It's time to change the pattern of cuts in Congress
by Thom Hartmann
January 21, 2014
Congress can't find the willpower to raise taxes on the rich, but that hasn't stopped them from chipping away at our retirement and slashing our social safety net. For decades, we've seen billions cut from vital programs like food stamps, unemployment insurance, and cost-of-living adjustments for Social Security - but closing corporate tax loopholes or making Wall Street pay more to gamble is simply off the table. With the passing of the 2014 budget, Congress cut the cost-of-living increases for military retirees by one percent. That may not sound like a lot - but it could add up to as much as $80,000 dollars less for a veteran over their lifetime. And, Republican lawmakers are calling for even more cuts from programs like disability insurance in exchange for extending long-term unemployment.
Cutting programs that people rely on isn't only inhumane, it's unjust. We've had decades of poor and working-class Americans being forced to bear the burden of spending cuts, while taxes on the wealthy and corporations have continued to decline. Even many of our democratic lawmakers support ideas like chained CPI, but very few have the courage to stand up and call for taxing the rich or eliminating subsidies to giant corporations.
These cuts do nothing to help hard-working Americans, and they actually do serious harm to our national economy. These austerity measures take money out of our economy, and put more cash in the hands of the wealthy. It's time to change this pattern in Congress, support lawmakers who stand up for the little guy, and stop slashing these programs before there's nothing left to be cut.
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