USCCB action alert tells Catholics to oppose fiscal cuts in DC

Protect our Poor and Vulnerable Brothers and Sisters

In the coming weeks, Congress will debate deep spending cuts in the federal government’s Fiscal Year 2011 budget. Fiscal responsibility is important and it requires shared sacrifice and a priority concern for poor persons at home and abroad in our budget choices.

Unfortunately, the voices of poor and vulnerable people are not being heard in the debate, and they are being forced to bear the brunt of the proposed cuts. The vast majority of the cuts come from the non-defense, discretionary portion of the budget (only about 12% of the total budget)--which includes the majority of social welfare, education, and other anti-poverty funding. Some of the largest proposed funding cuts include:

· $2.3 billion from job training programs
· $1.08 billion from Head Start
· $100 million from Emergency Food and Shelter
· $875 million from International Disaster Assistance
· $800 million from International Food Aid
· $2.5 billion from affordable housing
· $1 billion from Community Health Centers
· $904 million from migrants and refugees

Unfortunately, very few advocate the priority claim of poor and vulnerable people, which makes our voices so much more important and prophetic.

Recently Bishop Stephen E. Blaire, as well as Bishop Howard J. Hubbard and Ken Hackett, President of CRS, sent letters to the US Senate expressing their concern with some of the cuts and calling for more attention to the needs of poor and vulnerable people.

USCCB

They didn't explain why we should borrow money from China to pay for Head Start. I'm in agreement that cuts need to be made across the board(including military), but .... billions of dollars for these programs? That's alot of money. I'm also suspicious how much of this money is spent on abortion and related items.

They will have to make a better case than maintaining the status quo in Washington to convince me.