Groups Call on Congress to Pass President Obama's Budget

The Disciples Justice Action Network has joined the Justice and Witness Ministries of the United Church of Christ in calling on the U.S. Congress to pass the budget presented to them by President Obama.

According to a alert sent out by JWM and endorsed by DJAN:

President Barack Obama's recent budget proposal is transformative. The spending plan, which covers fiscal year 2010, represents a significant funding increase for education, health care, child hunger, housing, and other non-military programs that United Church of Christ advocates have worked for over the years. It also makes needed investments in renewable energy, education, and health care. As Congress adopts a budget resolution, we urge our elected officials to fund the priorities set out in the President’s proposal.

The federal budget is a statement of our country's priorities. How this money is spent and how the taxes and fees are raised says a lot about who we are. As people of faith living in a democracy we are called to speak out and express our values so that they, too, can be reflected in the federal budget.

According to both DJAN and JWM, the President’s budget:

• Stimulates the economy in an effort to end the recession.
  Most experts say the legislation passed by Congress in February to end the recession was inadequate. The proposed budget will provide additional aid. Some argue that the budget proposal creates deficits in future years that are too large. Obama has clearly acknowledged that large deficits in the future are unacceptable and, if they arise, would have to be addressed. He proposes preventive action now by making the investments needed to help the economy grow, proposing tax increases on the wealthy, and reining in spending, for example, by constraining health care costs.
• Supports human needs programs to help those on the bottom rungs of the economic ladder.
  Human needs programs have suffered cuts for years. This proposed budget would begin to restore funding to the level needed to support our most vulnerable populations. Particularly in this time of severe economic difficulty, these programs are desperately needed.
• Makes needed investments to support future prosperity that is shared by all.
  The budget funds a number of needed and long-overdue investments, in particular, in energy, education, and health care. These are critical for our future economic security and general well-being. They also create jobs and encourage private sector investments.

DJAN and JWM encourage grassroots justice activists and public policy justice advocates to contact their representatives and urge them to pass a budget resolution that includes substantial funding to support the priorities laid out in the President's budget proposal--a budget that invests in the common good, stimulates the economy and provides solutions to some of the nation’s most pressing problems, including the failing health insurance system, climate change and the need for renewable energy sources, economic insecurity, and inadequate education and job preparation.

To take action, PLEASE CLICK HERE.

To learn more about the budget, PLEASE CLICK HERE.