 40 percent, and an NBC News survey last month found that, by a more than 2-to-1 margin, voters are more likely to back a candidate who supports Roe.

In anticipation of November, many Democratshave already started strategizing around ways to show voters that Republicans are behind efforts to scale back womens health.

Fears about what would happen if Roe is overturned are already playing out in states where anti-choice politicians are working in overdrive to ban abortion and cut off access as quickly as possible, and voters are watching, Boguhn said.

That is particularly true in swing states where Democrats are preparing for tough reelection campaigns against GOP candidates.

In New Hampshire, Sen. Maggie Hassan (D) is in whats expected to be a competitive match-up against an as-yet-unknown GOP rival. Hassan, a former governor, has been outspoken against efforts led by current Gov. Chris Sununu (R) to significantly curb abortion rights in the state, which has reliably provided protections for female reproductive health.

Sununu declined to mount a Senate challenge to Hassan, but Democrats nonetheless expect whoever becomes the Republican nominee to adopt a restrictive anti-abortion rights platform and are crafting attacks with that in mind.

Our campaign is already talking to Granite Staters directly about the contrast between Senator Hassans staunch support for reproductive health care with her opponents records of eviscerating womens liberty, said Kevin Donohoe, Hassans campaign spokesperson.

New Hampshire has a strong bipartisan history of supporting reproductive freedom and our opponents long record of backing abortion bans could not be more toxic with voters, he said.

Republicans see the issue as equally provocative for their own base.

Each cycle, GOP candidates and aligned committees spend significant resources attempting to portray Democrats as the party that supports abortion under more extreme scenarios, such as later in a womans pregnancy.

Those efforts have led several battlegrounds to put laws on the books that make the procedure harder to obtain.

In Michigan, Gov. Gretchen Whitmer (D), a Biden ally who is also up for reelection, has preemptively asked the state Supreme Court to examine whether getting an abortion is a constitutional right.

The move was made in anticipation of forthcoming Supreme Court decisions on multiple abortion cases, including a Mississippi law that bans the procedure after 15 weeks. Supporters of that and other anti-abortion measures are openly calling on the 6-3 conservative majority high court to overturn Roe v. Wade this term.

In Florida, Gov. Ron DeSantis (R), who is up for reelection this year and believed to have presidential aspirations for 2024, on Thursday made his state the latest to follow in Mississippis footsteps with a 15-week ban.

Other states have considered or enacted even more restrictive bills, with Oklahoma poised to outlaw the practice after just six weeks or possibly even permanently in the near future.

For all the action on the Republican side, Democrats say they have become more activated and better organized, challenging state-by-state rulings and rallying activists on the ground in key areas ahead of the midterm elections.

Many have also been vocal from Washington.

Democratic lawmakers on Capitol Hill and senior officials in the White House have coalesced around reproductive rights to show a unified front as other topics divide factions of the party.

Bidens inability to persuade key members of the Senate to help pass his legislative agenda crushed Democrats morale, and the administration continues to search for more tangible wins to offer voters.

Activists on the outside have also been focused on hammering Republicans over what they see as an affront to personal identity and freedom, as well as a losing issue at the ballot box.

The decades long crusade by the Republican Party to end legal abortion is now taking effect, Cecile Richards, the co-chair of the Democratic firm American Bridge and a former president of Planned Parenthood, told The Hill on Friday.

Voters are beginning to realize this is 100 percent a result of the Republican Party prioritizing politics over womens health.

Democrats in North Carolina say a Supreme Court ruling that would leave states to determine their own abortion laws is a political disaster for the other side. They view further restrictions as doing significant harm to women who have already seen various attempts by GOP lawmakers try to limit their access.

While prior efforts to protect abortions have come up short the state has a Democratic governor who has not signed off on such attempts the fall elections could add a new focus on the health care debate in a way that some acknowledge is both motivating and terrifying.

If you were not with us when we were fighting back against attempts to restrict access to abortion and defund Planned Parenthood, then how can we believe that [you will] suddenly be with us now? asked Erica Smith, a House candidate and former North Carolina state senator running to replace a more moderate Democrat, Rep. G.K. Butterfield, in the 1st Congressional District.

Women deserve to take that pain and frustration and righteous anger to the ballot box and fight back, she said.

The court is expected to release its decisions toward the end of June. But neither Democrats nor Republicans are waiting to act.

Attacks on reproductive freedom are a massive liability for Republican politicians, and this will be even more true ifRoeis overturned, said Boguhn. Democratic candidates up and down the ballot would be wise to lean into their support for reproductive freedom.

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Could the end of Roe v. Wade save Democrats in November? - The Hill

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EXCLUSIVE: Democrats and Republicans from the House Committee on Economic Disparity & Fairness in Growth are in Wisconsin this week to meet with local leaders to discuss issues facing their communities, and hope to work in a bipartisan way to address those challenges, telling Fox News Digital that "it's not a Democrat thing or a Republican thing," but something facing all Americans.

In an exclusive joint-interview with Fox News Digital, committee Chairman Jim Himes, D-Conn., and Ranking Member Bryan Steil, R-Wis., said they have the "opportunity" this week to actually "listen" to the American people.

REP. HIMES SAYS FAILURE TO INVEST IN EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION 'OUGHT TO TROUBLE' DEMOCRATS AND REPUBLICANS

"The issue of economic disparity is too important and means too much to too many Americans for us to grandstand and suggest the problems are simple," Himes told Fox News Digital. "There is too much going on for Democrats to pretend we have all of the answers, and that Republicans are always wrong it all just means too much for too many people."

Committee Chairman Jim Himes, D-Conn., left, with Ranking Member Bryan Steil, R-Wis., at a field hearing in Kenosha on April 11, 2022.

"This doesnt mean I am any less Democrat, or Ranking Member Steil is any less Republican some of the issues are easier to hear for Democrats, and some of the issues are more difficult," Himes said. "But we really want to surface all of that stuff, because no party has a monopoly on what the right answers is."

FILE - Rep. Jim Himes, D-Conn., asks a question during a House Financial Services Committee hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington, Sept. 22, 2020. REUTERS/Joshua Roberts/Pool (REUTERS/Joshua Roberts/Pool)

He added: "We will stand by what we believe, but lean heavily into areas where there is overlap, because, frankly, in this Congress, nothing is getting done without bipartisan support."

The trip crosses into Kenosha, Wis., which is part of Steils district.

"Far too often Congress doesnt work for the American people, and one the reasons is Congress doesnt listen to the American people," Steil told Fox News Digital, adding that he is "honored" Himes brought the committee to the state.

Rep. Bryan Steil (R-WI) attends a House Financial Services Committee hearing on "Oversight of the Treasury Department's and Federal Reserve's Pandemic Response" in the Rayburn House Office Building in Washington, U.S., December 2, 2020. Greg Nash/Pool via REUTERS (Greg Nash/Pool via REUTERS)

"There is economic disparity everywhere you look," Steil said. "Its not a Democrat thing or a Republican thing."

Steil said that while he and Himes work together on the committee, they often "disagree pretty viscerally."

"But what we do is, we disagree without being disagreeable," Steil said. "You have everything from members of the progressive wing to members of the Freedom Caucus, with very divergent views but we have shown an ability to disagree without being disagreeable."

Himes added that the committee is "conscious of the fact we have a lot of division in this country."

"In my opinion, a lot of the disparity and giving up on the American dream leads to some of the political anger we have out in America today," Himes said, adding that he is "excited to study the problems a little more closely" and come up with "solutions."

The field visit comes as Americans are struggling with rising inflation which hit a 40-year-high in February. The consumer price index climbed 7.9% on an annual basis. Month over month, according to the data, inflation rose 0.8%.

The year-over-year reading is in line with estimates and compares with an annual 7.5% jump in January, marking the fastest increase since February 1982, when inflation hit 7.6%.

Gas jumped 6.6% in February and accounted for almost a third of price hikes, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics data released Thursday. Food prices, in comparison, rose by 1%.

The February data were recorded before the start of the Russia-Ukraine conflict, which has pushed prices at the pump to over $4.00 per gallon across the nation.

President Biden, last month, announced a ban on all imports of Russian oil, gas and energy to the United States, targeting the "main artery" of Russia's economy amid Russian President Vladimir Putins war on Ukraine. Biden warned that the ban would cost American families.

But even amid rising inflation, the Biden administration is touting job growthusing the March jobs report as evidence that the economy is coming back to life in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.

"Americans are back to work," Biden said from the White House on April 1. "Record job creation. Record unemployment decline. Record wage gains."

His comments came shortly after the Labor Department said in its monthly report that payrolls in March rose by 431,000, slightly missing the 480,000 jobs forecast by Refinitiv economists. The unemployment rate, which is calculated based on a separate survey, fell to 3.6%, the lowest level since February 2020.

Job gains were broad-based, with the biggest increases in leisure and hospitality (112,000), professional and business services (102,000) andretail(49,000).

Millions of workers are seeing the largest pay gains in years, as companies compete with one another for a limited number of employees: Wages climbed 5.6% in March from the previous year, nearly double the pre-pandemic average of 3%.

Many of those gains have been eroded, however, by the hottestinflationin nearly four decades that has pushed the price of everyday necessities like gasoline, clothing and food significantly higher which Biden acknowledged.

Meanwhile, Himes and Steil along with RepGwen Moore, D-Wis., are participating in a number of field hearings and events in Milwaukee and Kenosha this week. The lawmakers plan to examine issues like affordable housing, higher education, and community workforce development.

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A committee aide told Fox News that they are expected to hold public events with local civic leaders and community members to discuss some of the "most pressing economic issues" facing the region.

On Monday, lawmakers participated in a field hearing "Pathways to Opportunity: Lessons from Kenosha," which took place at the University of Wisconsin-Parkside in Kenosha. The hearing focused on education paths, and ways that allow workers to enter, re-enter, and remain in the workforce.

Himes, in an interview with Fox News in December, discussed his committee's work in "examining the increasingly significant disparities in American wealth and income" and told Fox News the work is "important" for a number of reasons.

"Number one, there is a moral dimension," he said, at the time. "Two, there is an economic problem you can reach a point in disparity where your economy as a whole suffers because productivity goes down, and the middle class doesnt have purchasing power, etcetera."

He added: "And then there is a political dimension to it as well. I am a believer that when enough Americans feel they dont have a stake in the system, our democracy is at risk."

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Himes, Steil say economic disparity is 'not a Democrat thing or a Republican thing,' seek bipartisan solutions - Fox News