The hosts of The View sat down with Sarah McBride, who made history this week as the first openly transgender woman elected to the United States Congress.
McBride is a Delaware State Senator and LGBTQ+ advocate who made history defeating Republican John Whalen III on Tuesday in the race for Delaware's lone House seat. Whalen is a retired construction company owner and former state trooper who ran a shoestring campaign in his first bid for public office.
"I am so proud that on Tuesday night, Delaware sent the message to our nation that our democracy is and can be big enough for all of us," McBride said during Friday's episode. "I didn't run to be a spokesperson for a movement. I ran to be a voice for Delawareans."
The congresswoman-elect previously served as a Delaware State Senator, where she championed healthcare initiatives, including creating a statewide paid family and medical leave program, addressing Medicaid reimbursement for home healthcare, and expanding dental care for low-income residents. She also sponsored a bill imposing a 3.58 percent tax on hospital revenue to secure additional federal Medicaid funds. All these measures became law.
"My focus in Washington will be the same as my focus in the State Senate, where I was really singularly focused on bringing down costs facing workers, retirees and their families, of building a government that respects all of us by delivering for all of us, regardless of who you are, where you live, or Yes, who you vote for," McBride said.
McBride said she will continue to collaborate with anyone committed to reducing costs for Delaware families and making childcare, housing, healthcare and reproductive healthcare accessible and affordable for all.
She explained Democrats' struggles with supporting Kamala Harris are not due to her policies, as many Democrats favor initiatives like paid family and medical leave and affordable childcare. Instead, the issue lies in a widespread feeling the government does not respect the people.
"There is a lot of pain to go around in this country," McBride said. "Democrats are in pain. Independents are in pain. Republicans are in pain. And I think what we see right now is this competition for pain between the two sides."
She continued, "I think all of us, elected officials, voters, we have to do a better job of demonstrating to people that–we do not have to believe that you are right for what you're facing to be wrong, and we do not have to believe that you are right to try to right that wrong."
While Republicans have won the White House and Senate, control of the House is still on the line.
"I'm hopeful that, as the outstanding votes in California are counted, that there is still a chance that Democrats could get the majority and my first vote in Congress will be to make Hakeem Jeffries the next Speaker of the House of Representatives," McBride said.
Hakeem Jeffries is an American politician serving as the Democratic leader of the U.S. House of Representatives. He represents New York's 8th congressional district, which includes parts of Brooklyn and Queens.
In 2023, Democrats elected Jeffries as House Democratic leader, succeeding Nancy Pelosi. Before this, he served as House Democratic Caucus chair and advocated strongly for progressive policies.
"It's going to take all of us putting pressure on Congress, putting pressure on the administration, every single time the Trump–Vance administration tries to implement that Project 2025 Agenda, we have to show up," McBride said. "We have to speak out."
Democrats have held Delaware's U.S. House seat since 2010. The seat was left open last year after Rep. Lisa Blunt Rochester opted to run for the U.S. Senate spot being vacated by fellow Democrat Tom Carper.
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