‘We know this default on America’s families is an assault on America’s families’
David Elliot,
May 26, 2023
When Breanna Dietrich was pregnant with her youngest daughter, she was working as a manager at a pizza joint. Her pregnancy was considered high risk; she battled a number of health issues, including a heart murmur. “About six months into my pregnancy, I had a medical emergency and needed to go to the hospital,” said Dietrich, a mother of four who lives in Wheeling, West Virginia. “But my managers said I couldn’t go, because they needed me behind the counter. I knew in that moment I was choosing between my job and my baby’s health. I dropped my keys and walked out the door. They said I had quit. I didn’t qualify for unemployment.”
Investments in America must be the goal of any debt or budget negotiation
Karen Dolan,
May 25, 2023
The United States is fast approaching the debt ceiling, an arbitrary and arcane cap on how much the government can borrow to pay its bills. If the ceiling doesn’t get lifted periodically, the country defaults and catastrophe follows. But now, congressional Republicans who repeatedly raised the ceiling under Donald Trump refuse to raise it under Joe Biden unless Democrats agree to devastating cuts to federal programs. They’re taking us all ransom to inflict suffering on the families who’ve done the least to drive the national debt.
Beware: Vicious spending caps by GOP are designed to hurt — not help — U.S. economy
Deborah Weinstein,
May 24, 2023
Americans are facing problems that need solutions. We have a shortage of workers across employment sectors, and it is holding our economy back. Our children are suffering, with declining performance in school and surging emergency mental health needs. Millions of people struggle to pay for food and rent. Over the past decade, federal spending caps limited the nation’s ability to respond to these needs. In a new analysis of 178 federal programs that serve people with low incomes, the Coalition on Human Needs found that more than two-thirds had lost ground from fiscal year 2010 to fiscal year 2023, adjusted for inflation.
713 groups tell Congress: Avoid harmful cuts to human needs programs, raise revenues responsibly to cut deficit, pay for shared investments
CHN Staff,
May 22, 2023
Seven hundred and thirteen organizations are telling all members of Congress Monday to support responsible policies to strengthen our nation and build shared prosperity. The 713 groups signed a letter circulated by the Coalition on Human Needs to oppose House proposals to enact severe spending cuts – including cuts to health care, SNAP, public housing, TANF, and so many other key programs – as the price for agreeing to raise the nation’s debt ceiling. The letter were delivered to members’ offices Monday afternoon.
CHN’s Human Needs Watch: Tracking Hardship, May 19, 2023
CHN Staff,
May 19, 2023
The twin threats edition. We could be less than two weeks away from defaulting on our national debt. By now, you’ve probably heard what happens if we default – read on for more details. But there is more than one threat to our nation. Even as you read this, the White House and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy are negotiating what some in the human needs community fear will be cuts to programs Americans rely on for their very survival. Already, the House GOP has passed legislation that would cut trillions in domestic spending over the next decade.
