[oldembed src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/jwDai5NtXa0" width="425" height="300" resize="1" fid="21"]
The trailer, yes I said trailer, for the Republican budget. Seriously.
AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka issued a statement condemning the extreme right-wing budget proposed by House Budget Committee Chair Paul Ryan (R-WI), saying it was yet another Republican assault on America's working families:
Just as Republican governors and state legislators are assaulting the rights of working Americans under the guise of budget crises, Rep. Ryan and Republican leaders in Congress are using the federal budget to further their own political agendas. Their credo is that tax giveaways to the super rich and Wall Street should be paid for on the backs of working people.
They are holding the federal government hostage, along with hundreds of thousands of jobs and the services millions rely on, while simultaneously proposing irresponsible budget cuts. It is clear that they are not concerned with fiscal responsibility, but rather undermining their political opponents. This is simply further evidence of their determination to protect their friends on Wall Street at the expense of American jobs, seniors, our children and our future.
As we recover from the worst economic crisis of our time, cuts to essential programs threaten to push us back into recession, or even depression. Shame on those Republicans more worried about the politics of their choices than the economic consequences.
Randi Weingarten of the American Federation of Teachers similarly condemned the proposal:
"It is morally unacceptable and economically indefensible for House Republicans to put forth a budget that doubles down on a cuts-only approach to our economy at a time when our children and families continue to struggle to get by.
"Today, half of all Americans are either poor or low-income. Three million more children live in poverty today than when this recession began. And we've already slashed more than 300,000 education jobs at a time when our children and our public schools desperately need resources and support to compete in a 21st-century knowledge economy.
"This budget prioritizes huge tax breaks for the wealthy and big corporations, while likely cutting money from public education and programs such as Title I that go directly to support low-income children in the classroom. It would end Medicare as we know it and leave seniors without access to affordable, high-quality healthcare, and it would make college more costly. It would do nothing to help Americans find good jobs, keep their homes, and ensure our children have a better and brighter future.
"The American people can't afford a reckless economic plan like the Ryan Republican budget that says you're on your own unless you're wealthy or a big corporation. Instead, we need a bold economic vision that is rooted in rebuilding the middle class, strengthening our public schools and our democracy, and ensuring that everyone has a fair shot at success."
Seth D. Michaels at the Main Street blog has a great round-up of the specific problems created by the proposal, which seems very unlikely to pass. Either way, it's clear that Ryan is not serious about tackling the problems the U.S. faces and has no interest in fighting on behalf of America's working families.
