Chris Van HollenVerified account

Here’s my initial take on the President’s budget plan. I’ve worked on a number of budgets over the years, and I’ve never seen a budget so willing to squeeze working families in order to pay for a massive tax giveaway to the very wealthy and big corporations.

It’s a disaster for our health care system. It would repeal the ACA using the same tired Graham-Cassidy bill we defeated and leave 21M+ uninsured, on top of the 13M who would no longer have coverage due to the tax bill. It also takes a sledgehammer to Medicaid and Medicare.

It’s a disaster for families struggling to make ends meet. It would cut Social Security Disability Insurance—breaking Trump’s promise not to cut Social Security—and gut programs that help provide a basic standard of living for working families.

It’s a disaster for students. It would make it even harder for Americans to pay back their student loans, and eliminates programs to recruit and train top-notch teachers in public schools.

It’s a disaster for federal workers. It would cut federal retirement benefits by more than $150B over 10 years.