U.S. Congressman David N. Cicilline (D-RI) issued the following statement after President Donald Trump submitted his FY2018 budget outline to Congress earlier today:
"President Trump's budget is an assault on our values as Rhode Islanders."
"This reckless proposal will make it even harder for working families to get ahead and for older Americans to make ends meet. It zeroes out important funding that supports manufacturing jobs by eliminating the Manufacturing Extension Partnership that supports Polaris MEP in Rhode Island, and it cuts critical job training opportunities for young people."
"President Trump's budget proposal also cuts $150 million from the WIC program, which helps provide basic nutritional needs to low-income pregnant women, new mothers, infants and children. And it zeroes out the LIHEAP program that helps low-income families and seniors pay their heating bills, as well as Meals on Wheels, which serves more than 8,500 Rhode Island seniors each year."
"This proposal also cuts federal funding for education by more than 13%. This will make our public schools weaker, cripple afterschool opportunities for at-risk kids, and slash funding for young people who want to go to college. It will hurt our economy and make it even harder for the next generation to succeed in the workforce."
"President Trump's budget cuts funding for the Environmental Protection Agency by nearly a third. This is shameful. You don't have to believe in climate change to understand that this will put the safety of our air and the quality of our water in danger. And it will make it more difficult to protect families and children from dangerous polluters."
"President Trump's budget eliminates funding for the National Endowment for the Arts, the National Endowment for the Humanities, and the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. This might be a good talking point, but it's foolish economic policy. Every dollar invested in the arts yields $51 in economic activity. Eliminating this funding will eliminate jobs here in Rhode Island and across America."
"All these priorities are taking a backseat so President Trump can pay for a $21.6 billion border wall. A border wall that the President's own Homeland Security Secretary has said will not make our border safer. A border wall that President Trump once promised would be paid for by Mexico, not by American taxpayers."
"I will strongly oppose the cuts contained in this budget and urge my House colleagues to reject this reckless proposal."