US House Passes Budget to Invest in Families and Children

Press Release

US HOUSE PASSES BUDGET TO INVEST IN FAMILIES AND CHILDREN

The U.S. House of Representatives today passed the fiscal year 2008 Democratic budget by a vote of 216 to 210. Congresswoman Jan Schakowsky (D-IL) voted for the Democratic budget resolution because it puts children and families first by investing in national priorities like health care and education.

"Today's vote ushered in a new era by rejecting the failed fiscal policies of the past six years that have cut vital domestic programs, devoured our budget surplus, and created the largest deficits in history," said U.S. Rep. Schakowsky. "While we have a long way to go to repair the damage done by the Bush budgets, I believe that the passage of this budget moves us in the right direction."

The Democratic budget reverses six years of harmful spending cuts and fiscal mismanagement by the Bush Administration and the Republican Leadership in Congress. After years of under funding our national priorities to help finance huge tax cuts, the Democratic budget resolution improves our children's future and family security by investing in health care and education. The budget also provides increased funding for important domestic priorities like affordable housing, veterans' health care, homeland security, job training and low-income home energy assistance.

Unlike the President's budget proposal, the Democratic budget will also help pay down our debt and balance the budget by 2012 without cutting funding for national priorities. In February, President Bush put forth another budget that would put America - and families in Illinois - at great risk. He proposed cutting Homeland Security Grants in half, taking money directly out of vital domestic investments by cutting education by $3.1 billion, and cutting $280 billion from Medicare and Medicaid.

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