The Al Franken Podcast Rep. Rosa DeLauro on Congressional Chaos
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May 10, 2026 Rep. Rosa DeLauro, longtime Connecticut representative and former Appropriations chair, talks about Congress reclaiming war powers and the costs of the Iran strikes. She discusses how military action fuels fuel and food price spikes, threats to the appropriations process, Republican hesitation under Trump pressure, and strategies to protect elections, courts, and public health funding.
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Use War Powers And Persistent Voting To Assert Congress
- Use the War Powers Act and continuous votes to reclaim Congress's constitutional role and constrain military action.
- DeLauro urges persistent voting and public pressure to compel Republican defections or absences to pass restraints.
Blank Check War Spending And Missing Accounting
- DeLauro highlights extreme opacity around war spending and supplemental war requests, with figures shifting from $250 million to $200 billion.
- She reports repeated unanswered questions to the Secretary of Defense about daily expenditures and where supplemental funds are going.
How Conflict Translates Into Higher Costs For Families
- DeLauro traces immediate consumer pain from the conflict to higher fuel, food, and fertilizer prices affecting airlines, fishermen, and nonprofits.
- She gives concrete examples: $100 gas fill-ups, fewer restaurant customers, and nonprofits facing surging demand they can't meet.