Chellie Pingree: “We are facing some very important and difficult decisions in the coming weeks as we debate both the continuing…”

“We are facing some very important and difficult decisions in the coming weeks as we debate both the continuing resolution and the President's budget. I would like to talk just a little bit about some of the decisions that we have to make today as we discuss this this morning. As some of my colleagues have already mentioned, the proposed continuing resolution that the Republicans have put on the table has draconian cuts that will not move our country forward. Whether it's cuts to the National Institutes of Health and investigating important research that we have before us, cuts to our infrastructure or education, arts and culture, cuts to our police protection and fire protection in our home communities, this budget does not do what the American people need, and it will not move us forward. The proposed continuing resolution has made one particular cut that I want to discuss in more detail. For a party that refers to itself as 'the party of jobs' and says they want to move the economy forward, I am very disturbed to see that they are slashing the funding for the Economic Development Administration, and I am here to say that doing so will pull the rug out from the very people who are creating jobs and helping turn our economy around.”