DeLauro Statement Opposing House Republican Budget
WASHINGTON, DC—Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro (D-CT) released the following statement today on the Republican budget being voted on by the House of Representatives this afternoon. DeLauro is the senior Democrat on the subcommittee responsible for funding the departments of Labor, Education, and Health and Human Services.
“Hardworking American families are in deep trouble. Their wages have been stagnant or in decline for 30 years. They have seen none of the benefit of the economic recovery. They are struggling to put bread on their tables and heat their homes, let alone take a vacation or start a college fund. Many are just one big expense away from disaster.
“We should be working to support these families, and make sure that they do not fall deeper into poverty. Instead, this radical and regressive budget would pull the rug out from under them. It would cut $1.8 trillion from Medicaid, and rob 14 million people of their coverage. It would turn the whole program into a block grant, leaving millions of families in limbo. It would partly privatize Medicare, allowing private insurers to cherry pick healthy seniors and leaving the rest of the program in ruins. It would repeal the Affordable Care Act, increasing by millions the number of uninsured people in this country. It would block-grant the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, reducing benefits and barring access to this lifeline for millions of people.
It would freeze the maximum Pell grant, denying low-income students a chance at college just as they need it more than ever to get into the middle class.
“All this at a time when we are spending close to $1.5 trillion every year on tax breaks and loopholes, much of it directed toward the wealthy and special interests. That is the spending we should be going after. The middle class needs our help. After years of neglect, we should be investing in them once more. Instead, this budget leaves them out in the cold. We cannot allow this catastrophe to happen.”
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