United States Senator Daniel K. Akaka (D-Hawaii) joined Vice President Al Gore and Congressional Democrats in criticizing the Republican tax proposal as a fiscally irresponsible risk that could rob Social Security and force deep spending cuts in Medicare, national defense, education, veterans' health, environmental protection, medical research, and crime-fighting initiatives that benefit all Americans. President Clinton is expected to veto the Republican tax bill on Thursday. Senator Akaka's statement follows:
"This ill-advised legislation does nothing to protect the solvency of Social Security and Medicare, and would result in across-the-board cuts in fundamental domestic services. Medicare and veterans' benefits are among the many Federal programs that would face spending cuts of up to 50 percent in the coming years.
"In order to provide tax breaks to special interests, this proposal would jeopardize all the work we have done to turn America's budget deficit into a surplus, putting us back on the slippery slope to deficits and greater debt. The legislation also fails to set aside funds to meet our future commitments to Medicare and invest in the education of our children. If implemented over a 10-year period, Hawaii would lose at least $55 million in education funding, impacting over 31,000 students who benefit from Head Start, Pell Grant, Federal Work Study, and programs for disabled and disadvantaged youth. Cuts in Federal support for class size reduction would eliminate funding for 374 teachers.
"Hawaii would also suffer from cuts in Customs agents and face the prospect that Superfund site cleanups at Oahu Plantation, Pearl Harbor, and the Naval Computer and Telecommunications area will be put on hold. I urge the President to veto this irresponsible tax proposal so that we can refocus our efforts on sound fiscal planning that strengthens Social Security and Medicare, protects veterans' health care and other domestic priorities, and maintains our commitment to invest in quality educational opportunities for our children."
