Rep. Jay Obernolte calls himself a champion of jobs and the economy. His record says otherwise.
VOTED AGAINST THE JOB-CREATING BILLS
This is the guy who positions himself as Congress’s AI and tech policy expert. He voted against the biggest tech jobs bill in a generation.
THEN HE BACKED TARIFFS THAT DESTROYED HIS DISTRICT
The Inland Empire is the nation’s warehouse capital. One in five San Bernardino County jobs depends on logistics.
When tariffs threatened that sector, Manfred Keil, chief economist for the Inland Empire Economic Partnership, warned: “A lot of logistics jobs will be lost because of this.”
They were. The Inland Empire lost 26,000 warehouse and transportation jobs in the first half of 2025 — six straight months of losses.
And Obernolte? He voted to shield Trump’s tariffs from congressional oversight after flipping his vote under leadership pressure — then voted against ending the 25% Canada tariffs even as they hammered consumer prices.
THE COST TO FAMILIES
Yale Budget Lab found the average household loses $1,700 per year from tariff-driven price increases. The poorest families take a hit three times larger than the wealthiest.
THE BILL THAT HELPED THE RICH AND HURT THE REST
Obernolte voted for the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, calling it “a generational opportunity.”
What the CBO actually found: - Incomes for the poorest 10% would fall by 3.1% - Incomes for the richest 10% would rise by 2.7% - Nearly 75% of tax cuts go to the top 20% of households - The top 1% gets over $1 trillion over the next decade
THE DISTRICT REALITY
San Bernardino County’s poverty rate is 12.5% — higher than state and national averages. Median household income falls 34% short of what a family of four needs for basic expenses.
Obernolte voted for a bill that cuts food assistance for working families while handing trillion-dollar tax breaks to millionaires. That’s the “generational opportunity” he delivered.