*Sequestration
What we ought to do and what we've proposed and what we're going to propose again this week is to make cuts, to have revenues… do it in a way that will not harm the economy but will get to the fiscal discipline that we need.”
“Thank you, Mr. Speaker. We have now entered the final week before the dangerous, arbitrary, and irrational policy of sequestration, which Republicans proposed first in their Cut, Cap and Balance bill in July of 2011. If I were the Majority Leader, Mr. Speaker, that policy would not go into effect.
Over the last few weeks, there has been no shortage of dire predictions about the harmful impact of the sequester if it goes into effect on Friday, March 1. These reckless and irrational cuts could put our economic recovery and national security at risk. But despite many warnings, Republicans have continued to speak in support of this harmful policy, choosing these irresponsible cuts over a compromise that balances spending cuts with new revenues:
We’ve been emphasizing the harm of the sequester for weeks and months, but perhaps Republicans need to hear it from someone in their own party. This morning, they got just that.
Today’s wake-up call came from Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood, a former Republican congressman from Illinois. Instead of summarizing his frank opposition to the harmful cuts, we’ll let him talk for himself:
Well this should come as no surprise. According to a Bloomberg News poll, Americans want Congress to prevent the steep and arbitrary spending cuts, better known as the sequester, from happening. In addition to this revelation, the American people also support a compromise that includes both revenues and strategic spending cuts:
This week, the Pentagon informed 800,000 civilian employees worldwide they would be forced to take unpaid leave under the sequester, leaving a gaping hole in our defense personnel and systems. There has been no shortage of news stories warning about how the devastating cuts will undermine our military readiness. As described in the Hill:
New poll out by USA Today/ Pew Research Center is further proof of what we’ve been saying all along – Republicans’ problem is not just messaging, but their policies and priorities.
Case in point, Republican voters agree with President Obama – and not their own party – that more revenues have to be part of deficit reduction:
“We need to cut spending, raise revenues and have a balanced program, just as Bowles-Simpson, Domenici-Rivlin, Gang of Six [suggested].
The Republican rhetoric blame game machine should hopefully come to a screeching halt after everyone got a glimpse of Speaker Boehner’s power point presentation selling sequestration as their tool to cut spending (and let’s not forget that Republicans first proposed it in their Cut, Cap, and Ba
Well, we can’t say we’re surprised. Despite the warnings from our economists and defense leaders about sequestration’s disastrous impact, the response from Republicans is simple: we don’t care. Just see today’s article from The Hill, “GOP Lawmakers Don’t Fear Political Impact of Sequester,” where Republicans are still rooting for the irrational sequester: