David Price: “If there ever were a case of overheated campaign rhetoric overtaking responsible governing, then we are seeing that case…”

“If there ever were a case of overheated campaign rhetoric overtaking responsible governing, then we are seeing that case here today. Far from continuing to fund the government through to the end of the fiscal year, this measure would dramatically slash the investments in our economic recovery and undermine our national security in the process. I don't know why we even call it a continuing resolution--I guess to avoid a markup in the Appropriations Committee. But it's a brand new appropriations bill, and a very destructive one at that. It's a job-killer of all kinds of jobs but most especially of national security jobs. Let's talk about firefighters. We rely on our firefighters as our preeminent first responders. They arrive at the scene of all types of emergencies--attempted bombings, security incidents, medical, fire emergencies, all kinds of emergencies. But this bill eliminates the SAFER firefighter staffing program, guaranteeing that thousands of firefighters will lose their jobs this year, according to the Fire Chiefs Association. SAFER has enabled our local communities to avoid firefighter layoffs in tough economic times, to keep their fire departments at full strength. This Republican continuing resolution would just simply remove this protection.”