The obsession from many Republicans with enacting cuts to spending without clear next steps in place could result in disastrous impacts for Americans.
“Nearly 200 House Republicans voted to cut programs that millions of hardworking Americans count on—including rail safety inspections and air traffic control operations,” Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said Wednesday on X (formerly Twitter). “It’s time for House Republicans to honor their word and make good on the deal they made with the President.”
Buttigieg is referring to the recently failed attempt at passing a government funding deal in the House that, if implemented, would have forced cuts across much of the federal government for the length of its implementation. These cuts, as referenced in media reports and available in a version of the bill on which the House evidently voted, reached an absolutely staggering roughly 30 percent, taking a rhetorical sledgehammer to government operations on which many Americans rely. “The rate for operations provided by subsection (a) is hereby reduced by 29.88565 percent,” the proposed bill bluntly stated — a proposal to which 198 Republicans in the House were willing to agree! The list includes Republicans from Biden districts, meaning locales the president won in 2020.
The White House released a troubling fact sheet recapping some of what could be expected if those Republican cuts to spending were extended across an entire fiscal year. “1 million seniors would be robbed of nutrition services like Meals on Wheels. 3.2 million women, infants, and children would lose vital nutrition assistance through the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC),” the administration said. Impacts would also be felt in law enforcement, the operations of the Social Security Administration, and even the provision of assistance for Americans struggling with substance abuse!
Meanwhile, the Biden administration is leading the implementation of cuts to prescription drug costs for seniors on Medicare. Objectively speaking, there is a clear difference between what the parties offer!
Nearly 200 House Republicans voted to cut programs that millions of hardworking Americans count on—including rail safety inspections and air traffic control operations. It’s time for House Republicans to honor their word and make good on the deal they made with the President.
— Secretary Pete Buttigieg (@SecretaryPete) October 5, 2023
