Elected Democrats across the party’s ideological spectrum have responded with anger and sadness to the 53-page, 2018 Republican federal budget proposal released this week by the White House under the title “America First.” We posted a number of these responses Thursday. Here are some more:
Rep. John Yarmuth of Kentucky, the ranking member of the House Budget Committee:
“The Trump budget is not only irresponsible and cold-hearted, it’s ignorant to the needs and priorities of American families. President Trump promised to create jobs and make Americans safer. Yet his budget cuts education, transportation, resources that protect public health and our environment, and diplomatic initiatives that keep our country safe. This budget is called “America First” but it’s the last thing American families can afford.”
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer of New York:
“Once again the Trump administration is showing its true colors: talk like a populist but govern like a special interests zealot. This budget shifts the burden off of the wealthy and special interests and puts it squarely on the backs of the middle class and those struggling to get there.
“The very programs that most help the middle class are those that get clobbered the hardest: investments in infrastructure, education, scientific research that leads to cures for diseases all take big hits.
“Democrats in Congress will emphatically oppose these cuts and urge our Republican colleagues to reject them as well.”
Sen. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts:
“His budget will help everybody who is already rich. [...] “We have to keep focused on what he actually does. This budget will help millionaires and billionaires and giant corporations and kick dirt in everyone else’s face.”
Rep. Tom O’Halleran of Arizona:
“The reality is our tribal communities face anywhere from 50 to 80 percent unemployment, wages are lower in rural America, and the types of programs that are being cut in this proposal would have a devastating impact on our tribal lands and rural areas. Rural Americans are tough. They have always given back to our country, and they deserve fairness and respect. What we see in this budget proposal is not fairness and respect, but rather, a complete disregard for the challenges our rural communities face.”
Rep. Cedric Richmond, chairman of the Congressional Black Caucus:
“We’ve heard all of this talk from President Trump about African Americans not having anything to lose under his Administration. The truth is that we have a lot to lose and his budget proposal is proof of that.
“Although President Trump promised a ‘New Deal for Black America,’ his budget slashes the federal workforce and cripples domestic programs (e.g. federal student services TRIO programs, LIHEAP, grants for after school programs, Community Development Block Grants, and Community Services Block Grants), and we’re likely to see even more cuts in these areas if he gives tax breaks to the wealthy, as expected. All of this hurts the African-American community. In addition, despite his promise to support and strengthen HBCUs, President Trump proposes to give these schools the same amount of funding they received last year. This budget proposal is not a new deal for African Americans. It’s a raw deal that robs the poor and the middle-class to pay the richest of the rich.
“If President Trump is serious about moving the African-American community forward, he should look to the Congressional Black Caucus’ alternative budget. Our budget invests in pathways out of poverty, as well as policy and programs that help Americans reach and remain in the middle-class. Our budget also reduces the deficit by nearly $2.9 trillion over 10 years. [...]
Rep. Cheri Bustos of Illinois:
“Every weekend, when I go to grocery stores across my district, more and more moms and dads are asking me what the heck is going on with President Trump breaking his promises,” “When it comes to rural America, there is no clearer example of President Trump breaking his promise than the budget he released yesterday. President Trump likes to call this an 'America First' budget, but when you dig into the details, he's making a deliberate choice to damage our rural economy by eliminating programs that have created thousands of jobs in small towns, ending critical infrastructure investments in rural communities and making it harder for our growers and producers to sell their crops.”
Rep. Raúl Grijalva, co-chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus:
“President Trump’s budget proposal is a blueprint for systematically dismantling the federal government – it chokes off funding for agencies and services the American people rely on, and hobbles our ability to exert diplomatic influence around the world. Trump prioritizes a feckless wall and the militarization of our borders over investing in a functional immigration system. He takes money from vital domestic programs—like a 31percent cut to EPA—and funnels it needlessly into the Pentagon, which is already by far the largest military budget in the world.
“And the idea that we would ramp up our capacity to wage war by cutting back at our ability to conduct diplomacy through a 29 percent cut to the State Department is literally a recipe for armed conflict in the future.
“None of this serves the American people. Instead of creating jobs, Trump’s budget lays off thousands of public workers that provide services to the American people. I am proud that the CPC’s People’s Budget stands in stark contrast to Trump’s vision for America. Our budget invests in the things that matter most: infrastructure to create jobs and ensure public safety; education to help our kids reach their full potential; and sustainable energy because, frankly, it’s the only responsible option we have. Trump’s budget is a gift to the military industrial complex—ours is the rebuttal for working Americans.”
Rep. Keith Ellison, vice chair of the Democratic National Committee and co-chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus:
“The People’s Budget makes the investments we need, unlike President Trump’s budget, which is the biggest disinvestment in the American people since just after World War II. His proposal cuts 31 percent of the EPA’s budget, which makes sure working people have clean air and water, and 21 percent from Labor Department programs that provide job training to seniors and disadvantaged youth. But he doesn’t stop there. No agency or program that serves working people is spared. Yet, the Department of Defense is seeing a 9 percent increase in spending—$52.3 billion, which is likely to benefit military contractors like Lockheed and Raytheon more than our service members.”
“Budgets are moral documents, and the American people deserve better. They deserve a budget that strengthens our country by investing in infrastructure and education, and creates economic opportunity for all. They deserve the People’s Budget.”
Sen. Jeanne Shaheen of New Hampshire:
“The Trump administration should immediately go back to the drawing board. This budget is a blueprint for undermining the health and well-being of Granite Staters and would be particularly devastating for seniors. It’s needless and cruel to drastically cut programs that so many people in New Hampshire depend on like Meals on Wheels and heating assistance. It also makes no sense to cut clean air and water programs, coastal protection, and economic development to struggling rural communities.
“This budget outline also makes us less safe by decimating our nation’s diplomatic corps and underfunding airport security. I’ve always sought bipartisan cooperation to find savings across the federal government but this can done without disproportionately targeting programs that are so important to New Hampshire. Republicans and Democrats agree that there should be continued investments in these programs and President Trump should expect broad bipartisan opposition to this mindless proposal.”
Rep. Adam Smith of Washington, the ranking member of the House Armed Services Committee:
[...] “The economic vision presented today by the President ignores the budget realities that real Americans face. The President supports dramatic cuts to critical programs that help working American’s build a better life for their families, while erroneously stating we spend too much on international affairs. Cutting programs that protect our planet for future generations, in order to unnecessarily increase our nuclear weapons capability, shows how painfully disconnected this ‘skinny’ budget is from the needs of everyday Americans.
“National security encompasses much more than defense. Increasing the defense budget at the expense of nondefense spending is unacceptable. The three pillars of diplomacy, development, and defense are absolutely essential to protecting the American people and our interests at home and abroad. These requested cuts to our foreign affairs budget show a profound lack of understanding of our approach to international engagement that has protected America and our allies, and are based on an isolationist worldview. Gutting diplomacy and development, while relying solely on military power abroad, would be devastating to our national security. Development programs that have been funded on a bipartisan basis for years are critical to our country's national security interests. [...]