6 Ways Rabid Republicans Are Declaring War on America
The GOP, the party led by angry white men and libertarian corporatists, is ratcheting up its political warfare against everyday Americans with unmatched brazenness.
In Congress, Republicans in both chambers have launched sweeping attacks on long-held centrist priorities and have renewed threats to block Obamacare. These attacks are seen in House bills slashing spending in almost every federal program except for the military and domestic policing for the federal fiscal year starting October 1. Anti-poverty, education, human services, environmental protection, energy, labor, Wall St. oversight—all face cuts averaging 20 percent, although some areas face cuts by a third or more.
These budget bills are part of an escalating fight over funding federal government and raising the debt ceiling. In 2011, the GOP used the debt limit fight to nearly shut down the government, creating chaos that undermined the weak economy. In 2013, House ideologues have delayed adopting budgets with the most draconian cuts until the last weeks, creating a crisis atmosphere to try to ram through their horrendous bills.
On Thursday, for example, the Appropriations Committee delayed its scheduled release of what GOP staffers said would be the details of $40 billion in cuts to next year’s federal human services, labor and education budgets. Two weeks ago, the House passed a farm bill with zero funds for anti-poverty food stamps. In contrast, the House’s FY2014 military and police budgets were on par with 2013 funding levels.