Frank Pallone: “what the President and Democrats in Congress have been saying is that priorities, whether it be education, the…”

“what the President and Democrats in Congress have been saying is that priorities, whether it be education, the environment, or protecting health care, particularly for seniors with Medicare and Medicaid, that these priorities should not be cut in these constant budget battles in this House of Representatives. That is why it is so important that we restore education funding. The House has passed a bill that cuts education funding by $3.3 billion, a 13-percent cut over the previous year. That is going to mean layoffs in local school districts or it is going to mean property taxes to those school districts that want to keep educational programs that would otherwise be lost, and what we are saying is that in this budget battle education must be a priority. The Republicans in the Senate have already voted to restore this education funding because they do not want to see the teachers laid off. They want to make sure that students in the various school districts around the country get a proper education, that class sizes do not get too large, that they are able to get textbooks, and they are able to get the things that are necessary and provided under title I funding. The Republicans should not sacrifice education, and that is what they are doing here in this House.”