Saturday, November 19, 2005
Republicans whip the poor and beat the helpless
In their neverending quest to provide tax cuts for the wealthy. This time the vote was close but a majority of them managed to keep their humanity sealed away in the basement.
The U.S. House of Representatives on Friday narrowly voted to trim social programs for the poor along with farm subsidies, student loans and other federal benefits as part of a $49.9-billion package of spending cuts.The good thing about giving money to the wealthy is that they give some back. Always a good thing with an election next year.
The "deficit-reduction" plan passed the House by a cliff-hanger vote of 217-215, with all Democrats and 14 Republicans voting against the Republican-authored bill.
The vote came after House leaders worked for weeks to convince rank-and-file Republican members to support the measure. Many had balked at cutting social programs while their leaders also pursued tax cuts that would benefit the rich. As a result, Republicans shaved about $4 billion from their spending-cut goal......
..... Democrats argued that by the time Congress wraps up its work for the year, Republicans will actually add to the U.S. deficit if they push through about $60 billion in tax cuts.
Rep. John Spratt of South Carolina, the senior Democrat on the House Budget Committee, said: "After the tax cuts are passed, there won't be a dime to pay for (hurricanes) Katrina or Rita." He noted that the Republican budget calls for a $781 billion increase in U.S. borrowing authority.
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