Rep. Howard P. “Buck” McKeon (R-CA), the top Republican on the U.S. House Education and Labor Committee, issued the following statement today on President Obama’s FY 2010 Budget:
“President Obama has called for bold reform and a return to fiscal responsibility. These are goals Republicans share. Unfortunately, with this budget blueprint, the rhetoric does not match the reality. From tax increases in a time of economic crisis to massive new government borrowing and spending, this budget is all about government growth at a time when hardworking Americans are being asked to tighten their belts.
"The Administration proposes a government takeover of the private sector-based student loan program, taking away options and benefits from students while adding tens of billions to the government’s balance sheet.
“The budget is also woefully silent on key programs that help disadvantaged students: the Reading First program that helps ensure all children can read, and the D.C. Opportunity Scholarship program that helps low-income children in the nation’s capital attend safer, higher-performing schools. With congressional Democrats poised to eliminate these critical programs, the President needs to speak up to save them, or be complicit in their demise.
“On the labor front, the budget raises far more questions than it answers. From automatic pensions to massive new government health care spending, we need to take a step back and question this ever-expanding role for the federal government. Throwing more money at the health care system never did anything to bring down costs, yet that’s exactly what this budget proposes – and this new government spending is paid for with tax increases, the single worst thing we could do in the current economic environment.
“We need a budget based on sound policy, real reform, and fiscal discipline. Unfortunately, that’s not what this budget delivers.”
# # #
