Emanuel Cleaver: “The Congressional Black Caucus has offered an alternative resolution to the budget proposals every year since 1981. This…”

“The Congressional Black Caucus has offered an alternative resolution to the budget proposals every year since 1981. This year marks the 40th anniversary of the Congressional Black Caucus, and we have over those years served as the conscience of this body. I stand in front of you today to say that this is perhaps the most important of all of the alternative budgets offered by the Congressional Black Caucus. And the reason is, Madam Chairman, that we believe someone must stand up for the vulnerable population. The vulnerable population is not what we generally like to think; it's not the stereotypical view of a person who doesn't work and is shiftless and is a parasite. The vulnerable population today consists of firefighters, police officers, municipal workers, State workers, factory workers who have been laid off through no fault of their own because of this weak economy. Those men and women have been struggling trying to make it. Somebody must stand up for them. They are black, white, brown, they are elderly. Some of them are at an age where it will be difficult for them to get another job. And so somebody must stand up for them, and we have decided that it will be us. Now, let me just say that these are some weird times. We do have a budget deficit, and we would not at all suggest that we don't need to deal with the budget deficit. What we need to do, however, is deal with it in a way that will protect the vulnerable populations.…”