Someone once told me that budgets are moral documents. I think they said that while I was trying to balance my checkbook and the only thing that came to mind was distinctly immoral. But, of course, they didn't mean it that way. Or rather, they didn't mean it related to my opinion of the phone company. They meant that budgets are a reflection of one's priorities. Is keeping the heat on more important than keeping the cable? (Yes, now that The Wire is off the air.) Is buying fresh vegetables as pressing as getting that good bottle of wine? (This week I think I can do both.) Budgets say what we care enough about to spend money on and the amount of money we spend reflects the magnitude of that priority. So when it comes to Obama’s budget, I have to say that it has been a long time since I have felt this good about the choices that our national budget reflects. For starters, after years of shrinking commitments, the Obama budget increases our investment in programs that fundamentally improve the quality of life for low- and moderate-income families. The budget not only includes programs that payoff over the long term, such as Head Start and Title I but it addresses the immediate needs of those families hardest hit by the current economic downturn. Healthcare programs, the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP), and Community Development Block Grants (CDBG) all receive new investments. President Obama's proposed budget also takes on the interconnected problems of our economy. It puts us on the road to improving our healthcare system, investing in education, addressing climate change with green jobs, and getting America back to work. A critical example of how important health care reform is to our economy is what is happening now to the American automotive industry. Health care costs add $1,525 to the price tag of every General Motors (GM) vehicle; the company spent $4.6 billion on health care in 2007 , more than it paid for steel. If we are serious about solving this problem, our national budget will reflect it. And it does. To the tune of $634 billion invested over 10 years. I admit that I don’t like everything about this budget, but the overall priorities reflected in the document, its fundamental morality, make it worthy of our full support. And that brings me to you all. The last time we had to fight for a major appropriation, the economic recovery package (and, yes, that had problems as well), we got-out organized by the conservatives. It was, frankly, embarrassing to see the calls running 100-1 against the recovery package. I know we evened it up later, but we can’t let that happen again. ACORN has joined with environmental, labor, education, human needs, and civil rights organizations in the Rebuild and Renew America Now Campaign and today we are working to generate thousands of calls in support of Obama’s budget. As things so often do, this is going to boil down to a fight in the Senate. Along with the Campaign, we’ve set up a hotline that folks can call to urge their Senators to pass a budget that includes the priorities the Obama set out in his budget proposal. While every Senator should hear from us, some will need more encouragement than others. ACORN has taken responsibility for ensuring that the two Senators from Arkansas, Sen. Pryor and Sen. Lincoln, hear from affected constituents powerfully and in numbers. But everyone does, even Bernie Sanders, because conservatives are going to be making this a major priority and flooding the switchboard with calls. We’ve got to be better. Please help me forget my auntie’s hair by blowing up the Senate switchboard! (I’ve been doing this for years, but I always find a guide helps me be smarter on the phone. So I’m adding one here for you guys as well. If you don’t need, great, but I bet there are a few of you like me.) Call 1-866-544-7573. - An operator will connect you to your Senator’s DC office.
- Ask for the staffer who works on the budget.
- Give a personal anecdote relating to the budget that puts a face on the importance of passing the budget with Obama’s priorities. Health care, education, and social services are always compelling sources for stories.
- Ask how your Senator is planning to vote, reiterate your support if they waffle and thank them if they already support it.
We need your help. Can you stand with ACORN and organizations from the environmental, labor, education, human needs, and civil rights community to stand up in favor of President Obama's budget? If we want change to come to America, we're going to have to fight for it. |
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