With a potential default just weeks away, the GOP still refuses to address the gap between federal spending and revenue through the normal budget process, as President Biden has proposed.
In an attempt to find common ground, the President met last week with Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy (R-CA), House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY), Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY), and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY). They agreed to keep talking, but not much else.
The GOP refuses to take steps to avoid a default unless Democrats agree to massive spending cuts that would hit struggling students and families especially hard.
Federal funding for education, justice, labor, and other essential programs could be slashed by more than 50 percent if the GOP’s wish list becomes reality and certain programs—like defense—are not cut at all, according to a detailed analysis by the New York Times.
Advancing yet another MAGA Republican priority, the House passed the Secure the Border Act (H.R. 2) in a near party-line vote of 219-213 (two Republicans and every Democrat voted “no”). The NEA-opposed bill would restore Trump-era medieval solutions to modern-day problems, like resuming construction of a wall on the border between the United States and Mexico.
This week, NEA members are flying to Washington to lobby for repeal of the Government Pension Offset (GPO) and Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP) that deprive more than 2.5 million hard-working Americans, including many educators, of Social Security benefits they have earned. Help amplify their voices with emails.
Let Congress know where you stand today!
Marc Egan
Government Relations Director
National Education Association
Failure to raise the debt ceiling would trigger a default that leads to the loss of nearly 800,000 jobs and raises the cost of everything from healthcare to putting food on the table.
CHEER: Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) and Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN) reintroduced the Universal School Meals Program Act, which would provide free school meals to all students, preschool through high school.
CHEER: Reps. Sam Graves (R-MO) and Emanuel Cleaver (D-MO) introduced a Teacher Appreciation Week resolution (H. Res. 362) recognizing the roles and contributions of elementary and secondary school teachers in building and enhancing the civic, cultural, and economic well-being of the United States.
CHEER: Sen. Cory Booker (D-NJ) and Rep. Adam Schiff (D-CA) reintroduced the Respect, Advancement, and Increasing Support for Educators (RAISE) Act, which aims to increase the compensation of early childhood, elementary, and secondary school teachers through refundable tax credits of up to $15,000.
CHEER: Reps. Barbara Lee (D-CA), Judy Chu (D-CA) Steven Horsford (D-NV), Nanette Diaz Barragán (D-CA), Jim McGovern (D-MA), Sara Jacobs (D-CA), and Sylvia Garcia (D-TX) wrote to President Biden requesting that the administration reject any cuts to safety net programs proposed by Republicans in the ongoing debt limit negotiations.
