With less than two weeks to go before the start of the new fiscal year, the Inside-the-Beltway chatter of continuing resolutions, omnibuses, minibuses, budget showdowns and government shutdowns is beginning to reach a fevered pitch.

Nowhere is that chatter louder than from the other end of Pennsylvania Avenue.  The president has threatened almost daily that he will veto any appropriations bill that exceeds his budget request. These veto threats include all of the spending bills that provide funding for our domestic programs — programs that in one way or another benefit each and every American. These bills help to educate our children, secure our homeland, support rural America and promote a competitive economy. These domestic spending bills provide the essential building blocks for the foundations of our great country.

On the one hand, the president is seeking over $150 billion in emergency appropriations to fight the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, with reports of an additional supplemental funding request coming to Capitol Hill in the very near future. Yet, at the same time, the president wants to veto critical domestic spending bills because they total just $22 billion above his budget request — less than one percent of our entire budget and about what we spend in just two months’ time fighting an unpopular war in Iraq. The chatter from the White House even asserts that the $22 billion for programs here in America means increasing taxes and putting America’s economic growth at risk. This, of course, begs the question of the economic impact of the almost $450 billion that we have spent on the war in Iraq.

The president characterizes the $22 billion above his request as “increased” spending. In fact, $19 billion of the $22 billion “increase” represents restorations of the president’s unwise attempts to cut important domestic initiatives. A few examples:

• With violent crime on the rise, the president proposes to cut state and local law enforcement funding by $1.5 billion.
• Even though Hurricane Katrina proved that the federal government is not prepared to handle major disasters, the president has proposed to cut first responder grants by $1.2 billion.

• Over $3 billion in cuts are proposed for education programs, including special education, safe and drug-free schools, and improving teacher quality.

• A cut of $279 million is proposed for studying cancer, diabetes and heart disease by the National Institutes of Health.
• Cuts of $2.7 billion are proposed for elderly and disabled housing and community development grants.

• Over $3 billion in cuts are proposed to infrastructure programs such as highway and transit funding, bridge repairs, rural wastewater grants, levees and dams, clean water grants, and airport safety and improvements.

• Cuts of $1 billion are planned for health programs, such as rural health, preventive health, and mental health grants, as well as over $300 million from the Low Income Home Energy Assistance program.

All of these cuts have been restored in the bipartisan bills that were approved by the Senate Appropriations Committee by nearly unanimous votes and, regrettably, that the president has said he will veto.

As one can clearly see, this “fight” is not over some irresponsible plan for an expansion of government or pork barrel projects. This is an effort to overcome ill-conceived and poorly justified cuts. It is an effort to support vital core missions of government, such as the Federal Emergency Management Agency, the Food and Drug Administration, and the Customs and Border Patrol agency. It is an effort to make reasonable choices and set important priorities for our nation.

When President Bush came to town almost seven years ago, he vowed to reach across the aisle for the common good of our nation. Now is his chance to make good on that pledge. He can continue his purely partisan fight over $22 billion in needed spending, or he can work with the Democratic Congress to confront the problems that face Americans here at home. It is my hope that the president will put away his veto pen so that we can get on with the business of making careful choices about programs that contribute to a safe and prosperous nation.

Byrd is the chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee.

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