Bush's Kiss of Death

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http://www.alternet.org/story.html?StoryID=18890

 

 

Bush's Kiss of Death

 

By Molly Ivins, AlterNet

June 8, 2004

 

AUSTIN, Texas – As Lily Tomlin observed, " No matter how cynical you get, it's

impossible to keep up. " But as Con Ed used to say, dig we must. Courtesy of

David Sirota at americanprogress.org, we find the following matches between word

and deed:

 

 

 

Just before Memorial Day, Veterans Affairs Secretary Anthony Principi said, " Our

active military respond better to Republicans " because of " the tremendous

support that President Bush has provided for our military and our veterans. " The

same day, the White House announced plans for massive cuts in veterans' health

care for 2006.

 

 

 

Last January, Bush praised veterans during a visit to Walter Reed Army Medical

Center. The same day, 164,000 veterans were told the White House was

" immediately cutting off their access to the VA health care system. "

 

 

 

My favorite in this category was the short-lived plan to charge soldiers wounded

in Iraq for their meals when they got to American military hospitals. The plan

mercifully died aborning after it hit the newspapers.

 

 

 

In January 2003, just before the war, Bush said, " I want to make sure that our

soldiers have the best possible pay. " A few months later, the White House

announced it would roll back increases in " imminent danger " pay (from $225 to

$150) and family separation allowance (from $250 to $100).

 

 

 

In October 2003, the president told troops, " I want to thank you for your

willingness to heed the important call, and I want to thank your families. " Two

weeks later, the White House announced it opposed a proposal to give National

Guard and Reserve members access to the Pentagon's health insurance system, even

though a recent General Accounting Office report estimated that one out of every

five Guard members has no health insurance. What a nice thank you note.

 

 

 

A month before the war started, the White House proposed cutting $1.5 billion

from funding for military housing. The House Armed Services Committee had

concluded that thousands of military families were living " in decrepit and

dilapidated military housing. " Progressive lawmakers counter-proposed an

amendment to restore $1 billion in housing funds and pay for it by reducing new

tax cuts Bush was proposing for the 200,000 Americans who make more than $1

million a year. Instead of getting $88,000 in tax cuts, the poor millionaires

would get only $83,000. The House, with White House backing, voted the proposal

down. (All thanks to Sirota.)

 

 

 

With the release of the 2006 budget, we're constantly finding instances of

programs that Bush, the candidate, proudly claims to support, while he prepares

to cut them drastically in order to pay for making his tax cuts permanent.

 

 

 

According to The Washington Post, the White House guidelines for the 2006 budget

include a $1.7 billion cut for education, supposedly his signature program. That

neatly wipes out last year's increase – and, you may recall, the administration

has never funded education at anything close to the figures in the original

agreement with Sen. Ted Kennedy. Teachers say the No Child Left Behind law

should be called " No Dollars Left Behind to Pay for It. " Head Start is to be cut

by $177 million, and the highly successful nutrition program for women, infants

and children is to be cut by $100 million.

 

 

 

Any time Bush goes out into the country and claims credit for, or praises the

work being done by, some government program, it is an almost-certain kiss of

death – budget cuts follow.

 

 

 

Back to veterans. This year, the administration increased spending on veterans

by $519 million. In 2006, it plans to cut veterans spending by $910 million.

 

 

 

Also on the list for substantial cuts are the National Institutes of Health, the

Environmental Protection Agency, and police assistance and crime prevention

programs. When something like the West Nile virus gets out of control, can't you

just envision the independent investigation committee that will have a look into

that government failure? Can we fire George Tenet again?

 

 

 

Rep. David Obey, D-Wisc., points out the House Interior Appropriations Committee

had to cut $682 million from the White House budget proposal this year. The

budget situation is now so dire that the latest Republican scheme is to not pass

a budget at all this year (until after the election), lest people notice what is

going on.

 

 

 

The White House's latest ploy is to claim that the 2006 guidelines it issued are

just a mere wisp of a suggestion, nothing to be taken seriously. But the White

House has already submitted legislation to impose spending caps that would

continue the cuts every year thereafter until 2009.

 

 

 

Are there any grown-ups in this administration? Budgets are the guts of

government. " Who benefits? " and " Who pays? " are the only serious questions.

Except, of course, for the always timely, " What the hell will they do to us

next? "

 

 

 

Molly Ivins writes for Texas Observer.

 

 

 

 

 

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