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“Is this a balanced budget, or unbalanced priorities?” – Rep. Gwen Moore

Washington, D.C. – Today, Congresswoman Gwen Moore (WI-4) voted in opposition to H. J. Res. 2, which proposes a balanced budget amendment to the Constitution. The House voted 261-165 to reject the resolution – falling short of the two-thirds majority needed. She released this statement:

“With the passage of this ‘so-called’ Balanced Budget Amendment, I commiserate our loss of a balanced perspective on what we, as elected representatives of the people of the United States, regard as assets and liabilities on our balance sheet—as well as our loss of perspective on what ‘good government’ really means, as we balance our policy priorities in this moral document: our budget.

“‘Balancing the budget’ sounds so simple, and so appealing, but that’s not a truthful description of what this balanced budget amendment would do. This amendment is nothing but a Trojan horse hiding the Republicans’ true intentions, which would require major cuts to vital programs, dramatically shrinking the size of government and enshrining this agenda in the United States Constitution.

“What a perversion—to see children and seniors who need health care;  students who need the government to invest in their higher education; communities subjected to natural disasters such as hurricanes and wildfire; American folk who need clean water and clean air—as liabilities on the American balance sheet.

“According to analysis released this week by the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, the amendment we’re considering today could force cuts to all programs by an average of 17.3 percent by 2018. Social Security would be cut by $184 billion in 2018 alone, Medicare would be cut by $117 billion in 2018, and Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) would be cut by $80 billion in 2018.

“What kind of country lauds a ‘balanced budget amendment’ that achieves this balance on the backs of children, students, working-class families, the disabled, the hungry, the infirm, the elderly, and the environment?

“Is this a balanced budget, or unbalanced priorities?”

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