Rochester, N.Y.-- It's time to sound the alarm. Three times if necessary. House Republicans will disavow any political motive behind their job-killing spending-cut plans, but it’s becoming impossible for them to deny how much damage the cuts will do to the jobs situation.
The latest projection comes from Mark Zandi of Moody’s Analytics, who predicts the bill House Republicans want to pass is a $61 billion cut in spending between now and September that would “reduce economic growth by 0.5 percentage points this year, and by 0.2 percentage points in 2012, resulting in 700,000 fewer jobs by the end of next year.”
That’s the kind of job shrinkage Republicans want, because they’re counting on angry out-of-work voters and nervous job holders to turn on Democrats in a 2012 repeat of what happened last November-- even if the additional pain and job losses are all Republicans’ fault. They really don't give a damn about the welfare of the American people-- it's all about privatization of public services, insipid politics, keeping their big donors happy and staying in power.
Obviously, Republicans think most voters are dimwits with the attention span of a fruit fly. In their defense, it’s worked for them before.
What's at stake
Republican members of the House Energy and Commerce Committee on Monday named five provisions of the 2010 health care law that they aim to defund during the annual appropriations process. The list includes grants for state-based health insurance exchanges, school-based health centers and primary-care residency programs in teaching facilities.
But most people don't have any idea what's at stake-- and how devastating these cuts would be to their communities-- even though the cuts could take effect within weeks.
But most people don't have any idea what's at stake-- and how devastating these cuts would be to their communities-- even though the cuts could take effect within weeks.
Republicans want to gut programs with enormous public support, and hope no one notices. So it's up to all of us to spark a public outcry before it's too late. The progressive and labor community needs to get out in front on this assault on our middle-class values.
The devastating impact these cuts will have on our country-- and on your community-- is unprecedented. Check out this list below. If we can get it out to a million people, we can start to sound the alarm and stop the GOP.
In case you haven't heard, here are 10 things the Republicans' immoral budget proposal would do to the American way of life:
1. Destroy 700,000 jobs, according to Moody's Analytics.
2. Zero out federal funding for National Public Radio and public television.
3. Cut $1.3 billion from community health centers-- which will deprive more than 3 million low-income people of health care over the next few months.
4. Cut nearly a billion dollars in food and health care assistance to pregnant women, new moms, and children.
5. Kick more than 200,000 children out of pre-school by cutting funds for Head Start.
6. Force states to fire 65,000 teachers and aides, dramatically increasing class sizes, thanks to education cuts.
7. Cut some or all financial aid for 9.4 million low and middle-income college students.
8. Slash $1.6 billion from the National Institutes of Health, a cut that experts say would "send shockwaves" through cancer research, likely result in cuts to Alzheimer's and Parkinson's research, and cause job losses.
9. End the only federal family planning program, including cutting all federal funding that goes to Planned Parenthood to support cancer screenings and other women's health care.
10. Send 10,000 low-income veterans into homelessness by cutting in half the number of veterans who get housing vouchers this year.
We've got to get the word out about these GOP House proposals. Can you help by forwarding this webpage to some who might give a damn?
-Ove Overmyer
The opinions expressed here are of the author only and do not reflect the opinion of CSEA as an organization.
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