Mike Levin: “we all know that times have been getting tougher for low- and middle-income working families. Compared to 5 years ago…”

“we all know that times have been getting tougher for low- and middle-income working families. Compared to 5 years ago, more Americans now live in poverty, the median household income has dropped, and more live without the security of health insurance. Clearly, Congress should be adopting budget policies aimed at improving these troubling trends. But instead, this misguided budget reconciliation conference report would make things worse. This legislation takes funds from important programs like Medicaid, student loans, child support enforcement, foster care assistance, and Supplemental Security Income for the elderly and disabled poor. The stated purpose of these nearly $40 billion in cuts and harmful program changes is to trim the deficit, but we all know that these savings will not ultimately be used toward that goal; they are designed to pave the way for the $50 billion to $100 billion in new tax cuts that the majority will attempt to push through early next year. We should not be making cuts to vital services simply so the President and the majority can finance more tax cuts that mainly benefit the wealthiest among us. Under this bill, families that rely on Medicaid will face significant increases in the costs for access to health care services and medications, which will lead many of our most vulnerable citizens to forgo needed care.…”