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Democratic Leadership
Nancy Pelosi
Speaker of the HouseSteny Hoyer
Office of the Majority LeaderJim Clyburn
Office of the Majority WhipRahm Emanuel
Democratic Caucus Chair
Progressives Unveil Comprehensive Budget Plan to Balance America's Priorities and Fiscal House During Next Decade--The Anti-Poverty, Pro-Opportunity, Peace, and Security Budget
Friday April 25, 2008
PRESS RELEASE
For Immediate Release: April 18, 2008
Washington, D.C. – U.S. Representatives Barbara Lee and Lynn Woolsey, Co-Chairs of the Congressional Progressive Caucus (CPC), and additional CPC leaders today released a comprehensive budget blueprint for the federal government for the next decade.
During the next decade, the CPC budget clearly demonstrates that America can:
•Redeploy virtually all U.S. troops and military contractors out of Iraq by the end of FY09;
•Maintain a strong national defense, second to none by a mile;
•Do more now to pull our faltering national economy out of the worsening recession;
•Cut the poverty rate in half;
•Rebuild our nation’s crumbling infrastructure; and
•Still balance the budget as soon as FY12.
“The CPC’s budget is the only proposal that addresses poverty head on and is also the only alternative to cut even one dime from Pentagon spending. Progressives are very concerned that the Bush administration’s bloated defense budget request is the highest since WWII and propose limiting defense spending to $468.3 billion, which is $68.7 billion under the President’s request and does not compromise national security,” Congresswoman Lee underscored.
“Because Americans have been hit hard by the Iraq recession, our alternative assumes the redeployment of troops and contractors from Iraq between now and FY 2009, saving tax-payers at least $135 billion over the next 18 months.
“Under the Bush administration, a disproportionate amount of funding has gone to the Pentagon and provided tax cuts for the wealthy, while urgent domestic priorities have gone under-funded, poverty has increased, and the gap between the super wealthy and everybody else grew at an alarming rate. To reverse these trends, CPC’s plan includes a second economic stimulus package, which provides funding increases for unemployment insurance, food stamps, housing assistance and Federal Medical Assistance Percentage payments to states.
“The budget also makes an investment of $73.05 billion in FY 2009, which increases to $129.3 billion in FY 2018, to fund a comprehensive strategy to cut poverty in half in a decade and provide immediate and long-term help for Hurricane Katrina victims.
“It is just common sense to redistribute funding, both domestic and international, to help our nation to become more secure. This is a sensible and mainstream budget plan that balances in FY 2012.
“The federal budget is more than a blinding series of numbers, charts and tables. It is an expression of our national values and priorities," Congresswoman Woolsey said. “At a time when we face an economic downturn, a crisis in our housing industry, and individual families are struggling to stay afloat, it’s time to take a serious look at where taxpayers money is being spent. That includes taking a hard line when it comes to waste, fraud, and abuse in our government, eliminating tax cuts for the richest of Americans who don’t need them, and most importantly, bringing our troops home from Iraq, which is the single biggest drain on our country’s economic well being.”
For Immediate Release: April 18, 2008
Washington, D.C. – U.S. Representatives Barbara Lee and Lynn Woolsey, Co-Chairs of the Congressional Progressive Caucus (CPC), and additional CPC leaders today released a comprehensive budget blueprint for the federal government for the next decade.
During the next decade, the CPC budget clearly demonstrates that America can:
•Redeploy virtually all U.S. troops and military contractors out of Iraq by the end of FY09;
•Maintain a strong national defense, second to none by a mile;
•Do more now to pull our faltering national economy out of the worsening recession;
•Cut the poverty rate in half;
•Rebuild our nation’s crumbling infrastructure; and
•Still balance the budget as soon as FY12.
“The CPC’s budget is the only proposal that addresses poverty head on and is also the only alternative to cut even one dime from Pentagon spending. Progressives are very concerned that the Bush administration’s bloated defense budget request is the highest since WWII and propose limiting defense spending to $468.3 billion, which is $68.7 billion under the President’s request and does not compromise national security,” Congresswoman Lee underscored.
“Because Americans have been hit hard by the Iraq recession, our alternative assumes the redeployment of troops and contractors from Iraq between now and FY 2009, saving tax-payers at least $135 billion over the next 18 months.
“Under the Bush administration, a disproportionate amount of funding has gone to the Pentagon and provided tax cuts for the wealthy, while urgent domestic priorities have gone under-funded, poverty has increased, and the gap between the super wealthy and everybody else grew at an alarming rate. To reverse these trends, CPC’s plan includes a second economic stimulus package, which provides funding increases for unemployment insurance, food stamps, housing assistance and Federal Medical Assistance Percentage payments to states.
“The budget also makes an investment of $73.05 billion in FY 2009, which increases to $129.3 billion in FY 2018, to fund a comprehensive strategy to cut poverty in half in a decade and provide immediate and long-term help for Hurricane Katrina victims.
“It is just common sense to redistribute funding, both domestic and international, to help our nation to become more secure. This is a sensible and mainstream budget plan that balances in FY 2012.
“The federal budget is more than a blinding series of numbers, charts and tables. It is an expression of our national values and priorities," Congresswoman Woolsey said. “At a time when we face an economic downturn, a crisis in our housing industry, and individual families are struggling to stay afloat, it’s time to take a serious look at where taxpayers money is being spent. That includes taking a hard line when it comes to waste, fraud, and abuse in our government, eliminating tax cuts for the richest of Americans who don’t need them, and most importantly, bringing our troops home from Iraq, which is the single biggest drain on our country’s economic well being.”
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