Washington, DC-Today, Rep. Elijah E. Cummings, Ranking Member of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, issued the following statement about looming across-the-board automatic spending cuts that start on Friday:
“Sequestration is like a giant meat cleaver about to descend on core services that middle-class families across the country rely on every single day. It will cause more than a million federal workers to be furloughed and severely damage our nation’s economic recovery.
“Unfortunately, Republicans actually want sequestration to happen, and they are leading the country yet again to the brink of a manufactured crisis. Every time the Republicans create a false crisis like this, they ask middle-class families to do more. They propose cuts to Medicare, Social Security, and education, but they never want to ask the rich to pay another dime.
“Democrats have proposed a balanced alternative that includes sensible cuts and increased revenue through closing preferential tax loopholes for oil companies and others, but House Republicans refuse to allow a vote.
“With every passing day, thousands of jobs are at risk, the well-being of middle-class families hangs in the balance, and the safety of our neighborhoods is in jeopardy. We cannot afford to wait any longer."
In his role as the ranking member of the House Oversight Committee, Cummings has a unique opportunity to review the broad effects of sequestration across all federal agencies and on the critical services on which Americans rely.
Cummings spoke on the House floor today about the negative impacts of sequestration.
