Sent: Friday, April 15, 2011 6:58 PM
Subject: This is what didn't get passed today or reported on.
Here's a Real Democratic Budget that Serves the Interests of the
American People
By Rep. Mike Honda and Rep. Raúl Grijalva, AlterNet
Posted on April 11, 2011, Printed on April 15, 2011
http://www.alternet.org/story/150582/here%27s_a_real_democratic_budget_that_serves_the_interests_of_the_american_people Budgets are more than collections of numbers. They are a statement of
our values. The Congressional Progressive Caucus Budget is a reflection of
the values and priorities of America's working families. The "People's
Budget" charts a path that keeps America exceptional in the 21st century,
while addressing the most pressing problems facing the nation today. Our
Budget eliminates the deficit, stabilizes the debt, puts Americans back to
work, and restores our economic competiveness.
The CPC Budget does this by listening to the American people. In poll
after poll, the public is telling us that they want to preserve Social
Security, Medicare and Medicaid, make higher education more affordable,
expand job-training programs, cut taxes burdening the middle class,
subsidize affordable housing and assist those struggling to prevent
foreclosures. The majority of America, furthermore, thinks cuts to Social
Security, Medicare and Medicaid, K-12 education, heating assistance to
low-income families, student loans, unemployment insurance, scientific and
medical research, are completely unacceptable.
In contrast, Americans find a progressive tax policy very acceptable.
The overwhelming majority of America supports additional taxes on
millionaires and billionaires, eliminating unnecessary weapons systems,
eliminating tax credits for the oil and gas industries, phasing out Bush tax
cuts, and eliminating subsidies for new nuclear power plants. Poll after
poll gives voice to what Americans are asking of us.
Our Budget listens to what the American people are telling us. It does
all of the above in a fiscally responsible way that dramatically reduces our
borrowing from banks and foreign governments and ensures our long-term
economic competitiveness. It does all of the above recognizing that in order
to compete we need every American to be productive, and in order to be
productive, we need to raise the skill level of every American while making
sure that basic needs of every working family are met. It does all of the
above, while remaining rooted in fairness, recognizing that America works
only when everyone has an opportunity to make it in America.
Our Budget Eliminates the Deficit by 2021: The CPC budget eliminates
the deficit in a way that does not devastate what Americans want preserved,
specifically, Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security. Instead of eroding
America's hard-earned retirement plan and social safety net, our budget
targets the true drivers of deficits in the next decade: the Bush Tax Cuts,
the wars overseas, and the causes and effects of the recent recession. By
implementing a fair tax code, by building a resilient American economy, and
by bringing our troops home, we achieve a budget surplus of over $30 billion
by 2021 and we end up with a debt that is less than 65% of our GDP. This is
what sustainability looks like.
Our Budget Puts America Back to Work & Restores America's
Competitiveness: The CPC budget rebuilds America and makes it competitive
again. We put America back to work. We rebuild our roads and bridges,
ensuring that those who use it help pay for it. We rebuild our dams and
waterways with seed money for shipping systems that can compete with the
rest of the world. We rebuild our education system by training more and
better teachers, restoring schools, helping each student graduate, and
supporting community colleges. This is what competitiveness looks like.
Our Budget's Fair Tax System: The CPC budget implements a fair tax
system, based on the American notion that fairness and equality are integral
to our society. Our budget restores fairness to a system that unfairly
benefitted the richest few while hurting the majority of America. Our budget
heeds America's call to end the Bush Tax Cuts and the estate tax and create
fair tax brackets for millionaires and billionaires -while maintaining
credits for the middle class and for students. It ensures that the banks
which wrecked our economy pay a modest financial responsibility fee and that
exotic trading, by Wall Street traders who gambled away America's savings,
is levied a tax. It guarantees that hedge fund managers (and those who use
them) do not get special treatment, by taxing capital gains and dividends as
ordinary income. It eliminates charity to oil companies making record
profits from prices paid at the pump by the American people, given that it
is unfair that the American people must also give these oil companies
billions of dollars in handouts. Finally, our budget taxes US corporate
income as it is earned, in much the same way Americans are taxed. This is
what fairness looks like.
Our Budget Brings Our Troops Home: The CPC budget responsibly ends our
wars, currently paid for by American taxpayer dollars we do not have. We end
these wars, not simply to save massive amounts of money or because this is
what the majority of America is polling in favor of, but because these wars
are making America less safe, are reducing America's standing in the world,
and are doing nothing to reduce America's burgeoning energy security crisis.
The CPC budget offers a real solution to these fiscal, diplomatic and energy
crises - leaving America more secure, both here and abroad. The CPC budget
also ensures that our country's defense spending does not continue to
contribute significantly to our current fiscal burden - a trend we reverse
by ending the wars and realigning conventional and strategic forces,
resulting in $2.3 trillion worth of savings. This is what security looks
like.
Our Budget's Bottom Line (Over 10 year Window)
. Deficit reduction of $5.6 trillion
. Primary spending cuts of $869 billion
. Net interest savings of $856 billion
. Total spending cuts: $1.7 trillion
. Revenue increase of $3.9 trillion
. Public investment of $1.7 trillion
. Budget surplus of $30.7 billion in 2021, debt at 64.1% of GDP.
US Representative Michael Honda is a member of the House Budget
Committee and the Congressional Progressive Caucus. Follow Rep Honda on
Facebook and Twitter. US Representative Raul Grijalva is co-chair of the
Congressional Progressive Caucus. Follow Rep Grijalva on Facebook and
Twitter.
© 2011 Independent Media Institute. All rights reserved.
View this story online at:
http://www.alternet.org/story/150582/
