Operation Offset

Here's the House Republicans' plan to reduce spending in order to free up funds for rebuilding after Katrina. The themes: (1) Reduce the wasteful spending that we just voted for: that's the Medicare prescription drug bill, the latest highway bill (specifically the "bridge to nowhere" in Alaska), Bush's Millenium Challenge Accounts, the Global AIDS Initiative, the new Moon/Mars Initiative, agriculture subsidies (obvious question: why did you approve this spending in the first place?); (2) Stick it to the poor and sick: cut Medicaid, community health, the Appalachian Regional Commission, State Children's Health Insurance Program, teen funding portion of Title X family planning, Even Start program, Minority Business Development Agency, Legal Services Corporation (priceless rationalization of increasing copays for Medicaid recipients: "Increased co-payments would encourage a more cost-conscious use of services by beneficiaries, reducing the number of unnecessary medical services provided." That's right, the problem with our health system is that poor people get too much health care!); (3) Stick it to the environment: reduce funds for Water Quality Cooperative Agreement, Forest Service capital improvements, waste disposal grants, DOE environmental management, Denali Commission, Energy star program, hydrogen fuel initiative; (4) Stick it to the foreigners: reduce payments to European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, aid to Egypt (what, pull the rug out from under them just as they embark on the road to democracy?), UN peacekeeping operations, African Development Foundation, Peace Corps...