Yesterday President George W. Bush met with his cabinet and responded to some questions from reporters about his budget proposal to congress. Here is the last exchange:
“Q First of all, you’re talking about equality and keeping everything on a level playing field for everyone. Many people are saying that this budget proposal is not even. You’re cutting out many programs for the disadvantaged….
THE PRESIDENT: …The important question that needs to be asked for all constituencies is whether or not the programs achieve a certain result. Have you set goals, and are those goals being met? And the poor and disadvantaged absolutely ought to be asking that question, too. In other words, what is the goal of a particular program? And if that goal isn’t being met, the question ought to be asked, why isn’t the goal being met?
And that’s the questions we’ve been asking. And after a while, we get tired of asking that question. So, finally, it is to take resources and direct them to programs that are working. And that’s what you’ll find in the education budgets and the health budgets, for example. And those are very legitimate questions, and the people deserve — deserve to have them answered, which this administration will answer in a forthright fashion.”
It’s certainly true that under Bush’s proposal a number of constituencies are taking a hit (especially if you don’t already travel, or plan to travel, to Mars). It’s also true that the poor will do much worse off. While program goal achievement is measured, those not doing as well as other programs were still kept if they fit the Bush Administration’s ideological goals, including decreasing many social safety programs like Medicaid and increasing faith-based initiatives - whether effective or not.
The problem of increasing poverty is real in American society. The problem of a shrinking middle class is real in our country. The lack of leadership and support for any but the wealthiest is real in this presidency.
Cutting ineffective programs is one thing. Cutting programs that work, while cutting taxes for the wealthiest 2% is another. Not addressing the major problems in America while making them worse? The Bush Administration.
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