On the recordMarch 16, 2011
The Republicans' budget would endanger American lives while it destroys American jobs. It will increase every American's likelihood of getting sick from unsafe meat and poultry, contaminated drinking water, and foreign food additives. Fewer police will make our streets less safe. The chances of curing cancer, Parkinson's, and Alzheimer's disease are all seriously diminished. Most of the cuts target poor people, but the hundreds of program cuts will also endanger all of our lives. We've thrown hundreds of programs into a dump truck Republicans call H.R. 1 bound for the trash compactor. Let's reach in, though, and look at just one of those: meat inspection. The law requires a Federal inspector to be present at all 6,000 slaughterhouses and packing plants across the country, but this Republican budget's 19 percent cut will require 8,600 such inspectors to be furloughed for 22 days, which means that packing plants like Hormel's may have to lay off thousands of people for that period of time. Why do this when Federal inspectors stopped 9.5 million pounds of poisoned meat just last year alone in 71 recalls. Let's derail this dump truck called H.R. 1. ____________________
