ICAN - Press Release

Press Release

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
Date: December 22, 2005

For more information, contact:
Matt Russell, 515-277-5077 ext. 15
MRussell@IowaCAN.org

Senate Action Derails Draconian Cuts to Healthcare, Education and Child Support – For Now

Budget Battle Returns to the House, Representative Jim Leach Will Have another Opportunity to Vote on Massive Cuts to Medicaid, Student Loans, and Child Support

Iowa Citizen Action Network Urges Leach to Continue to Oppose Slashing Programs for the Poor to Fund Tax Breaks for the Rich

December 22 – Senate Democrats and a few moderate Republicans forced unexpected changes to legislation in the Senate which would slash funding for healthcare for the poor, student loans, child support and welfare – scuttling for now the immoral budget plan backed by President Bush and Republicans in Congress. Representative Leach cast a courageous vote against those skewed priorities on the House version of the same legislation on Monday. The changes in the bill forced by Senate Democrats will send it back to the House of Representatives where its fate is uncertain.

The budget cuts proposed by President Bush and Congressional Republicans are being pursued to finance a new round of tax cuts of up to $70 billion for wealthy investors and Wall Street financiers. Leach was one of a handful of principled Republican moderates who opposed the House version of the bill in a pre-dawn vote Monday morning.

“Leach cast a courageous vote this week – and he will get another opportunity to do so now that an amended version of the bill must be voted on in the House again,” said Betty Ahrens, Executive Director of Iowa Citizen Action Network. “Leach recognized how much harm these cuts will inflict on his constituents and he did the right thing by breaking with his party leaders and opposing these draconian budget cuts. It’s amazing that two eastern Iowa Republican Representatives could be at such opposite ends of this fight. Leach is standing up for Iowa’s most vulnerable. Representative Nussle is the author and House leader of these budget proposals that target the elderly, children, people with disabilities, the poor, and even the middle class while giving a pass to powerful interests like drug companies and insurance companies. It’s a moral outrage that in the name of deficit reduction the weakest among would carry the heaviest burden while the powerful are exempt from any sacrifice at all.”

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Emergency Campaign for America's Priorities

Emergency Campaign For America’s Future presents “First Things First” agenda for Congress

ACTION ALERTS!

I want to sign the petition to tell Congress to stop giving handouts to oil companies and start putting consumers first!

RESOURCES

Emergency Campaign for America's Priorities

Center on Budget and Policy Priorities recently released reports

FACT SHEET

Congress Must Not Repeal The Estate Tax

SLIDESHOW: SOCIAL SECURITY IS NOT BROKE

The Social Security “Crisis” Explained in Plain English -- Midwest Academy, January 2005. Click here for the slide show.

FAIR TAXES FOR ALL CAMPAIGN

For more information on the Fair Taxes for All campaign, click here.

REPORTS

BULLSEYE ON THE POOR & MIDDLE CLASS

ICAN and partners have released a report telling Iowans how capital gains and dividend tax cuts exacerbate Iowa's growing income disparity. In total, the top five percent of Iowa earners would reap 55 percent of all benefits to Iowa households.

Setting the Right Priorities: Why Iowa Can't Afford Repeal or Drastic Reduction of the Federal Estate Tax

Center on Budget and Policy Priorities works at the federal and state levels on fiscal policy and public programs that affect low- and moderate-income families and individuals. Visit CBPP’s archive of recent policy papers by clicking here.