Early Saturday February 19 the House of Representatives passed legislation (H.R. 1)
that would cut federal spending by $61 billion. The cuts come mainly in programs dedicated to assistance for vulnerable populations in the U.S. and internationally.
You can let your Senators know that this approach to the budget is neither responsible nor just.
Together, these two areas of the budget represent just 15 percent of U.S. spending. Although the same legislation requests a defense budget 3 percent lower than the President’s 2011 request, it is still $8 billion higher than 2010 levels. Defense spending represents over 50 percent of U.S. discretionary (not mandatory) spending.
The math is questionable: how can we address the deficit without addressing the most expensive portion of the budget? Even beyond military spending, H.R. 1 fails to adequately address a number of root causes of the nation’s deficit.

Posted by Christina Warner 


