Nancy Pelosi: “I believe that our Federal budget should be a statement of our national values. President Clinton's budget is. It…”

“I believe that our Federal budget should be a statement of our national values. President Clinton's budget is. It protects and invests in the health, education, and well-being of the American people, protects the environment, as well as protecting Medicare and Medicaid. I have many problems with the Republican budget. However, the most extreme and shortsighted part of the GOP budget plan is the severe cuts to education and job training. Essentially these vital programs to prepare the American people for the challenge of a new global economy are cut by 25 percent from this year's funding and then frozen for 6 years. Many scholarship and student loan programs are eliminated. This renewed attack on education places the Republican budget on a collision course with the Clinton administration, which has proposed $61 billion more in investments for education and job training. For health programs, the Republican plan calls for drastic cuts in programs like community health centers, family planning and biomedical research. Is this a statement of our national values? The plan to cut purchasing power for the National Institutes of Health by 16 percent is extreme and is lacking in an understanding of the importance of investment in biomedical research. Over and over again the Republican budget makes cuts where we should be making investments. I do not believe it is a statement of our national values.”