CÁRDENAS REMARKS AT BUDGET COMMITTEE HEARING

Wednesday, March 13, 2013

CÁRDENAS REMARKS AT BUDGET COMMITTEE HEARING
Congressman: “This budget makes it a priority to abandon the education of our future workforce”

(Washington, DC) – Today in his opening statement at a House Budget Committee hearing on the 2014 “Paul Ryan” Republican budget, U.S. Rep. Tony Cárdenas (D-San Fernando Valley) expressed his disappointment in the failure of the Republican budget proposal to invest in America’s future workforce.

Cárdenas served as chair of the California State Assembly Budget Committee during his time in that body. That experience shone through as he discussed problems present in the Ryan budget.

“One of my Republican colleagues described our process here as ‘spending in Washington,’” said Cárdenas. “Investing in our students is not ‘spending in Washington.’ Educating our future workforce is local investment in every community across America.

“I agree that budgets are about priorities. This budget makes it a priority to abandon the education of our future workforce, and this budget makes it a priority to preserve the tax loopholes for the largest corporations in America; while raising the income tax over $2,000 per American family.”

Later Wednesday, Cárdenas will introduce two amendments to the Ryan Budget, the first of which will protect the single largest deduction allowed to most working Americans, the mortgage interest deduction. A second amendment will propose closing tax loopholes exploited by the ultra-wealthy.

In a statement Tuesday, Cárdenas said that the Ryan budget, “takes the death of the American Dream and makes it the law of the land, shredding our safety net, laying a crushing burden on the backs of our middle class, while defending tax breaks for corporations and the ultra-rich.”

Below is a transcript of Cárdenas’ opening statement and a link to video of the statement.

CLICK HERE FOR THE YOUTUBE VIDEO OF REP. CÁRDENAS

Thank you very much. I just want to point out that this republican budget does not invest in the working people of America or the future workforce of America.

This budget eliminates over one million Pell Grants to students. This budget does not invest in badly needed STEM teachers. Our country needs at least 100,000 of these teachers and this budget does nothing to address this badly needed investment.

One of my Republican colleagues described our process here as “spending in Washington.” Investing in our students is not “spending in Washington.” Educating our future workforce is local investment in every community across America.

I agree that budgets are about priorities. This budget makes it a priority to abandon the education of our future workforce, and this budget makes it a priority to preserve the tax loopholes for the largest corporations in America; while raising the income tax over $2,000 per American family.

In my 16 years of legislating, I have never experienced a document, about which the rhetoric is completely opposite of the actual language in that document.

This budget is not good for the current workforce of America. It doesn’t invest in them. It doesn’t retrain them. We talk about the millions of Americans who are out of work, but at the same time this budget does nothing to help them get back to work.

Unfortunately, once again, this budget has the priority of protecting loopholes for the largest corporations and costing more than $2,000 for the average American family, when they do their taxes.

I yield back.

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