Rep. Thompson will vote against ‘shameful’ budget plan
Today, the region’s Congressman, Mike Thompson (CA-05), announced his intent to vote against the Republicans’ latest continuing resolution, a temporary budget fix that would avoid a government shutdown.
“For months now, Republicans have continued to kick our budget problems down the road, passing short-term spending deals with little progress towards a responsible, long-term budget,” he said in a statement. “When Republicans attempt to pass another CR this week, it marks the fourth time they’ve failed to reach an agreement on a funding plan for Fiscal Year 2018.”
Thompson warned that the majority will use the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) as a bargaining ploy to bring Democrats on board. That federal fund is an important source of funding for the Sonoma Community Health Center.
“I will vote no because their bill not only fails to permanently authorize CHIP, but it fails to provide for dozens of other health services on which these kids and other vulnerable Americans rely,” said Thompson, whose District includes Sonoma and the Sonoma Valley.
The current proposal also leaves out funding for Community Health Centers and the National Health Service Corps, which are integral to the health infrastructure that actually delivers care to CHIP beneficiaries.
“Seniors and those with disabilities also get a raw deal,” Thompson said. “Under this CR, Republicans have gutted Medicare by failing to fund crucial protections for beneficiaries, like the therapy caps exceptions process to ensure care isn’t rationed for seniors, or payments for rural ambulance providers.”
Additionally, according to Thompson, the plan fails to provide protection for the 800,000 DACA recipients who will be at risk of deportation “in a shameful display of this Administration’s perverse understanding of national security.”
“Republicans are holding children hostage because they can’t muster the votes to keep this government running, and yet they have the audacity to say Democrats don’t care about children’s health,” he said. “It’s offensive and immoral. This is no way to run a country.”
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If Mike Thompson is concerned about our kids, why has he done nothing about our schools? Sonoma has some of the worst-performing schools in California and now an unplanned budget cut will increase the number of kids in classrooms and decrease the number of teachers. However, the school board administration loses 1 or 2, I suspect lower paid individuals.
As a legal immigrant, I find his support for illegal aliens to be offensive. I was made to attend multiple interviews, health and background checks, expensive fees and long waiting times, while he supports people we walk across the border or overstay visas. Perhaps its time for Mike to represent all his constituents rather than just parrot Democratic Party talking points.