FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE February 01, 2006

CONTACT: Brendan Daly/Jennifer Crider 202-226-7616

Pelosi: ‘GOP Budget an Exact Contradiction of Rhetoric President Bush Presented Last Night’

Washington, D.C. – House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi spoke on the House floor this afternoon in opposition to the immoral Republican budget reconciliation bill, which cuts funding for seniors, students, and children to provide tax benefits for the wealthy. The bill narrowly passed by a vote of 216 to 214, with no Democrats voting for it. Below are Pelosi remarks:

"Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I thank the distinguished Ranking Member on the Rules Committee, Congresswoman Louise Slaughter, for her leadership on fighting the fight for a budget that is a reflection of the values and priorities of the American people, and her leadership in opposition to what the religious community has called this ‘immoral Republican budget.’

"Mr. Speaker, yesterday and later today, we will continue the debate on a resolution celebrating the life, service, and leadership of Coretta Scott King. And one of the stories I like the best about the Kings is during the 1950s they traveled to India to learn more about non-violence, the non-violence that was practiced by Mahatma Gandhi, and they brought that back to America and it was a major part of the civil rights movement.

"I mention that story today because in Sanskrit, the word for ‘non-violence’ is also translated to mean ‘truth insistence.’ And wasn’t that what the civil rights movement was about? The insistence on truth in our country.

"Truth insistence is also exactly what is required when we talk about the Republican budget. Last night in his State of the Union Address, we heard a great deal of rhetoric from the President about investments he was going to make in education, research and development. But that rhetoric is a far from the reality of the budget that the Republicans are bringing to the floor today, which not only does not make those investments in the manner described by the President. It in fact cuts them.

"Last night in his State of the Union address, the President talked about the importance of educating our children to help keep America competitive. But this budget today tells a different story. The truth is that the budget follows the Republican track record of cutting education. It increases the cost of student loans to America’s families who are struggling to send their children to college. How can that help America become more competitive?

"Last night in his State of the Union address, the President said, ‘a hopeful society gives special attention to children.’ Now, I’d like to know just what kind of attention the President is giving to children, because the truth is this budget today slashes funding for health care for our children. It drastically cuts funding for the program that enforces the payment of child support. It also cuts education.

"The truth is that this budget is an exact contradiction of the rhetoric that President Bush presented last night. The Republicans call this bill the ‘Deficit Reduction Act.’ Yet the truth is the policies in this budget will increase our deficit by nearly $300 billion, heaping mountains of debt on our children. And the sad truth is all of this is to pay for tax cuts for the wealthiest people in our country.

"Republicans will try to defend these measures as evidence of their so-called fiscal responsibility – that this is about small government. But the truth is, that this isn’t about small government, this is about small-minded, petty government that does not meet the needs of the American people. Democrats will insist on the truth – a truth I like to call ‘The 42 billion dollar difference.’

"It has been widely reported that in this budget bill we had the opportunity to reduce excessive Medicare payments that the federal government makes to big business HMOs because of a loophole in the law. There was bipartisan agreement that this would take place, but in a closed-door meeting, Republicans eliminated that and they gave a $22 billion bonanza to the HMOs, at the expense of America’s children and those in need.

"We were also going to get better drug prices for Medicaid from drug manufacturers and eliminate a Medicare slush fund for managed care companies. By doing those two things, we were going to save the American taxpayer another $20 billion.

"But in conference committee, without a single Democrat in the room because Democrats were not allowed, these $42 billion worth of savings disappeared from this budget. The $42 billion difference – that is the difference between a closed and corrupt Congress and an open and honest Congress.

"Since Democrats didn’t get a seat at the table in the writing of this bill, who did? America’s low-income children didn’t get a seat at the table, and they are paying the price in their education, health care, and child support. America’s seniors didn’t get a seat at the table, because the bill makes it harder for seniors to qualify for long-term care and even forced some to forfeit their homes in order to pay for long-term care.

"The truth is the drug manufacturers, managed care companies, and HMOs clearly did get a seat. They came up the big winners, with the special-interest driven, Medicare prescription drug bill that was foisted on America’s seniors, and they came up big winners in this budget bill. Wouldn’t it be nice if America’s children and seniors had a seat at the table instead of big business?

"My colleagues, the truth is, almost every religious denomination in this country has been lobbying against this legislation. They call it a budget deprived of spiritual hope and nourishing resources. That is the truth about the Republican budget and Democrats insist that the public know it.

"I’m very proud that we will have 100 percent of our Democratic Members voting ‘no’ on this immoral Republican budget."

“ Democrats are united in presenting a New Direction for America, one that will make our nation as strong as its people, one that brings opportunity, security, and prosperity to all Americans. ”

Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi