President Bush and Congress Plan
Massive Cuts to Vital Social Services
(January 21, 2005)
Budget Cuts Looming
On February 7, President Bush plans to send his budget to Congress. He has promised to cut the deficit in half by the end of his second term. To get this done he plans to either freeze or drastically cut spending for a variety of programs that assist low-income children and families. They include WIC, Food Stamps, child care, community action funding, and possibly even Head Start.
Medicaid, the health insurance program that serves more than 51 million families nationwide, is also on the chopping block. Incoming budget committee chair Senator Judd Gregg (R-New Hampshire) has already mentioned to his hometown paper, the Concord Monitor, that there is a real possibility that Congress will cut the federal contribution to Medicaid in order to balance the budget.
Take Action
Now is the time to take action! Tell your member of Congress to oppose any cuts to programs that help low-income children and families. Congress should not balance the budget on the backs of the poor.
Please begin making these calls immediately. To reach your member of Congress you can contact the Capitol switchboard at (202) 224-3121.
More Information
As many of you already know our partner, the Coalition on Human Needs, is working with national and state organizations on understanding the budget process and coordinating a national message. If you would like to access some of their materials and share those with your staff and parents please go to http://www.chn.org/issues/opportunityforall/budgetbasics.html
Please remember that this document is paid for by the Dollar per Child Campaign! For more information on the campaign, contact Erika Argersinger at (703) 299-7509 or by e-mail at eargersinger@nhsa.org. |
