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December 10, 2005
National Week of Prayer and Action for Compassionate Priorities: December 12-16
by Faithful Progressive
Call it the real war on Christmas. Just in time for Christmas, the leaders of Congress are set to take up yet another bill that makes life harder for the middle class and the poor in this country. Next week the House and Senate will attempt to pass a final version of a bill slashing funding for programs that help the most needy Americans. Before the Thanksgiving recess, both the House and Senate approved their own version of a budget reconciliation bill that cuts funding to mandatory programs. As the Coalition on Human Needs reports:
The Senate bill cuts $35 billion and the House cuts $50 billion.
The difference between those two bills must be ironed out in the next few days. The final bill that emerges from the conference committee will be voted on in each chamber. The reconciliation bill represents the top priority for right-wing members – yet many representatives and senators have voiced concerns over a wide variety of provisions under consideration. It is not yet clear Republican leadership will find enough votes to pass any final bill. House Speaker Dennis Hastert (R-IL) has threatened to keep the House in session until December 20 or later until the House agrees to the budget cuts. Although right-wing members claim the cuts are necessary to reduce the deficit, any money “saved” from cutting services is being directed to pay for new tax cuts benefiting the wealthy. In fact the coupling of two reconciliation bills – one cutting services and one cutting tax cuts – actually increase the deficit. For more information about the tax cuts, see related article in this issue.
To combat the budget cuts, low-income advocates are planning a National Week of Prayer and Action for Compassionate Priorities for December 12-16. Advocates are being encouraged to call their representatives and senators next week and the Emergency Campaign for America's Priorities is staging more than 90 events across the country. The faith-based organization Sojourners will hold a prayer vigil at the U.S. Capitol on December 14. Dozens of other prayer vigils will be held elsewhere in the country that week.
There are stark differences between the House and Senate versions of the budget-cutting bill – and those differences could trip up negotiators. If Congress is not able to approve the final bill before the end of the year, they could attempt to bring it up again in January. The budget resolution for fiscal year 2006, which Congress approved in the spring and which granted authority for the reconciliation bill, will remain in effect until Congress passes the next budget resolution for fiscal year 2007.
Call Your Senators and Representative and Urge Them To Oppose Both Bills
Once again, the toll-free number 800-426-8073, made available by the American Friends Service Committee, can be used the week of December 12 to reach the Capitol switchboard. From there you can be connected to your Representative. Even if you are not sure who your Representative is, the people at the switchboard can figure it out for you and connect you. Then you can hang up and call back two more times to be directed to both your Senators. For a flier with the information you need to call, click here:
I am going to a local event in Madison this Wednesday at noon. We will be holding some large Christian Alliance for Progress signs that say: Justice, Compassion, Equality. To find an event near you, clivk here.
Posted by Faithful Progressive at December 10, 2005 02:22 PM
Comments
Hi All
It's not just about the budget. I don't know if they voted today but the House was (is?) considering a bill that would make being an undocumented immigarnt a felony and church groups etc. that give aid to the undocumented would be classified as smugglers. I don't care what view yuo hold about illegal immigration, the House bill is an abomination. Prayer and more is called for.
Keith
Keith
Posted by: keith johnson at December 16, 2005 03:04 AM
Hi,
Just a suggestion. Rather than calling my Congressman and Senator, I sent emails to them. I took the text from the email that the Christian Alliance sent to me, customized it and sent it on to them.
Here's what I sent (I customized it though):
"My name is _______________ and I live in (your town/city). I would like Representative/Senator [name] to vote NO on the final version of the budget cuts (the deal between the House and Senate bills - H.R.4241 and S.1932 ) . Do not allow billions in cuts to vital services for vulnerable people, including Medicaid, SSI, foster care, Food Stamps, and child support. These cuts are the wrong priorities. I also would like the Representative/Senator to announce to constituents that he/she opposes this bill."
Here's how I found out who the right people were:
http://www.house.gov/writerep/
http://www.senate.gov/general/contact_information/senators_cfm.cfm
Posted by: Brian Smith at December 16, 2005 05:23 PM
