Schakowsky’s Statement on President Obama’s Budget

WASHINGTON, DC (February 15, 2011) — Rep. Jan Schakowsky issued the following statement in response to President Obama's FY2012 Budget.

"I commend the President for presenting Congress with a serious budget that invests in initiatives that will create jobs and prioritizes education.  These efforts are critical to ensuring that our economic recovery continues and Americans can get back to work, which will help us achieve deficit reduction in the coming years.

"The President's budget recognizes -- as did the National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform -- that we cannot solve our fiscal problems with spending cuts alone: we must also increase revenues.  The President also asks those who can afford to pay more -- those at the upper end of the income scale -- to do more. While I have concerns with some of the specifics in the President's budget, I am pleased that it incorporates these two critical principles.

"The Administration's budget is certainly a welcome alternative to the Republicans' slash and burn approach.  The Republicans refuse to make the investments necessary to get people back to work because they refuse to give up tax cuts for millionaires.  Their policies are a prescription for disaster — one that puts families, communities, and our nation at risk....