GOP Proposes More Cuts For Hurting Americans

The Republicans may be a greedy and mean-spirited group of elected officials, but no one can say they are consistent. They are still refusing to raise taxes on the richest Americans, and many of them want no taxes at all for the rich and the corporations. Most of the rich now pay about 15% in taxes on their income (because it is classified as capital gains and not earned income), but Republicans would like to eliminate that 15% tax on capital gains -- so the rich wouldn't have to pay any taxes at all. And they want to also lower or eliminate income taxes for corporations.

But in spite of the tax cuts for the rich, the Republicans still claim they want to reduce the deficit. They just don't want the rich or the corporations to have to participate in bringing the budget deficit down. So where would their budget cuts come from? From the rest of America -- the people that are still being hurt by the Republican recession. The Republican-doninated House Appropriations Committee has released their budget recommendations for Labor, Health, and Human Services for fiscal year 2012. Here are some of the cuts they are recommending:

* Cuts $2.6 billion from the Department of Labor.

* Cuts $2.2 billion from job training programs for the unemployed.

* Cuts $208 million from training of health professionals.

* Allowed no new funds for implementation of Affordable Care Act (health reform law) and rescinded $8.6 billion already appropriated for this.

* Banned any funding for Planned Parenthood.

* Cuts $52 million from the Center for Disease Control and Prevention.

* Cuts $283 million from Substance Abuse and Mental Health Administration.

* Cuts $290 million from Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.

* Cuts $1.3 billion from the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program.

* Cuts $26 million from the Administration on Aging.

* Cuts $2.4 billion from the Department of Education.

* Cuts $3.6 billion from Pell Grants for higher education.

* Prohibits Corporation for Public broadcasting funds to be used to support National Public Radio.

* Cuts $49 million from the National Labor Relations Board, and included several provisions to make it harder for workers to form unions.

This is the GOP's version of shared sacrifice -- where the sacrifices are shared by everyone but the rich and the corporations. This is the very definition of greedy and mean-spirited.