‘Strolling Thunder’ urges lawmakers to prioritize childcare

WASHINGTON (NEXSTAR)— These parents are usually fighting to get their kids to take a nap. But instead, they’re taking the fight to Congress, in an event they call Strolling Thunder.

“We really want you to think babies,” Lorna Harris-Fisher, Massachusetts Strolling Thunder Family said.

“We are doing the hardest job possible, under the most difficult condition,” Cruz Bueno, Rhode Island Strolling Thunder Family said.

Parents and kids came to this rally on Capitol Hill, to rattle lawmakers.

“We’re demanding that our public servants enact policies that prioritize children’s well-being, care and strengthen the family,” Bueno said.

A handful of lawmakers met with the kids and their parents and promised to dedicate more resources for childcare, child mental health resources and more.

“You just aren’t speaking up for your family, you’re speaking for millions of families under the weight of a broken childcare system,” Rep. Katherine Clark (D-Mass.) said.

Clark and Rep. Rosa DeLauro (D-Conn.) say parents should keep the pressure on lawmakers.

“No child should be unable to reach their potential in this country because of insufficient resources,” DeLauro said.

“You want to allow families to flourish cause that’s the bedrock of society,” House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) said.

Johnson and Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-N.Y.)  say it’s the president’s economic policies, that are making life tougher for parents and their kids.

“You’re seeing increases in diaper costs, you’re seeing increases in formula, the lack of access to baby formula,” Stefanik said.

The parents say this is not a Democratic or Republican issue.  It’s a family issue.

“Families of all shapes and sizes are affected by these things,” Harris-Fisher said.

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