WASHINGTON, DC – Sen. John Kerry made the following statement today as the President released his budget:

“The President’s eighth and final budget digs an even deeper hole for American families and creates an even bigger mess for the next Administration to fix. Once again, the President chose tax cuts for millionaires over relief for middle class homeowners struggling to make ends meet. As the foreclosures mount, heating bills soar, health care disappears, and the deficit grows, only George Bush would cut LIHEAP, slash Community Development Block Grants for cities, strip crucial Medicaid funding by $17 billion over the next 5 years, and try to eliminate efforts to train pediatricians at children's teaching hospitals. It is incomprehensible that paying off the interest on the national debt will actually outpace spending on the troops carrying the burden in Iraq and Afghanistan. America deserves better, and I will work hard in the Senate to restore critical investments in our people and pass a budget that reflects the realities families now face.”

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