Condemning Bush Budget Cuts

Press Release

Yesterday, the President proposed a budget for Fiscal Year 2009 puts military spending above important domestic priorities. The President's budget provides $70 billion in continued funding for the war in Iraq and Afghanistan, and $515 billion for the Defense Department-the highest funding level in over 50 years. Congressman Albert R. Wynn (MD-4) issued the following statement in response:

Wynn said, "Even in the twilight year of his Presidency, the President does not seem to have learned anything throughout his tenure in office. Sticking to his guns about his misplaced priorities makes no sense."

Wynn continued, "Even after he presided over the four largest budget deficits in history, President Bush can apparently still surprise us with his "cut taxes and then spend" approach. Not only does this budget project the largest deficit in history - $407 billion - it prioritizes military spending over necessary investments in health, energy efficiency, and infrastructure. In these troubled economic times, we need to reassert our domestic priorities, not devote an even greater share of our nation's treasure to the misadventure in Iraq."

The President has chosen to offset his record military spending with deep spending cuts in programs that help some of America's most vulnerable citizens. The budget cuts 22 percent from the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP), which provides essential assistance to working and low-income families who have difficulty paying their heat and electricity bills. The President has also proposed to cut $223 million in Weatherization programs, which help homeowners save money on their home heating bills.

As our Nation works to confront its energy challenges, confronted with ever-higher gas prices, the President has cut $467 million-half a billion dollars-from energy efficiency and renewable energy programs. President Bush has also zero-funded a key program included in the Democratic Energy Bill of 2007: the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant Program, a $2 billion program providing grants to support local energy initiatives across the country developed by Wynn with the U.S. Conference of Mayors.

"We all heard the State of the Union speech, but clearly the President needs to put his money where his mouth is on making our communities more energy efficient. Programs like the EEBG meet the test for good federal programs: they give resources and guidance to communities committed to being more energy efficient on the house-by-house, neighborhood-by-neighborhood level. And they will save us money and create jobs over the long term. Then, in the short term, the President is nickel-and-diming our families on home heating expenses. In the dead of winter, he cuts $5 million from weatherization and heating grants in Maryland alone, leaving countless families in my state out in the cold."

Further, Bush's budget cuts $1.2 billion in Medicaid funding, and proposes $170 billion in cuts to Medicare over the next five years. Most of the Medicare savings in the budget would be achieved by reducing Federal payments to hospitals, nursing homes, hospices, ambulances and home care agencies. Reduced Medicare payments could have a devastating impact on hospitals, who are already struggling to serve low-income and Medicare patients.

"The President and his advisors are philosophically opposed to government involvement in health care. So they cut resources and then say the system is broken. It's an unseemly game that holds hostage the health of our neighbors and friends. Fortunately, Congress still has a say in the way our nation invests the wealth of the people. I have confidence that the Democratic Congress will do what is necessary to ensure the health of America," Wynn concluded.

Source