Earl Blumenauer: “what we are hearing this evening almost gives hypocrisy a bad name. We have our friends on the other side of the aisle…”

“what we are hearing this evening almost gives hypocrisy a bad name. We have our friends on the other side of the aisle somehow chastising us for not doing enough on entitlement reform when they have had 6 years of being in control. We have a situation, in spite of their collapse of the budget process last year, they couldn't put it together, collapse of the appropriations process and, quoting from the Heritage Foundation, that they presided over one of the largest run-ups in spending in American history. They somehow are looking at our budget and thinking that it is wanting. Well, through their warped prism, I can understand that. Their top priority is not dealing with the tsunami of the alternative minimum tax, which they have ignored for the last 6 years, but to put $1 trillion in the hands of the top 1 percent over the next 10 years with their tax priorities. As my friend Mr. Allen pointed out, this is about priorities. And, for the first time in 6 years, we are going to reverse their negative priorities dealing with the environment, one of the few areas that they could control spending.”