Lynn C. Woolsey: “It's not often that you'll hear me, Lynn Woolsey, say this, but I have recently found myself on the same page of a very…”

“It's not often that you'll hear me, Lynn Woolsey, say this, but I have recently found myself on the same page of a very important issue, at least in principle, with the leaders of the tea party movement and other top lawmakers on the other side of the aisle. They've said that the military budget must be on the table in any discussion about reducing Federal spending. I agree. I agree completely. The Progressive Caucus has for several years offered specific cuts that would in no way impact our ability to provide for the national defense but that would actually cut the Pentagon spending. Here is the problem, Mr. Speaker: When it came time for the rubber to meet the road, well, guess what happened. The Republican Study Group released their list of cuts last week, and lo and behold, not a single dime of actual Pentagon cuts was in there. What was included were irresponsible cuts to public housing, high-speed rail and economic development, among other things, to say nothing of what would happen to funding for national parks, Pell Grants and NIH, if they followed through with their plans to cut non-defense discretionary spending to what they recommend--to 2006 levels. But perhaps the most reckless of all was the proposal to zero out funding for USAID, the United States Agency for International Development. It just goes to show the narrowness of their perspective when it comes to national security.”