Empty Promises, Real-Life Consequences: Demanding More for Families This Election Season

Right now, America is in a state of political turmoil. And as candidates gear up for what political analysts believe will be one of the most important midterms in recent history, they are all honing in on one buzzword: families. 

We’ve heard it all before: how much a candidate cares about American families, how they plan to support families, etc. Candidates know these sentiments hit home for many Americans, which is why they use them. But what happens when they get into office?  

“‘Family’ is not some key term to throw around during election cycles… Families are real people and children who rely on supportive legislation to get by in a country with a deep and growing wealth gap.”

American families were promised economic relief this past presidential election, and the administration’s continued pronatal sentiments pointed to a more family-focused government. Instead, families must now navigate the fallout of life-threatening cuts to Medicaid and SNAP, and disrupted childcare services. 

“Family” is not some key term to throw around during election cycles. It is not just a target demographic for campaign researchers. Families are real people and children who rely on supportive legislation to get by in a country with a deep and growing wealth gap. Families are the future of America. As 2028 election candidates emerge, we must demand that whoever is elected puts forth legislation that allows families to support themselves with dignity. 

The Administration’s Hypocritical Hostility toward Families

Throughout his campaign and presidency, Trump has made several strange comments like “We want more babies,” and “I want a baby boom. You men are so lucky out there.” Yet instead of enacting policies that foster familial support, his administration has been making drastic changes that are harming families with young children across the country. 

As inflation continues to increase, this administration promises an end to the affordability crisis while it simultaneously slashes billions in funding to safety nets like SNAP that traditionally provide for families’ survival. 

“In 2026, 1 in 5 U.S. kids (roughly 14 million) is living with hunger.”

For example, according to California Food Banks, last year in our home state of California alone, 1 in 3 adults living with children faced food insecurity, with SNAP benefits providing food for 5.5 million Californians and their families. However, recent research indicates that funding cuts from H.R. 1 will cause 3.1 million families in California alone to lose some if not all of their family’s much-needed food assistance through SNAP.

If this can happen in the state with the highest GDP and the fourth largest economy in the world, what does that mean for the rest of the country? The same study projects that 22.3 million families across the U.S. will lose some if not all SNAP benefits. According to First Focus on Children, nationally, more than 700,000 children have already lost access to food assistance since the passage of H.R. 1.

“This is the dangerous hypocrisy of the current government: bolstering pronatalism, while contributing to a hunger crisis that will have fatal consequences for families and children.”

In other words, the current budget cuts are occurring in the midst of an already growing hunger crisis. No Kid Hungry reports that 1 in 5 kids (roughly 14 million) in the United States is currently living with hunger. This is a harrowing increase from the previous year. 

This is the dangerous hypocrisy of the current government: bolstering pronatalism, while contributing to a hunger crisis that will have fatal consequences for families and children.

The Fatal Cost of Budget Cuts 

The impact of H.R. 1 doesn’t stop at the dinner table. The bill slashed $1 trillion in funding to Medicaid, greatly impacting children and maternity care across the country. In fact, since the bill’s inception last year, more than 2 million children have lost access to Medicaid-funded healthcare programs, and this trend is projected to result in 10% of U.S. children being uninsured by 2036. 

“Since [H.R. 1]’s inception last year, more than 2 million children have lost access to Medicaid-funded healthcare programs. This trend is projected to result in 10% of U.S. children being uninsured by 2036.”

The cuts from Medicaid also impact the countless mothers and soon-to-be mothers who rely on subsidized maternity care. Since last summer, maternity-care providers for Medicaid have had to reduce services, lay off employees, or suspend plans. According to the Society for Maternal Fetal Medicine, nearly 40% of all births in the U.S., and nearly half of all births in rural communities, relied on Medicaid.

The U.S. already has the highest maternal mortality rate of any developed nation in the world. These substantial cuts are catastrophic for mothers as maternal health faces severe defunding.  

“Instead of increasing birthrates by supporting current and future mothers, they choose to limit abortion access without a care for whether the mothers survive childbirth and can feed those children.”

It’s important to note that race factors into this, with Black mothers’ mortality being more than three times higher than white mothers’. What’s even more shocking is the fact that 80% of all maternal deaths in this country are preventable, according to the American Medical Association (AMA). Some of these deaths occur in what are called “maternity deserts,” meaning counties with virtually no access to obstetricians, gynecologist, or midwives. The same report by the AMA found that more than 2.2 million U.S. women live in maternity deserts, and more than one third of U.S. counties meet the description. 

“The U.S. already has the highest maternal mortality rate of any developed nation in the world. These substantial cuts are catastrophic for mothers as maternal health faces severe defunding.”

In a country with unacceptable maternal mortality rates, where the federal government claims to want an increase in birth rates, it’s baffling that our government continues to take action to ensure no intervention will be made to protect American mothers’ maternity health. At the same time, when we remember how anti-woman this administration is, it’s not surprising. Instead of increasing birthrates by supporting current and future mothers, they choose to limit abortion access without a care for whether the mothers survive childbirth and can feed those children.

“Black mothers’ mortality rates are more than three times higher than white mothers’. What’s even more shocking is the fact that 80% of all maternal deaths in this country are preventable, according to the American Medical Association (AMA).”

While our leaders continue to defund vital programs for families, we are also seeing an increase in funding to programs like ICE. The Center for Law and Social Policy reports that DHS has received $170.7 billion funding this year. The irony of claiming to be family-forward yet pouring funds into the same agency that has been ripping families apart is clear as day. Furthermore, our most current war in Iran has cost an estimated $113 billion as of June 2026. 

Needless to say, this calls into question the priorities of our government and their dedication to American families. While the government pours our tax dollars into foreign wars and violent domestic enforcement agencies, mothers and children take a back seat. 

The Affordability Crisis

Despite decades of politicians boasting support for families, we are still the only developed nation without national workplace maternity leave, and we have yet to implement universal childcare. In recent years, childcare has become increasingly expensive, and in the middle of surging inflation, the ability to afford childcare has become unfeasible for countless families.

“We are still the only developed nation without national workplace maternity leave, and we have yet to implement universal childcare.”

Child Care Aware reports in their latest cost breakdown that the annual cost of childcare for the average American family is $13,184, an amount more expensive than median annual rent payments in 47 states. While there are federal subsidy programs to aid with childcare costs, the nonprofit reports that only 15% of eligible children actually receive these federal subsidies. Additionally, in state-funded programs across the country, the varied budgets and access for children makes childcare an issue of wealth disparity. 

Economic disparities play a key role in the policies supporting mothers and children in Equal Pay Today’s 2026 Wage Justice Agenda for Moms and Caregivers, which highlights the financial inequalities American mothers face. The maternal wage gap costs full-time working mothers $1,583 monthly on average, equating to $19,000 annually. Again, when factoring in race, the losses increase to $35,000 annually for Black moms, $38,900 for Latina moms, and $40,000 for Indigenous American moms.

“The annual cost of childcare for the average American family is…more expensive than median annual rent payments in 47 states. While there are federal subsidy programs to aid with childcare costs…only 15% of eligible children actually receive these subsidies.”

These statistics are compounded by the fact that 79% of moms are less likely to be hired, half as likely to be promoted, and qualified mothers who are hired are offered an average of $11,000 less than non-mothers. In the midst of an affordability crisis and the defunding of social services, 35 million U.S. households rely on women as breadwinners, meaning the current state of wage inequality in this country results in more children and families living in poverty.

For mothers living in poverty, legislation that supports and protects the families they provide for is critical. Of the 44 million Americans living in poverty, 10 million are children. Mothers living on low incomes have a unique struggle. A 2026 study by No Kid Hungry found that 1 in 3 moms report they’ve taken on debt just to feed their children. 

“Of the 44 million Americans living in poverty, 10 million are children. Mothers living on low incomes have a unique struggle… 1 in 3 moms report they’ve taken on debt just to feed their children.”

Additionally, more than 1 in 5 moms delay medical care, with 21% delaying prescriptions. In a national survey of mothers across all income levels, 43% reported that they worry they cannot provide healthy meals for their kids, and almost all report making significant sacrifices for their children’s well-being. 

We are less than two years into this administration, and mothers along with their children are left weathering the onslaught of attacks to the programs originally designed to protect them. 

Critical Need for Political Accountability

This issue of campaign promises to families being sidelined is not unique to the Trump administration. It’s actually just one example in a bipartisan pattern of presidential failures. 

For instance, despite George Bush’s presidential campaign based on “compassionate conservatism” geared toward helping American families, in 2007, he infamously vetoed bipartisan bills aimed at preserving coverage through the Children’s Health Insurance Program for 6.6 million children whose parents did not qualify for Medicaid, and refused to expand the program to an additional 3.3 million children. By the end of his presidency, the child poverty rate in the U.S. rose to 19%, while the total cost of Bush’s “war on terror” is reported to have cost a staggering $1.6 trillion. 

“This issue of campaign promises to families being sidelined is not unique to the Trump administration. It’s actually just one example in a bipartisan pattern of presidential failures.” 

In another example of campaign promises falling short, Bill Clinton’s pro-family campaign rhetoric contrasted the strict and controversial welfare reform policy that played a significant role in the stark increase from 636,000 to 1.5 million families surviving on less than $2.00 a day. So it goes without saying that, while pro-family sentiments aid in getting presidents elected, the follow-through on these sentiments is where families slip through the cracks

It does not have to be like this, though. In fact, we have seen some recent wins that indicate politicians can deliver on family-centric campaign pledges made to voters. 

During her campaign, Virginia Governor Abigail Spanberger explicitly promised to bring forward progressive bills supporting family leave. As of April this year, Governor Spanberger kept her promise, and Virginia’s Paid Family and Medical Leave Program was established. While this is a state-level example, it still signifies that it’s possible for candidates to hold true on their campaign pledges. 

“These examples show that campaign promises do not just have to be marketing tactics… Candidates must be held accountable for following through on pledges made to families who vote for them in the hopes of receiving support in return.”

A broader national example of campaign follow-through would be Obama’s 2009 American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. Enacted within the first months of his presidency, Obama delivered on his campaign promise to provide economic relief to families by pouring billions into funding programs like Head Start while simultaneously expanding Child Tax Credits to 10 million children. 

These examples show that campaign promises do not just have to be marketing tactics; they aren’t just methods of acquiring votes. Candidates must be held accountable for following through on pledges made to families who vote for them in the hopes of receiving support in return. Moreover, these examples should remind us as voters that we have an obligation to demand that once elected, politicians implement policies and budgets that reflect the family-aligned narratives echoed on campaign trails.

As we draw closer to 2028, it’s imperative that whoever is elected takes issues plaguing American mothers and their families seriously. It is not enough for them to just verbalize values and ideas. Politicians must put forth the action to support and protect the families they’re elected to serve. 

Read ERA’s new report, 2026 Wage Justice Agenda for Moms and Caregivers