Washington, D.C.:Chairman Charles A. Gonzalez (TX 20) released the following statement regarding the ‘Cut, Cap and Balance’ bill.
“Cut, Cap and Balance is ideologically extreme and inherently flawed, as it diminishes the government’s ability to keep its commitments to the middle class, seniors and the most vulnerable members of our society. This kind of political posturing is not constructive and does nothing to address the immediate need for legislation to speed up the recovery from the worst recession since the Great Depression.”
Congressional Hispanic Caucus members released the following statements:
Rep. Luis Gutierrez (IL 4) said “Time and time again, Republicans are taking a hacksaw to benefits for seniors, children, and the most vulnerable Americans; trying to balance our budget on the backs of families, working people, and the middle class. But we've seen this play from the Republican book before: sacrifice in the name of deficit reduction never seems to include their buddies -- the wealthy, oil companies, big defense contractors, and Wall Street."
Rep. Silvestre Reyes (TX 16) said “Quite simply, this is the worst piece of legislation I have seen while serving in Congress. This legislation seals tax breaks for richest Americans, while gutting Medicare for seniors and other critical programs for students. In order to eliminate tax breaks for the richest two percent of Americans, a supermajority of Congress would be required for approval. This bill will adversely impact the Hispanic community and will substantially weaken the American economy.”
Rep. Ben Ray Luján (NM 03) said “This bill is the latest attempt by House Republicans to cut vital services to the bone. It would require even deeper cuts than the Republican budget that ends Medicare as we know it, slashes education at every level, and destroys as many as 700,000 jobs. It’s clear from this bill that Republicans’ top priority is protecting tax cuts for millionaires and billionaires and companies that ship jobs overseas. The cuts to education that would be required in order to meet the spending levels in this bill would significantly harm the more than 1 million Hispanic students who rely on Pell Grants to pay for their higher education. We should instead invest in our students and promote education in order to help young people – including Hispanics – learn the skills they need to qualify for high-skilled, good-paying jobs.”
Rep. Jose Serrano (NY16) said “Our nation became great by making investments in our people and infrastructure. It became great by creating a stable middle class and a robust social safety net. It became great through Americans supporting one another and paying their fair share of the taxes. Today we watch as the Republicans continue to turn their backs on that history and continue their ideological push towards a ‘me-first’ economic system. I want no part of that bleak future, nor should our nation.”
Rep. Gregorio Sablan (D MP) said “We all recognize the need to control federal spending. But this Republican "cut, cap, and balance" bill is aimed at cutting Medicare and Pell Grants, capping Medicaid, and balancing the budget on the backs of Social Security recipients, who paid into the system and deserve their benefits. It is precisely when the country's economy is declining that federal spending may need to increase to help the unemployed or those who need food assistance or to create public works jobs, as we did to get out of the Great Depression. Failing to use federal spending as a way to get through downturns in the economy can mean the difference between recovery and continued economic suffering, especially for the people in the Northern Mariana Islands. While the national Gross Domestic Product (GDP) fell by 2.6% in 2009, GDP for the Northern Mariana Islands fell 20% the same year, after decreasing by 12% in 2008. Our economy is getting drastically worse, prices are rising, and people’s lives are becoming much more difficult.”