Putting the Skinny in “Skinny Budget”
This morning, the Trump Administration released their budget outline, and despite supposedly being an “America First” budget, it puts most Americans last. Trump’s emaciated budget proposes completely eliminating funding for 19 agencies and cutting funding for almost every single department. Only three departments—Defense, Homeland Security, and Veterans Affairs—would see increases. Trump’s promise to increase defense spending is just about the only promise he kept with his budget outline. Here are a few of the areas that will be most hurt by Trump’s budget.
- Clean Air and Water. Trump’s budget slashes EPA’s budget by 31 percent and lays off 3,200 employees. Trump also proposes to eliminate funding for the Clean Power Plan, international climate change programs, and climate change research programs. Trump also proposes huge cuts to funding for state environmental agencies, which will hinder state agencies’ ability to implement and enforce essential protections like the Clean Air Act, Clean Water Act, and more.
- Rural America. Trump made countless promises to revitalize and protect rural and small-town America, but his budget proposes massive cuts to programs those communities depend on. For example, his budget slashes nearly $2.6 billion in infrastructure investments, half a billion dollars of which goes to rural water and sewage improvements. See nine other ways Trump’s agenda will harm rural and small-town Americans here.
- College Affordability. Trump’s budget cuts 3.9 billion from the federal Pell grant program–the program that provides tuition assistance for low-income college bound students. That $3.9 billion cut in Pell dollars alone could pay for every Pell grant awarded in the state Texas. Trump’s budget also eliminates a $2.4 billion program designed to support teachers. That cut could fund over 40,000 teacher positions.
- Cancer Research. Also on the chopping block? The National Institutes of Health, which are facing a proposed $6 billion, or one-fifth cut. That cut would devastate research in lifesaving cures and treatments for diseases.
- Job Training. Trump’s budget cuts the Department of Labor by 21 percent. These cuts would eliminate access to employment and job training services for hundreds of thousands of unemployed or underemployed adults, and opportunity youth. The budget would also slash funding for Job Corps, which provides residential job training and education services to disadvantaged youth with barriers to employment, and eliminates the Senior Community Service Employment Program, which helps 65,000 low-income seniors find work each year.
ACTION OF THE DAY
Stakeout. AKA camping for a cause. While the Trump Administration is busy cutting essential government programs, the House of Representatives is taking crucial votes on the GOP plan to repeal and replace Obamacare. Yep, the plan that will mean 24 million fewer people are insured in ten years. Today, the House Budget Committee is marking up the bill and next week, the full House will vote on TrumpCare. Join MoveOn and your fellow constituents to speak out against TrumpCare at “Stakeouts To Save our Healthcare” in front of your local district office today and tomorrow.
WHAT’S TRENDING
#Winning. The resistance is alive and well, folks. Yesterday a federal in Hawaii issued a temporary nationwide freeze on Trump’s Muslim Ban 2.0 just hours before it was supposed to go into effect. His reasoning? Trump’s Executive Order “was issued with a purpose to disfavor a particular religion.” Judge Watson’s ruling puts in writing what we already knew: that Trump’s “revised” Executive Order is Muslim and refugee ban—one that runs counter to the fabric of our nation.
Deportation Force. In more budget news, today the Trump Administration requested a cool $3 billion in immigration funds, which would be used to start construction on the wall and assemble Trump’s promised “deportation force.” But there are a lot of things besides an unnecessary increase in immigration enforcement that $3 billion could buy. An example? 184 new elementary schools. See what else $3 billion could buy.
Your Emails. Think the threat of Russian hacking is limited just to the election? Think again. Yesterday, after a two-year investigation, the Department of Justice indicted two Russian intelligence officers in connection to a massive breach of 500 million Yahoo accounts. Government-backed hackers stole data that “included names, email addresses and passwords.” The announcement comes at a time when U.S.-Russia relations are up in the air (to say the least)—and makes President Trump’s inexplicable embrace of Russia look even more questionable.
#CartelOfCronies. ICYMI: The budget isn’t the only place the Trump Administration is attacking energy and environmental efforts. Yesterday, Trump opened the door to rolling back fuel efficiency standards, which are expected to reduce U.S. oil dependency by more than 2 million barrels a day by 2025. And more anti-environment executive orders are expected any day now. A new CAP analysis looks at how these attacks are driven by a cartel of at least five key political appointees, lobbyists, and corporate interests who are working together to deliver financial benefits to themselves or their allies.
Shame on you. That’s what these people have to say to Trump and House Republicans who are threatening to take away their health care with the passage of TrumpCare. Hear their stories, then refer to the Action Of The Day.
UNDER THE RADAR
Protecting our vets. Today, the House is expected to vote on a bill that would put mentally ill vets in danger by giving them easy access to firearms. Roughly 7,000 veterans take their own life a year and two-thirds of cases involve a gun. This House bill, HB 1181, would prevent the VA from working with the national background check system to help keep guns out of the hands of veterans suffering from serious mental illnesses like dementia, schizophrenia, and long-term severe posttraumatic stress. More on the bill here. As if that’s not enough bad news for veterans and their families, they are also a key group who would lose health care if the ACA is repealed.