Trumka Statement on the President's Fiscal Policy Speech
By: Richard Trumka, AFL-CIO President
Today, President Obama gave a promise to America’s working people that he wouldn’t follow the path of the radical Republican fiscal agenda that leads to lost jobs and a national decline of standards. That commitment is essential at this crucial moment for children, students, seniors and everyone who hopes for a secure economic future.
The President also made clear that he understands why Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid are so important to working people. The labor movement is equally clear that we oppose cuts to any of these critical programs – no matter who proposes them.
Above all, let us refocus our national energy and attention on job creation – because successful job creation is the key to making long-term deficit reduction both easier and more politically achievable.
The Republican budget proposal, by contrast, is simply a shameful wealth transfer from working people to corporate CEOs. It does not make a significant dent in the deficit. It is a fraud on the American people. Republican leaders in Congress have shown they want a massive cut in tax rates for the wealthy and for Wall Street, and they want the middle class and the poor to pay for it in various ways, including higher health care costs, hidden tax increases and cuts in essential programs. At a time of record unemployment, each cut to our nation’s budget threatens American jobs and the Republicans’ irresponsible cuts would eliminate hundreds of thousands of them.