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Contact: Helen Machado
202-225-1766
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Rep. Roybal-Allard Joins Mayor and Angry Angelenos at Rally Protesting Republican Budget Cuts
Downtown Los Angeles,
Mar 23, 2011 -
Congresswoman Lucille Roybal-Allard (CA-34) was joined by Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, other federal and local elected officials, community activists, and hundreds of protestors at a mass rally in Downtown today to protest Republican budget cutting plans. Congressional Republicans proposed to dramatically slash federal spending for critical programs for job creation, employment training, access to health care, and education. The cuts are included in proposed legislation to fund the federal government for the remainder of the current fiscal year.
“The new Republican majority in Congress is backing destructive federal budget cuts that would have a devastating impact on our communities,” said Congresswoman Lucille Roybal-Allard (CA-34), a senior member of the Appropriations Committee at the rally in front of the Edward R. Roybal Federal Building on Temple Street. “In Los Angeles, the Republican meat axe approach to federal spending would mean a loss of over $500 million for critical programs desperately needed by families and communities struggling to get by during these challenging economic times.”
HR 1, proposed to cut spending for the current fiscal year by some $60 billion, a huge amount that economists believe will endanger the nation’s economic recovery. The spending plan passed the U.S. House of Representatives on February 19 by a vote of 235 to 189. All members of the Democratic Caucus present voted against the legislation. The Republican spending plan failed in the Senate on March 9 by a 44-56 vote, with all Democrats voting against it, but Republicans continue to insist that the cuts be implemented as budget negotiations in Washington continue.
“Instead of focusing on job creation, the Republican plan to indiscriminately slash spending will likely undermine the nation’s economic recovery,” Congresswoman Lucille Roybal-Allard said. She added that, “they scream about the deficit, but they have yet to meet a tax break for the wealthy they don’t like. Instead, at a time when our Angelenos can least afford it, Republicans want to devastate key programs that get people back to work, keep our communities healthy, and put roofs over our heads.”
For a full detailed view of the impact of the destructive cuts on the City of Los Angeles included in HR 1, please click here. To view video footage of the congresswoman’s remarks at today’s rally, please click here.
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