Bush's budget axe to fall on poor

[kskiska]

President Bush is proposing to reduce spending on public health and social welfare in the US to help pay for tax cuts and the war in Iraq, according to early reports of today's White House budget.

In an attempt to keep government spending under control at a time of record deficits, Mr Bush's proposals to Congress will include cuts in public housing subsidies, in health projects aimed at diseases related to poverty, and in food stamps, which help America's poorest buy groceries.

Mr Bush inherited a budget surplus from Bill Clinton but is now running deficits of over $400bn (£215bn) a year, partly as a result of an economic slump and the September 11 attacks. But the turnaround is also due to huge tax cuts which disproportionately benefit the wealthiest 1% of Americans, and the war in Iraq, for which the administration has asked for another $80bn this year.

Some state governments provide food stamps not only to families on welfare but also to those receiving job-related aid such as for childcare. The new budget would restrict that practice, the Los Angeles Times reported yesterday.

more…
http://www.guardian.co.uk/usa/story/0,12271,1407400,00.html

[dhinojosa]

1. I'm tired of telling republican's I told you so.

:mad:

[Dark]

Me too. n/t

[Skittles]

5. most repugs don't give a shit about the poor

unless they are poor themselves

[Celeborn Skywalker]

16. Yes, but many are poor

and got suckered into Bush's "moral values" game. I can't say I feel too sorry for them, but I do hope they learn from this experience.

[Skittles]

17. they won't learn

the same assholes who taught them to vote republican will convince them their problems can be blamed on liberals

[The Zanti Regent]

24. OR Jesus "is testing them"...

This is the phrase I hear from idiot family members who have been unemployed long term, yet they vote Republican because their preacher told them to stop the gays...

Gawd is testing me, yeah, Gawd is testing you to see just how dumb you are!

[Clark2008]

43. They are learning.

On the call-in show this morning on C-Span, nearly every single call (save two or three) was bashing this budget, particularly as it befalls the older poor and veterans. Many people said they supported Bush in the election, but hate this budget.
It was good TV, let me tell you!

[lancdem]

68. So they voted for Bush, huh

I could've told them this is what they'd get. :eyes:

[Goldeneye]

2. When I see titles like that.....

I always rush to the link to see if it was written by someone in the corporate media who has come to their senses...I'm always disappointed. At least we'll always (and by that I mean until the right wing disables internet access) have the foreign press.

[AuntiBush]

18. Me too!

And I checked out you're link about the 18,+ voting issue. Never heard of that. Thanks for spreading the link. Voting issues here didn't make any news, either.

[w4rma]

59. If you ever think they might have come to their senses and there hasnt yet

been a change in ownership, you should probably start looking for an ulterior motive.

[piece sine]

76. honestly

having it written in the Guardian really doesn't count; what are they going to say?! I get so tired of the echo chamber sometimes. Like you, I want to read an article like this in prominent non-leftist outlet. Until then...we've heard all hundred times before.

[PartyPooper]

3. This is disgusting. It is appalling. Only in Bu$h's Amerika!

:mad:

[bluestateguy]

4. Well

I know that as my years as a student are winding up this year, I will not be affected by the changes to student aid.

But I have to say that in many cases, though not all, my sympathy here is quite limited. Any poor person who failed to vote, and any poor person who voted for Bush because he's a "war president" or he'll stop those scary gays from marrying, well, those people are getting what they deserve.

From now on I will be very parsimonious with my sympathy. You didn't vote; you voted for Bush, then as far as I'm concerned you got what you had coming to you.

[moobu2]

7. yep, we tried to tell the idiots. n/t

[wellstone dem]

19. Name calling of the most vulnerable

is not something I want to be around.

I am aware of people in homeless shelters, at battered women's shelters, students, and many others who are already suffering, who voted, and voted against Bush. This is payback to those people and to those who dedicate their lives to serving those in need. The people who should be getting what they deserve will only benefit from the Bush administration, while those with the least, will have even less.

[Sugarbleus]

97. I so agree. I'm pretty sick of fellow "Dems" just

COPPING OUT by saying: They got what they deserved!!!!!! <_---Very Cheap Shot!!

Poor people often CANNOT VOTE because they live in homeless shelters or are transient, or have a criminal record, or by being uniformed because they are too damn busy trying to keep body and soul together, or by some other fucked up penalty that our 'BENELVOLENT" country heaps on those on the bottom!

The purpose of being a democrat in matters of human rights IS TO GIVE A DAMN EVEN FOR YOUR ENEMIES WELL BEING. Some of these "young" Dem cannibals are starting to sound like their counter part: Who gives a damn republicans! SHAME.

I am a POOR PERSON, g.damnit, I VOTE, I March, I rant, I write, I get the word out, I help those even further down than I irregardless of what freaking party they grew up in!

Now with the cuts in EDUCATION perhaps some of these young cannibals will start to "feel the pain". Do you realize that if you are homeless you CANNOT enroll in College? My oldest daughter is homeless so she lied to get into College this semester fercrissakes!!!!!!!!!!

There are a million + depressing stories out here that some of you have no clue about. Grow up. :mad:

[Gemini Cat]

8. A lot of poor people did vote.

Some people in Ohio waited several hours to vote.
Much was riding on this election and they knew it.

I do however, agree in part with what you wrote. Those who voted for bush or those who didn't bother, are getting exactly what they voted for.

[spotbird]

42. A lot of the poor stayed home also.

* can do this to the poor because the little power the poor have is not exercised.

[The Doctor.]

34. Agreed, I'm not prone to be charitable to them either...

It's sad that people in section 8 housing are going to lose their homes.

But if I have the chance to run into such a poor unfortunate who either voted for Bush or didn't vote at all...

I'll explain how they did it to themselves, and their evicted neighbors.

But I'll tell them to take heart, for they will recieve a 'tax cut' that might pay for half a security deposit on a new apartment.

[Hebegirl]

96. Low-income folk know what they are doing

As someone who works with a lot of low-income folk, I can tell you they vote overwhelmingly Democrat. They are VERY aware of who gives them their daily bread. It's the Repuke half of the middle that concerns me, because we in the middle are really going to get stuck like pigs by this next four years...Now they may be in for a very rude awakening...

[Demeter]

35. Yes, But

What about those of us who didn't vote for Bush, who put our votes, money and lives in the hands of Kerry and the DLC after they neutralized Howard Dean? Do we deserve this?

[atreides1]

58. No We Don't Deserve This

But 59 million of our fellow citizens, who seemed to be only concerned with "morals and values", do deserve it. They will also be the ones bitching the most, and when you hear one, just let them know that this is their fault.

I know, it doesn't put food on your table, or a roof over your head, but we just need to keep pounding it into their heads that everything
that happens now, whether it's the elderly eating pet food, veterans begging for money on traffic medians, poor children going hungry, or entire families living in homeless shelters, or worse, on the streets.

IT'S THE FAULT OF EVERYONE WHO VOTED FOR BUSH AND THE REPUBLICANS.

Unfortunately, when it rains, it rains on everyone, not just the guy
with the raincoat on.

Remember what Thomas Jefferson said:

"The tree of Liberty, from time to time needs to be refreshed
with the blood of Patriots and Tyrants"

[roseBudd]

45. In Ohio many of the poor could not vote because the dem precincts

were shorted voting machines. As an income group, the poor did support Kerry, unfortunately those making over $100,000 supported Bush and thanks to tax cuts there are more of them.

[American liberal]

50. EXCUSE ME?!

You think there are more people in the U.S. who earn more than $100,000 a year than people who earn less than $30,000?! I beg to differ. Unless, of course, you meant that there were more people in that income bracket who voted. I'd still say it would be close.

Many of our votes were stolen: As another poster mentioned, lower-income communities in Ohio had people waiting in line for hours to vote; no paper trail on 30% of the electronic voting machines; and corruption at every level of government is what got the shrub reelected, and you can't tell me anything different, no matter how it's presented. To turn the Nov. election into a class thing is utterly ridiculous and smells of a blame-the-victim mentality. And you would be wrong!!! :mad:

[oasis]

86. She did not state that there were more $100,000 earners than poor folk.

So please get a grip.

And yes, there is a class struggle in these United States and it was underscored by the November elections.

[AngryOldDem]

62. Still don't get this mindset of "they have it coming"

<<From now on I will be very parsimonious with my sympathy. You didn't vote; you voted for Bush, then as far as I'm concerned you got what you had coming to you.>>

You realize that we -- and everyone else who voted against Bush -- are paying the price, too?

Sorry, but I'm not further kicking those who are already on the ground.

[Robert Oak]

6. yup, this was the agenda all along

Create a deficit so dangerous that when the cuts are too all
social services, anything for the middle class and the poor...

congress will pass it.

It's disgusting and dems should be on this like flies on shit
to get a sweep in 2006.

[Conservativesux]

9. Well, after all we can't expect the wealthy to pay for thier own wars..

now can we ? :crazy:

[SammyWinstonJack]

66. Under bush** the rich aren't asked to sacrifice anything. n/t

[sally343434]

10. Walmart employees can start looking for their cardboard box houses now

[Sir Jeffrey]

36. When I worked at Wal-Mart a few years ago...

there were more than a few people who lived in their cars in the parking lot.

[NVMojo]

11. ...now we know why there was a flu vaccine shortage ...taking aim

at the poor and elderly ...before they cost anymore ...over 2,000 deaths are expected this year from flu ...it's just the beginning...Amerika will start to look like a Charles Dickens novel, only with white faces mixed in with the poor of color....

[Erika]

13. Dickens, Zola, and Hugo

Bush has brought into play a reversal of progressive attitudes. He was a product of elitists corporate globalism and has no problem in continuing that effect.

[Berserker]

20. There has ALWAYS been

white faces mixed in with the poor of color. Just because we are white don't mean we were all born in middle class and moved up throughout our lives. I would believe there are more white poor people in america than any other race.

[classof56]

71. I grew up poor and white and I HATED it.

Worked hard to break into the "middle class" category, ended my career making a decent salary, but never had enough to stash away a lot of savings and take care of my family, too, including my aging parents. So now I'm pretty dependent on social security and a small retirees pension, and Bush seems determined to make me old and poor. Not an unfamiliar mode, given how I grew up, but my attitude hasn't changed. I will HATE it. Maybe almost as much as I now HATE BUSH!!

Tired Old Cynic

[American liberal]

75. of course there are...

because there are still more white people in America than any other race. More than 75% of U.S. population is white. So it stands to reason that there would be more poor whites than any other race.

http://factfinder.census.gov/servlet/QTTable?_bm=y&-geo_id=01000US&-qr_name=DEC_2000_SF1_U_DP1&-ds_name=DEC_2000_SF1_U

[yardwork]

12. busholini is a complete and unmitigated asshole

[kineneb]

14. Ah, but the poor are great cannon fodder!

Along with the plan to do away with all vestiges of the New Deal, they get a bargain on cannon fodder for their wars. No jobs, no welfare, no health care...gee, may as well join the military and die in a foreign land! Got nothin' left to loose.

[against all enemies]

67. You have to give Bush credit; it's one of his plans that work.

Dangle the carrot of education in front of the poor, all they have to do is survive endless deployments to cash in.

[LynnTheDem]

15. The targeting of social welfare programmes is not a political risk

for a Republican administration, as few of the very poor vote for the party...

[adigal]

21. Letters to the Editor, please!!!

I am going to write some LTEs saying that while the wealthiest have mostly invested their huge tax cut, and it has not "trickled down," which will cost the US trillions in revenue the next 5 years, Bush is cutting Medicaid, housing for the poor, nutrition programs, farm subsidies, community block grants, and cuts in veterans' benefits. The neocons are fulfilling their dream, "To make the government small enough to drown it in a bathtub." Unfortunately, many of our poorest citizens will "drown" along with it.

Also, link to great diary on dailykos.

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2005/2/6/17254/96215

[Stephanie]

22. This is news?

Did anyone see Sen. Kennedy on MTP yesterday? Russert was relentless in trying to force him to say "raising taxes." They were talking about Bush's SS "reform." Kennedy said, "if we just roll back some of these tax cuts for the wealthy that Bush wants to make permanent," and Russert would say, "so you want to raise taxes" and Kennedy would say, "we want to roll back just a small percentage of the tax cuts Bush gave to the rich," and Russert would say, "so that's a tax increase, isn't it?" Disgusting.

[hollowdweller]

23. Should the Dems oppose these cuts? I'm not sure

On one hand they could oppose them and offer a package that would cut from the wealthy and raise some revenue.

On the other hand they could vote them all in and let the people who depend on these programs but voted Republican experience getting what they voted for. If WV is any indication the poor and folks on various checks voted overwhelmingly for Bush.

[rjbny62]

25. Cheney: "It's not something that we've done with a meat ax...."

"It's not something that we've done with a meat ax, nor are we suddenly turning our backs on the most needy people in our society," Cheney said on "Fox News Sunday."

There is nothing sudden about this at all, their backs were turned on the needy long ago.

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&e=4&u=/ap/20050207/ap_on_go_pr_wh/bush_budget

[tlcandie]

46. Caught that word 'sudden' thrown in their earlier too and I

absolutely agree with you that this was the meaning!!

[spinbaby]

26. Time for an ad campaign...

The Bush economic plan:

{Picture of cute kid}

This child loses his health care,

{Picture of snarling Cheney}

so that this man can have his $85,000 tax cut.

[Art_from_Ark]

27. Great idea!

But the bought-and-paid-for media would never go for it.

[athenap]

29. What about...

...billboards? If we can't get TV time (plus, how many more people will now have to sell their TVs for groceries?), then why not start where they don't already have a lock on it. Get smaller alternative advertising markets--billboards, etc. Then when we finally do get some TV time, it'll already have been reinforced by having the small stuff echo the same memes.

[sarahlee]

40. Check out prices for

Bus benches. Places where those who rely on public transportation sit and wait... Ads inside the buses.

Prepare flyers to hand out at subway stops. Get yard signs made up. Use your campaign tools/experience to run an information campaign. Go door to door with flyers - and this time you don't have to knock on doors and talk to people, you just have to take some rubber bands to attach your info to door handles.

Have phone banking parties and start working through the phone book.

Think outside the box.

[davekriss]

31. Excellent idea!

It is all about priorities and choices, and it's clear what choices the Republican's have made/will make. Sad days in America. :(

[driver8]

33. The thing that really gets me is that the re-thugs preach that

they are for moral values and family. These guys have no moral values -- they steal from the poor and give to the rich and they kill thousands of innocent people without thinking twice. Then, the Shrub decides he needs to cut his budget because he has wasted so much money on his other stupid ideas. Who pays the price? The poor, of course.

[tlcandie]

47. They are about law and not actions....

Old testament (law) versus new testament (compassion/helping/actions). We are becoming an old testament nation in a new testament world. :cry:

[driver8]

32. Spinbaby -- that is a great idea!

I like that ad campaign. We could even do a series of them with different kids and different re-thugs.

[hector459]

28. Hey, the poor don't count. They don't vote. (sarc. off)

eom

[auburngrad82]

30. You need to understand that this was the GOP's goal all along

They absolutely despise any kind of social program and don't think the govt should be giving out handouts to people who don't help themselves.

All they want to spend money on is military and pro-business programs.

We're working our way back to the kind of poverty state that we had at the turn of the 20th century where there was no social security, no medicare, no child-labor laws, no civil rights, no EPA. That's the way they want it.

That's why we need to do something about it. They are undoing a century of advances in the way Americans are treated.

[The Doctor.]

37. But the morons won't wake up...

BELIEVE me - I've tried.

Some people are arguing that 'going back to the good old days' is the way to go.

Just take a look;

Dr. Eldritch;
"But not everyone has spent their lives saving and planning. In most cases, this is through no fault of their own.
Many people are just doing what they can to make it through the week... for 30 years at a time.
Next time you go into Wal-mart and see someone who appears to be of retirement age working at the cash register, ask them why they are there and not enjoying the fruits of a lifetime of labor.
I've done that, asked them that question.
Usually it turns out that they were just nice people who were taken advantage of.
Remember all those Enron employees who had those wonderful retirement accounts?
Many are working cash registers now... and some should be retired.

JOCSUSNR(RET);
"Let's not go back to the 40s in German-dominated Europe. This is beneath you (I hope).

Re those who "weren't esponsible enough," they have been around ever since there have been homo saps. How did they survive beofe 1933? Why can't they "survive" now as they did then; Before "King Franklin I" opened the door to the welfare state (30 years before 'Gentleman Bird' kicked it down)? there are plenty of non-governmental support/assistance organizations out there which can and and will help those who need it.

Have you read the Constitution lately? Where, as as written in it, and explained by the Federalist Papers, is Social Security (or Medicare, Farm Subsidies, Federal welfare in general - for that matter) specifically authorized? Hint: it (they) isn't (aren't). You could look it up.

The "final solution' is to get rid of everything in the federal government and the U,S. Code which cannot be specifically justified - Article, Section, Clause - within the Constitution -- as it was written and intended.

Got a problem with that? Read Article Five.


http://www.rightnation.us/forums/index.php?showtopic=67663&st=20&p=682841487&#entry682841487

This is what we're up against.

[lancdem]

69. Absolutely

That's Grover Norquist's dream. Karl Rove's too, but he's never upfront about it. He just has Bush couch it in lies - like calling the phase out of Social Security "personal accounts."

[shantipriya]

38. Bush Budget

those who voted for Bush and especially the ones in Red states deserve the cuts which will affect their lives in various ways.

[Bridget Burke]

44. Those who voted for Bush may deserve it....

Why should it matter whether they're living in a "Red" state? Please don't use these divisive categories.

[sadiesworld]

90. Welcome to DU, shanti!

:hi:

[Mari333]

39. I foresee riots, crime rate will increase dramatically

Prisons will be overflowing worse then they are now..but thats Bush's plan...cheap labour when so many people are incarcerated ( pay the prisoners slave wages, privatized prisons), and many many children going hungry..many people going hungry..the food pantries are already overtasked..
and dont forget..it creates a draft for the poorest people who wont have a choice but to sign up..

[AngryOldDem]

54. I'm afraid you're right

Add to that burgeoning homeless shelters with overworked staff and case managers, and a diverse population of clientele -- mentally ill, working poor, unemployed, addicts -- talk about a time bomb.

But that's what this society is anymore -- one giant time bomb.

It won't be a race war, my friends; it will be a class war.

[Biased Liberal Media]

85. It reeks of The Grapes of Wrath

at least that is what this is reminding me of.

however, those who are poor that voted for * on a religious standpoint, I have no pity for them whatsoever. THey did it to themselves.

Does that make me sound like a cold and callous bitch?? I don't care if it does. The truth hurts sometimes.

[peterh]

41. And the blue fickle finger of fate goes to….

Those that feel a religious crusade trumps food on the table….pfftt…

[bluedog]

48. Solution?

Medicare prescription drug program............. $8.1 trillion

Social Security trusr fund shortfall........$3.7 trillion

Wealthy TAX CUT= $11.6 trillion..........
do the math.

[CoffeeCat]

49. I think * enjoys this...

No cuts for corporate welfare.

He's still giving money to corporations that outsource. I don't see that cut anywhere. It's more important to give companies money to outsource jobs, than it is to help the poorest of the poor buy food for their family?

Bush cut taxes for millionaires and for those making hundreds of thousands of dollars. Then, he snags the bread crusts from the mouths of the poor.

The man is a sadistic, scum-sucking, evil, masochistic, worthless piece of shyte.

He loves this. He loves helping yacht owners attain even more comfort and luxury. Even more, he loves dragging down the poor a few more notches.

* gets off on it. He's one sick piece of trash.

He's entitled to be a piece of trash. This is America. You can grow up and be whatever you choose.

The question is...will America stand for a person like this, being our leader and making sickening decisions like this?

[primavera]

51. Today's Washington Post story on this

$2.57-Trillion Proposal Would Trim 150 Popular Programs

By Mike Allen and Peter Baker
Washington Post Staff Writer
Monday, February 7, 2005; 12:07 PM

President Bush today unveiled a $2.57 trillion budget that eliminates dozens of politically sensitive domestic programs, including funding for education, environmental protection and business development, while proposing significant increases for the military and international spending.

<snip>

About 150 programs in all would be shuttered or radically cut back to help meet Bush's goal of shaving the budget deficit in half by 2009. One out of every three of the targeted programs concerns education. Medicaid funding would be reduced significantly and even major military weapons programs would be scrapped to make more resources available for the war in Iraq.

<snip>

"We are being tight," Vice President Cheney said yesterday. "This is the tightest budget that has been submitted since we got here." But Cheney defended the cuts as measured. "I think you'll find, once people sit down and have a chance to look at the budget, that it is a fair, reasonable, responsible, serious piece of effort," he said on "Fox News Sunday." "It's not something we've done with a meat ax, nor are we suddenly turning our back on the most needy people in our society."

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A4563-2005Feb7.html

OMG, for once I agree with something Dick Cheney said! He's absolutely right, they're not "suddenly turning their backs on the most needy people in our society," they've been doing that for four years now!

[AngryOldDem]

52. How much more can they take from the poor????

Yes, state governments do provide aid such as food stamps to those people who are working and have children. But this aid is paltry, and does not provide for a family's needs. Does not even come close. If a single mom of two or more gets a job, her food stamps (at least in my state) are cut roughly in half. She can feed her kids, but not herself, in other words. Then, if she gets sick, she loses her job. Keep in mind too, that these jobs barely pay minimum wage, and the hours are under 40. Most see drastic cuts in their hours, especially the longer they stay at a job. Yet, this is the message they hear from society over and over: GET A JOB. BECOME SELF-SUFFICIENT. Yet, when they do, that same society knocks them right back down.

Health care for the poor is so bad that they are often better off waiting until they are dead to get help. They can only get help then because they are so bad off doctors have no choice but to treat them. If they go for minor things, they get blown off. Often these minor ailments blow up to be big ailments that cost much more to treat over the long run than had the doctors done the right thing from the start.

Public housing? You mean the public housing where there is a two-year waiting list for families to even get considered for a unit? You mean the Section 8 housing that is vanishing like a dodo thanks to previous Bush administration cuts?

It's clear that the poor in this country are the underclass that the rich would just assume see die. This is sickening, and appalling, even more so when it comes from a jerk who most people believe "shares their religion and values." He does not -- and never will -- share mine.

[oneold1-4u]

53. One more division of the people

When people are so divided, it takes years for a formation of reality enough to bring them back together to find truth, and then format it back to anything good! The president, though, should take a long look at the history of nations that purposely create a majority class of poor and abject poverty. The result is the rich (all) seemingly kicking the hell out of a snarling hungry animal. It is a creation of death and destruction in all past great nations.
Where today are the streets of gold and millions in coin, art, cities, and great colossal structures of many past centuries of endeavor?
Perhaps like Nero and fiddle, the new tale will be * reading a child's book!

[VegasWolf]

55. Why does bush hate poor people? n/t

[Colorado Blue]

56. What do they think is going to happen to people? We are

HUMAN BEINGS. And even the poorest has value.

Beyond that even poor people spend money. We are part of the economy. You'd think they could figure THAT out, duh. Those social programs support therapists, doctors, drug manufacturers, landlords, supermarkets, farmers, truck drivers, teachers, elder care providers, pharmacists - it isn't just worthless poor people who benefit. It's the WHOLE DAMN SOCIETY.

Social and educational programs give hope to people - people who might someday come up with brilliant ideas, stunning art or music or poetry, scientific breakthroughs that will benefit everybody!

I am DISGUSTED. Also sad, depressed, and deeply worried.

It boggles the mind that Bill Clinton was relentlessly hounded for his entire term in office and ultimately impeached.

I console myself with the thought of bushco's karma.

As for those who voted for him - FIE UPON YOU! And fie upon your tax cuts, you selfish bastards. I hope you enjoy the sight of breadlines outside your gated communities. And heaven help you if you lose your money. You will discover a whole new dimension: life one step from the concrete and the cardboard box. Or even better: ON THE CONCRETE, IN THE BOX.

Peace.

[VegasWolf]

81. According to Neo Conservative thinking, being poor is a sign of

disfavor by god.

[Biased Liberal Media]

87. It wasn't only the rich who voted for *

it was the poor, the religious poor, the warhungry poor...you get the picture.

Like you, I could cry over this mess. I'm not affected by aid, but I am possibly going to be affected when it comes to Perkins Loans, but it has nothing to do with that. It has to do with treating humans right. Someone has GOT to step up, stop this and do something about it. Obviously our voices have NOT been heard enough- what will it take??

People have been predicting a Depression for quite some time...it's just around the corner. Get ready to see people scrimping for food out of the garbage.

Disgusting I'm telling you.

[doodadem]

57. Now it's really personal

Ok, as I've already said in other discussions, I take all this very personally, because I have ailing elderly parents and a disabled sister on Medicare and Medicaid. They are already on bare bones budgeting. If Bush cuts these programs even more, I don't know how we're going to make it.
Now, as per NPR this morning, the new budget Bush is sending to Congress contains major cuts in federal spending for education. My husband's job is under a federally funded program. Even though he works for the board of education, the funding for his salary comes from the feds as an aid for poor school districts. If this program is axed, he loses his job.
How am I not supposed to take all of this very, very personally?

[Lithos]

60. Another attack on our military and veterans

Many families of enlisted personnel are forced to use food stamps and the like to make ends meet. Gonna make it all the harder now.

L-

[AngryOldDem]

61. And a lot of veterans find themselves homeless

with physical and mental problems that make their transition to civilian life virtually impossible.

[reformed_military]

64. Pleeeze

[Lithos]

65. Sorry just wanted to point out the hypocrisy

More money for the soldiers when they die, but not one penny more for them while they live nor when they retire.

Or is there another point you are making?

L-

[reformed_military]

72. Oh, right.

but not one penny more for them while they live nor when they retire.

I guess I will have to defer to you. You spent the last 20 years in the military as an NCO. You had those kids come to you with their pay issues and their bills not getting paid.

The Day Bill Clinton was Inaugurated, January 1993, an E-3 made 948.90 a month, an E-4, 1007.10. Those are the biggest 2 enlisted ranks, number wise, in the military, and it is where you see the biggest problem with troops not making ends meet.

When The Chimp was inaugurated January 2001, that same E-3 made 1214.70, and that E-4, 1288.80.

That comes to a $265.80 and $281.70 increase in their pay. Or about $33 and $35.21 per year.

Since the Chimp has been in, it has increased by $241.45 and $324.00 or $60.36 and $81 per year.

Just in the last year, it has gone up $49.20 and $54.60. He screws up everything else, but at least he is trying to pay my kids. (And that is who they are, my kids)

Look, I don't like it any better than you, but I would not count on the Military taking any hits when the new budget comes out. And our (Democrats) record of taking care of the soldiers is not without marks either.

[Lithos]

74. You peg your kids pay raises to the current year

Most of these pay raises are governed in multi-year cycles. In this case, we are winding up the FY2000 national defense authorization act.

This Act basically allowed for

* authorizing military pay increases greater than changes in the Employment Cost Index (ECI) through FY 2006. This was a major factor in creating a wage gap disparity between Civilian and Military pay rates.
* restructuring the basic pay table, and gave higher raises to more experienced members who had reached their rank in fewer years of service and eliminated some of the holes in the pay table which allowed for a rising star Enlisted person to make less than one of his subordinates.
* significantly improved retirement benefits for members. I think they gave a fairly significant retirement bonus for those who in their 15th year of service signed a contract to stay until they reached 20 years.

Also it provided for some significant increases in enlistment and retention bonuses.

Shrub has essentially followd this plan with only one exception, that was a post 9/11 when Congress voted more money into the pay system. This was a one time deal and does not reflect any real commitment to the troops or veterans (as evidenced by the rising costs at the VA, increased relative (to outside) costs and ending of benefits at AAFES). (Ex. no more free movies). With the closure of bases, the resulting increase of service personnel and families at the existing bases have caused a rather sharp increase in Off-base housing (and housing costs) because of the lack of on-base housing. Add to that the tremendous cost in child care (and the lack of increase of support) caused by the long term deployments of one or more parents in a household.

Add of couse Shrub's lack of concern concerning the well being of military out in the field (body armor, armor plate, ammunition supplies, food, poor gas, etc.) and the poor medical attention given to wounded personnel (see many horror stories at military hospitals), strongly gives the hint that he views the military not as people, but as a spreadsheet.

L-







L-

[BornaDem]

63. Has anyone heard or read what is being proposed in Medicaid cuts...

for autistic children? Any info you have would be appreciated.

[lonestarnot]

70. Oh fiegn surprise... fooking freak!

:puke:

[alfredo]

73. I was going to write a letter to my senator, Mitch McConnell

but then I remembered Matthew 7:6

"Do not give what is holy to dogs, 4 or throw your pearls before swine, lest they trample them underfoot, and turn and tear you to pieces."

[deadparrot]

77. Good. We'll use the money to blow the shit out of other people.

Why the hell are we still tagged "tax and spend" lib'ruls?

And why the hell is that any worse than "spend and spend" conservatives?

[MNDEM2004]

78. Wake up call!

When will the war start in our own country?

[Disturbed]

80. Rethugs are pushing hard toward their goals.

Will the Dems in congress help them?

The Right Wing Agenda

Abolish

Social Security
Medicare
Employer supplied health insurance
Unemployment Benefits
Welfare
Abortion Rights
Collective Bargaining
EPA
Gay Rights
Public Education
Public Housing
IRS

[lovuian]

79. Thats pretty obvious and no compassion here!!!

Its going to get ugly out there!!!

[0007]

82. Congress should be outraged

[NYC]

83. This is the Republican way.

This, and leaving large deficits behind.

[shamalama]

91. And exactly how many of you are surprised by this?

[NYC]

95. 51 million are surprised by this,

if they actually voted for Bush, and if they are paying attention now.

[moondust]

84. Yep, that's what Jesus would do.

Jesus hated the poor and has been whispering in George's ear.

[Skittles]

88. would Jesus approve of this?

nt

[skyounkin]

89. Why does Jesus hate America?!!

HAH!!! The stupid jesusfreaks will believe what ever * tells them about Jesus. If the idiot king says Jesus hates the poor then God forbid the ignorant pick up the good book for themselves to find out.

[4dsc]

92. If only the poor voted..

I hate to say it but the poor don't vote so they are going to get picked on by repugs..

VOTE damn it,

[Biased Liberal Media]

93. That's a load of bullshit

Poor do vote. Not all poor are stupid, uneducated, or not motivated politically.

[Name removed]

94. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[Biased Liberal Media]

98. Nice "progressive" thinking you have there...

Let's start:

That most Poor People Have Cable, Drive Cars , Have Stereos in Their Cars. Most People who are Poor choose to be poor.Look it up.

First point: have cable? some places (apartment complexes, motels, former military housing) provide free cable to their tenants, so there's a faulty point there.

Second point: drive cars?? What kind of cars?? Do you think poor people are driving brand new cars?? most poor people drive OLD cars on the brink of breaking down.

THird point: Have stereos in their car?? What a petty argument. Some cars come with that. Others worked for it. So? your point is?

fourth point: Most people who are poor choose to be poor. Look it up. Bullshit. Some people deal with unemployment, lack of education that can help them get out of the cycle of poverty. Saying that is an uninformed and ignorant statement.

Yes, The government can pay for their secondary education through pell grants.

People who make VERY little qualify for the Pell grant. And they are at least attempting to further their education to provide themselves with a better-paying job- so that shoots down your point of "most people who are poor choose to be poor".

Who says that the poor can have a free ride on my tax dollars to live in public housing. I think that they need work for the city to pay for their rent. Just a thought.....By the way,, Im not rich and I got a HUGE tax cut this past year.....

Free ride?? Most of the people in HUD/Section 8 housing are people who are either disabled, have families to support, or are on a welfare to work program. Yes, there are your token handful who cheat the system- but whose really cheating the system?? CORPORATIONS. Corporate welfare is a HUGE problem in this country and it's draining our resources.

You sound like a bitter person who only cares about yourself. That's not progressive at all. That's rather, greedy and selfish.

[keopeli]

99. kick

[frankieT]

100. disgusting

Don't forget that your fellow citizens who are dying or getting hurt in Iraq are probably poor also. Now they will pay a double price to please the Junta. This is a social genocide in progress.
I hate the French upper classes for their responsibility in the killing of millions of young people (from France and Africa) and profiteering during WW1. France lost in the process working force, culture and social bonds. But it's no problem for capitalists, they started moving populations from neighboring countries to fill the gap.
These gangsters must be stopped. I hope you will find a way to get rid of these criminals.