The Government Will Stay Funded ... But Family Planning Aid Looks Shut Out
The White House fiscal responsibility summit and the recently passed economic stimulus law continue to take up much of the capital's attention today -- but don't forget the $410 billion spending bill that the House is slated to approve by Thursday. The government is technically only funded until the first week of March, meaning that time is short to wind up the 2009 appropriations cycle.
Want to know what's in the massive spending measure? You can download each section of the bill right here.
But a more important question might be what's not in the 2009 spending bill. The Medicaid family-planning aid that was removed from the stimulus amid Republican attacks, for one, is nowhere to be found in the Health and Human Services title of the 2009 spending measure.
One wonders if that absence will draw fire from women's health advocates, some of whom believed the family-planning provision could make a quick comeback after it got dumped earlier this month. When GOP governors such as Minnesota's Tim Pawlenty are using Medicaid family-planning money as an excuse to cut their budgets, how can congressional conservatives get away with slamming the program as taxpayer-funded abortions?
Josh
Matt
Eric
Wonder why I was so noisy in my objections re: family planning in the stimulus? This is why.
February 23, 2009 3:00 PM | Reply | Permalink
Yup. Now we need Speaker Pelosi to put it right back in. And I'll bet she's about to get a lot of input to that effect.
February 23, 2009 4:19 PM | Reply | Permalink
OFF TOPIC: I've just seen the next republican nominee and/or president: John Huntsman of Utah. Everybody is so focused on loons like Jindal and Palin and they are now believing their own press but Huntsman is the real deal. He's not a media creation and he doesn't sound like a crazy person.
If he has the balls to come out for civil unions while governor of Utah (the reddest state in the country) he's on to something.
February 23, 2009 3:54 PM | Reply | Permalink
Here's the rub:
Snip- GOP lawmakers have criticized the size of the bill as well as the refusal of Democrats to make the bill public to date. They would prefer to see another continuing resolution extending through the rest of this fiscal year.
House Republican leaders Monday sent a letter to Pelosi and Majority Leader Steny H. Hoyer , D-Md., calling for a federal spending freeze and a scrapping of the omnibus spending measure. It was signed by Minority Leader John A. Boehner of Ohio, GOP Whip Eric Cantor of Virginia, conference chairman Mike Pence of Indiana and policy committee chairman Thaddeus McCotter of Michigan.
“President Obama has called for both parties to get serious about fiscal responsibility,” Boehner said. “With our budget deficit potentially reaching $3 trillion this year, Republicans stand ready to work with him, and we believe we should start right now.”
Boehner said Democrats should instead seek a new continuing resolution, which effectively would freeze spending at their current levels.
“Republicans stand ready to work with our Democratic colleagues and the President to take this first step toward a new standard of fiscal discipline in Washington,” Boehner said.
Pence said that Republicans fear the bill will contain thousands of earmarks and a big increase in discretionary spending. He said such new spending, on top of recently passed economic stimulus package (PL 111-5) and other new spending to deal with the financial crises, was unacceptable.
Pelosi’s office rejected the GOP call for a spending freeze.
“We have some priorities that have to be met. It’s a bipartisan package prepared last year with Republicans in the Senate,” said spokesman Nadeam Elshami. “It reflects the priorities of the American people.” -Snip.
So is this an effort to not give Republicans fuel for the fire? If so, that was a totally failed strategy.
They put it in the stimulus where they should have known it would cause Republican ire. Then they removed it when said ire was produced without so much as a peep to debunk the GOP arguments.
Now they don't even include it in the Omnibus, where it should be, BECAUSE Republicans caused such a big stink last time. Now arguments are less effective because last time the Dems said nothing.
Wonderful work there, House Dems.
Furthermore, if the family planning money WAS included would it be the 2008 "negotiated with Republicans" sum (ie Bush approved cut as had been in the previous three years)? Or would it actually do something to counter the three (and probably more) years of funding cuts to these organizations?
February 23, 2009 4:37 PM | Reply | Permalink
Apparently, the Republicans get their spending freeze-- on family planning. Spineless, Pelosi and Hoyer, and I was just starting to like you.
February 23, 2009 4:42 PM | Reply | Permalink
Nobody could have predicted, etc.
February 23, 2009 5:24 PM | Reply | Permalink
The belief that Obama would fold in situations like this is part of the reason that I did not vote for him.
February 23, 2009 5:24 PM | Reply | Permalink
neato. i just got a mike huckabee anti-choice robocall fearmongering about obama's promises to the pro-choice legions, and asking questions about where i stand on abortion and the terrible horrible no good very bad things that obama is going to do.
the caller ID here (in northern virginia) is 703-263-0488, with the name FE2009CC.
neato.
February 23, 2009 6:44 PM | Reply | Permalink
Geniuses at work I tell you. The poor and middle class are being crushed by unemployment, inflation and lack of health care. So now we give them two choices:
1) Give up sex (what's one more sacrifice?), or
2) Produce more mouths to feed.
WTF is Congress thinking?
February 23, 2009 6:51 PM | Reply | Permalink
What is Congress thinking - that the poor and middle class have no lobbies with pockets full of cash and hence no political parties either.
February 23, 2009 7:31 PM | Reply | Permalink