Emergency press conference held today
10/27/2005
St. Paul, MN – A coalition of several Minnesota organizations held an emergency press conference today to announce the launch of the local campaign arm of the national Emergency Campaign for America’s Priorities.
MN ACORN, American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, Alaska Coalition of MN, MN AFL-CIO, MN AFL-CIO Retirees Council, Fair Taxes For All Coalition, MoveOn.org Action Fund, People For the American Way, Planned Parenthood MN and Service Employees International Union have joined ECAP to head off a plan backed by President Bush and the Republican Congressional leadership to impose deep cuts in vital services which support the poor and the middle class to finance special interest tax breaks for millionaires.
The press conference took place in the State Office Building at the Capitol. Rep. Ramstad, Rep. Kennedy and Senator Coleman are considered swing votes on budget and tax issues and could provide the deciding vote on the GOP plan which would cut vital services to thousands of Minnesotans.
“More tax breaks for the wealthy and destructive cuts to vital programs are completely out of touch with America’s priorities,” says Sarah Stoesz, President and CEO of Planned Parenthood serving Minnesota, South Dakota and North Dakota. “That’s why we’ve launched the Emergency Campaign for America’s Priorities – an effort to stop Congress from cutting programs that benefit the poor and middle class while giving more tax cuts to the wealthy and affluent.”
ECAP is a national campaign active in 35 states and is modeled after the successful campaign effort which defeated President Bush’s ill advised plan to privatize Social Security. MN ECAP and its’ ever-growing coalition are rolling out the campaign this week because the Republican leadership in Congress is moving forward right now on a plan to slash $35 billion from initiatives like Food Stamps, nursing home care and student loans to finance $70 billion in special interest tax breaks. The House of Representatives is scheduled to take up a budget resolution which would increase the proposed cuts to services for families, children, students and seniors to an unconscionable $50 billion.
The GOP plan would harm initiatives which are vital to the economic security and survival of thousands of Minnesotans, and scores of Americans who have been displaced by hurricanes Katrina and Rita At the press conference, the MN ECAP coalition called on Rep. Ramstad, Rep. Kennedy and Senator Coleman to announce their opposition to all of the irresponsible tax breaks for the wealthy and service cuts for the poor and middle class which have been proposed by President Bush and the Republican Congressional leadership - and to oppose this week’s effort by House leaders to increase the already severe cuts to initiatives for families from $35 billion to $50 billion.
“Again, we ask Rep. Ramstad, Rep. Kennedy and Sen. Coleman, to not follow the Republican Leadership’s effort to cut initiatives for families to finance tax breaks for millionaires” – said Donald McFarland, MN Campaign Director for ECAP. “Cutting services for Minnesota families in order to pay for tax breaks for the wealthy are the wrong American priorities.
Thousands of concerned Minnesota citizens have already taken action by placing a virtual yard sign in front of their homes opposing the Republican budget plan by visiting http://www.actnow.org .