Rep. Corrine Brown: “This irresponsible Republican budget needs to be sent back to the drawing board. The war in Iraq is no reason to ignore…”

“This irresponsible Republican budget needs to be sent back to the drawing board. The war in Iraq is no reason to ignore the needs of this country. This budget cuts programs for our neediest citizens, while rewarding the wealthiest with huge tax cuts. It is particularly disturbing that at the very moment we send our young men and women into harms way, we fund the veterans budget at a level that keeps these national heroes waiting 12 months to see a doctor. This Congress can always seem to find plenty of money for tax cuts, but when it comes to veterans healthcare, we have nothing but lip service. This Republican budget is bad for America, and bad for my home State of Florida which is suffering badly from the one-two punch of the Bush Brothers. The President's budget: Cuts $20 million for After School Programs in Florida; cuts $3.7 million in Teacher Quality Funding for Florida; cuts $40 million in transportation funding for Florida; cuts $38 million from Election Reform efforts in Florida; cuts $16.5 million in Clean Water Funding for Florida; cuts $4.3 million from Community Service Block Grants in Florida; cuts $1.2 million in Energy Assistance Programs; and cuts $765 million for the COPS program, which put 7,280 new officers on Florida's streets.”