President Shows His Real Priorities in New Budget
President Shows His Real Priorities in New Budget
Co-Chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, Congresswoman Lynn Woolsey (D-Petaluma) today responded to the President's proposed budget, calling it "fiscally irresponsible, and morally reprehensible."
"The annual budget is a reflection of our priorities as a nation," Woolsey said, "We should work together to ensure that the American Dream is a reality for all Americans by investing in education, universal health care, a healthy environment, and job training programs. Unfortunately, based on the budget that President Bush has sent the Congress it seems that the only priorities he values are cutting taxes on the wealthiest among us and escalating the troops in Iraq."
The President's proposed $2.9 trillion budget calls for an increase for the FY 08 Department of Defense to $624.6 billion, up from $600 billion, including an additional $140 billion in funding for the war in Iraq, on top of the $100 billion currently requested in the supplemental. The proposals would also make his first-term tax cuts permanent, at a cost of $1.6 trillion over ten years. Nearly $100 billion in reductions are sought in savings from programs that benefit children, families and seniors, including cuts in Social Security and Medicare.
"As the baby boomer generation gets set to retire, increasing the strain on programs such as Social Security, and Medicare, President Bush proposes nearly $100 billion in cuts to these programs so that he can fund tax cuts for the wealthy I think it's unconscionable," Woolsey said.
Even with the massive tax breaks for the wealthy, and the overall increase in funding of 4.9%, the President has tried to portray his proposal as fiscally conservative, and vowed that the US could return to a budget surplus by 2012. Woolsey was quick to challenge that claim:
"This budget is fiscally irresponsible, and morally reprehensible," Woolsey said. "The President has a responsibility to the American taxpayers to lay out a budget that spends their money for what they need most, and he has failed them. If he was serious about fiscal responsibility he could start by bringing our troops home from Iraq. There is at least 6-months worth of funding currently, previously authorized by the Congress, in the pipeline for the President to either continue military operations in Iraq, or use that money to bring our troops home," Woolsey added. "Not only has he decided to use that money to keep our troops in harm's way, but now he's asking for another $140 billion in funding to continue the occupation - the American people have sacrificed enough."
Woolsey, and the Congressional Progressive Caucus, are in the final stages of putting forth their own budget proposal: The Peace and Security Budget, which will demonstrate that the US can be safe while spending tax payer's dollars on the needs of the American People.
http://woolsey.house.gov/latestnews.asp?ARTICLE5110=68854