Speaker:
-- crisis, we've had to down
size our workforce, ask our
employees to forego raises and
bonuses, and even cut back on
employee benefits.
Of those companies who offered
health care and other benefits,
12 percent plan to decrease
their benefits packages,
particularly with respect to
health care and retirement.
On the revenue side, our
business owners have had to find
new sources of revenue of
becoming innovative, developing
new product lines, expanding our
customer base, and providing
more value to our
existing customers.
Second, government spending must
be cut, but should be equitable.
While no one wants to cut
spending, every program has its
constituency and purpose,
programs can and should be cut.
However, the cuts
need to be equitable.
Nothing can be
considered sacred.
Business owners when facing
cutbacks look for ways to spread
cost cutting measures across the
board, across their employees
and programs, and the government
can and should do the same.
Third, raising revenues should
not mean a wholesale tax hike on
the small business community.
Since small businesses are
already on the front lines.
Economy, taking all the risk and
absorbing the losses, we believe
that raising taxes on business
would adversely affect economic recovery.
The joint committee on taxation
expects half of the revenue
raised by the expiration of
the Bush tax cuts to fall on
businesses that are taxed
as individuals, known as a
flow-through organization.
According to many analysts,
including the urban institute,
Brooking Institute Tax Policy
Center, a significant share of
small business income would be
subject to higher tax rates.
The burden of these increasing
rates would jeopardize small
business growth at a time
when the private sector needs
confidence and
access to capital.
In conclusion, whip (sic) is
heartened by the appointment of
the commission to
tackle this issue.
We are especially pleased that
it is a bipartisan commission,
since we believe that both
parties must work together to
achieve a plan going forward.
This is what women business
owners do, we work together to
solve a problem.
Thank you for your time.
Chairman Simpson:
That was an extraordinary
statement, that last sentence.
You work together
to solve a problem?
That's bizarre.
Speaker:
It's novel, isn't it?
Chairman Simpson:
It's crazy.
(laughter)
Chairman Simpson:
I mean, honestly.
You summarized the whole day.
(laughter)
Chairman Simpson:
Nobody wants to
get together with anybody to
solve a problem, they're just
sticking with their own ideas.
And everyone here today has said
we know we have a problem and we
want to help, and then they say,
but don't touch this, do not
touch this or your
fingers will be fried.
And you wonder why the
politicians are frozen in place.
And groups just say go to them,
I mean, one group said, well,
we're headed out this week and
we've got 1,300,000 members and
they are out, they're going
out to tell this story.
Well, you know what, I used to
sit there and listen to them
come, and finally it was -- my
mine snapped and I thought every
one of them said we want you to
cut the deficit, Simpson, you're
a wonder, and then
they'd ask for theirs.
The most amazing thing to see,
you just have to enjoy it.
Well, enough of that.
But let me say about our
colleague, because he skipped
away, as I say, but this gentle
giant of a man, Erskine Bowles,
very self-effacing, a bit
self-effacing, but he got the
North Carolina education system
and took a hit of 26 percent.
That night, Bruce.
26 percent that Erskine
put on the higher education
system of North
Carolina, that's guts.
And he's the last guy living
that balanced the budget under
-- under President Clinton.
And you'd think that people
didn't realize, I mean, they
wonder about me, which is good,
but they ought to realize this
guy is the key, instead of just
hanging him and hanging me and
enjoying all that.
Well, I hope the machine is
still running as Strom would say.
Called it the machine.
Now, is there anyone else who
may have come in undercover?
Then I'm going to wait here a
little longer, because I think
there were two other groups that
were going to come in at 8, and
they were due to
be here at 7:45.
(cell phone rings)
Probably the woman I've been
living with for 56 years
wondering why I've canceled
all these calls all day.
Are you ready?
We greet you on behalf
of -- how are you?
You're very kind to leap in
here, but we -- we accelerated
and some people didn't show, and
we were trying to contact you,
but settle down and tell us who
you are and what you're about,
and appreciate very
much your being here.
Maureen Campbell:
Well, I thank you, and we
appreciate you having us.
My name is Maureen Campbell, I'm
here representing WAND, Women's
Action for New Directions.
I work here in our Washington,
D.C., office and I'm presenting
the testimony of our executive
director, Susan Shaer, who is in
our Massachusetts office.
Over the weekend of June 26th,
America speaks events were held
around the country to allow
ordinary Americans to voice
their opinions about
federal budget priorities.
The members of WAND, Women's
Action for New Directions, were
not surprised to learn that when
Americans spoke, it was revealed
that 85 percent of event
participants wanted to cut
military spending.
Since the end of the Cold War
when WAND changed its name from
Women's Action for Nuclear
Disarmament, and the entire
planet expected there would
be a peace dividend, WAND has
prepared citizens and elected
officials for that anticipated surplus.
Our mission is to redirect
excess I have military spending
toward unmet human and
environmental needs.
Our objective has been to make
certain that unnecessary and
excessive military budget
spending be made available for
other kinds of security, health
care, jobs, education, and a
clean safe world in which
our citizens can thrive.
The Soviet Union crumbled in
part because of their dreadful
waste of funds on Cold
War weapons of war.
Imagine our outrage
when the U.S.
Congress extended the lives of
American Cold War weapon systems
that were no longer needed.
The long arm of the military,
Congressional, industrial
complex that President and
General Dwight David Eisenhower
warned us about had
truly taken control.
Instead of a peace economy and
a peace dividend, we have seen
military spending
expand exponentially.
Others will testify on the data
and this unprecedented growth.
WAND's job here is to represent
and affirm the widely held
belief that spending priorities
must change in order to affect
real and lasting security
beyond military spending.
Thank you to President Obama for
names this commission, and to
the co-chairs for
taking our testimony.
We want this official and august
body of evaluators to know that
a discretionary budget that
spends almost 58 percent on the
military is misguided and out
of sync with American values.
In the years WAND has been
watching the military side of
the discretionary federal budget
grow, this is the first time we
have been able to represent the
millions of Americans who agree
with us on budget priorities to
a group that can truly make an impact.
We ask that you put the military
budget on the table for cuts by
recalcitrant Congress.
We also want to emphasize
that President Obama, through
Secretary of Defense Gates and
Under Secretary of Defense for
Acquisition, Ashton Carter, has
made it clear that military
services need to identify
$100 billion in savings.
The public's report submitted
by the Sustainable Defense Task
Force formed by Congressman
Barney Frank, with the
cooperation of Senator Ron Wyden
and Congressman Walter Jones and
Ron Paul, lists substantial cuts
that would far exceed even the
Gates list.
While savings might not transfer
to domestic discretionary
spending, as we at WAND would
like, money would be made
available to pay military
salaries, benefits and to
support troops serving
around the world.
WAND could not agree more that
we need a strong defense and
that our troops should be
properly supported and equipped.
We also believe that the defense
department should be required to
pass audits, meet contract
deadlines and use reputable contractors.
As a grass roots organization
that can claim one-third of all
women's state legislators
as members of WAND's women
legislators' lobby, we assure
you that we stand ready to help
realign our federal
spending priorities.
WAND and its wealth of activists
and partner organizations will
work for fiscal responsibility
for the military side of the
budget and for greater support
for the unmet human and
environmental needs
in our country.
Chairman Simpson:
I want to thank
you very much.
Barney's group, and Barney and
I worked together on a lot of
things when I was here, their
group, we've responded to that,
and said we're very eager
to hear and work with you.
We have two members of the
commission, one a Democrat, one
a Republican working on the
defense budget, and there's a
reality there that
something will be done.
I don't know where we are,
but you've expressed it well.
Maureen Campbell:
Thank you very much.
Chairman Simpson:
Thank you.
You know, while I have a moment,
let me thank this amazing staff
for sticking around
and doing your work.
These things just don't happen.
This has been well planned, this
gentleman here from the House,
from the Senate Budget
Committee, but all of you have
done a beautiful job of getting
the physical and all the
wonderful works here, and it
takes a lot of coordination and
you've done it.
Done a beautiful job.
And Bruce, it too, you've done a
splendid job, and I appreciate it.
AHH, you just came
at the right time.
I was beginning to
get very hungry.
Poor guy.
Speaker:
This has never
happened to me, Senator.
Chairman Simpson:
Step right into
the tiger's den.
(laughter)
Chairman Simpson:
Now, Daniel, the
last guy in the lion's den.
Matthew Melmed:
Senator, Mr.--
Chairman Simpson:
How are you?
Matthew Melmed:
I'm fine.
This is actually an
unprecedented experience for me.
Is this on?
Chairman Simpson:
Think of these people,
all of us waiting for you.
Matthew Melmed:
I'm amazed, I'm
absolutely amazed.
I'm actually amazed that you've
been sitting here all day and
have the capacity to
even listen to anybody.
Chairman Simpson:
Good to see you.
Matthew Melmed:
So thank you.
My name is Matthew Melmed, in
my day job, I'm the executive
director of 023, which is the
National Center for Infants,
Toddlers and Families.
However, as a volunteer, I
serve as the chairperson of the
Children's Leadership Council.
And the Children's Leadership
Council consists of 60, over 60
national children's
organizations, ranging from
groups such as my own that
represents the needs of babies
and toddlers to those that
represent youth and adolescence.
And these 60 organizations
have come together to become a
collective voice on behalf
of America's children.
And they've asked me as the
chair today to come to testify
before you, because we are
equally concerned about the
issue of the federal deficit and
the debt, and we know that too
often the debt is talked about
as something that we don't want
to leave to our children, and
we're certainly concerned about
that as well.
And at the same time, the
reality is that our children are
paying a very dear price right
now, because we fail to invest
in them in a number of ways,
a number of ways that will
actually help the economy and
bring down the debt in the long run.
Children and youth are in a
unique, if not uncomfortable
position, in terms of the
country's fiscal crisis.
They played no role in creating
that crisis, but they have the
most to lose if their needs are
not taken into account when
developing fiscal reform.
We do not believe there should
be excess spending, but we would
certainly can you when you look
at where spending is taking
place to not just look at the
small part of discretionary
spending, where everyone seems
to focus in terms of the federal
budget and where kids mostly
are, but look at things such as
the tax expenditures that we
don't take any look at and say
we should be cutting and
considering in terms of saving money.
The Children's Leadership
Council, which I represent,
urges you to protect the
investments that we do now make
in kids at a minimum, not to see
cuts in existing programs that
help kids across the board, and
in terms of future budgetary
policy, we believe there's
a fair amount of economic
research, some done by Nobel
laureates that will show you
that if do investments now in
kids, in particular at the end
of the spectrum that I deal with
in infants and toddlers, they
will pay returns in terms
of society many times over.
Right now, investments for
babies, children and youth
account for less than ten cents
of every federal dollar, and
less than half of the share
that we made investments at the
federal level for kids
just a generation ago.
So, in fact, what we have seen
is that federal spending in
terms of kids has actually gone
down, while all of federal
spending has been going
up for everybody else.
As I said, this investment is
one that is the safest and
wisest we could make.
We love to be able to work with
the commission and commend your
work in providing some very
concrete ideas of things that
you could do to be looking
at making other reductions.
It seems like children, and
particularly very young children
are always at the back of the
line when it comes to finding
money in this government,
whether it be for tax
expenditures, as I said,
or wars or bailouts.
Budget cuts have been made on
the backs of those who are least
able to respond, and in doing
so, we really put the future of
our kids at stake.
And with that, Senator and
Mr. Reid, I notice I have 30 seconds.
If you actually want to ask
a question so you want to be
entertained, I'll
be happy to answer.
Chairman Simpson:
Is Bill Harris of Chicago a
KIDS called KIDS, a KIDS pack,
is he part of your group?
Matthew Melmed:
No, he is not, although I
am very familiar with Bill.
Chairman Simpson:
You know him?
Matthew Melmed:
Bill is a freelance --
free-lance guy who does a lot of
great stuff on behalf
of children's advocacy.
The 60 organizations that are
the Children's Leadership
Council run from the voices to
America's children to the Child
Welfare League of America to
the National Association of
Child-Care Resource and Referral
Agencies, it's a -- it's really
60 organizations -- over 60
organizations that represent
either certain populations of
children or they represent
certain types of services that
are provided to children.
Chairman Simpson:
Well, I thank you very much.
You're good to hop right in
and get wet all over quick.
And thank you.
And thank you for what
you do for children.
Matthew Melmed:
Thank you, Senator, and
thank you for what you do.
And Mr.Reid.
And again, it is our sincerest
hope that when you really look
at where the money really goes,
that the deficit reduction
doesn't come at the expense of
kids, because that's not where
the money is going.
chairman Simpson:
I would not think it
would come from that.
There are so many
other marvelous pots.
(laughter)
Chairman Simpson:
Tax expenditures are a joy, there are 206 of them.
They went on the books because
they were listed as a tax cut.
Matthew Melmed:
Yes.
Chairman Simpson:
And they come off
as a tax increase.
So hang on tight while we dig
into those babies, because
they'll say, look at what
they're doing, tax increases and
the fake one was where they
stuck them together as a tax cut.
Matthew Melmed:
I couldn't agree with you more, Senator.
I would also point out, again,
this is the work of a Nobel
laureate economist at the
University of Chicago that if
you really looked at return on
investment, social investment
and you looked at where we
invest our dollars, this is the
work of James Heckman, that what
you would see is that if you put
investments at the very
beginning, in the zero to three
years and then going along,
you'll get the greatest return
on investment.
And that if you do a converse of
that chart and look at how we
spend our money, very little
at the early years, a lot in K
through 12 and even more in
higher ed., and then adult
education and learning.
So we don't do policy in the way
that maybe we should do if we
looked at what research
really is telling us.
So thank you.
Chairman Simpson:
Thank you very much.
And is there any -- any
further groups to testify?
That it?
Then thank you very much, and
thank you, Bruce, and thanks to
this fine staff for your
patience, thanks for the Senate
and their hospitality
here in the budget area.
And we'll disband
until Christmas Day.
(laughter)
Matthew Melmed:
I'm glad I showed up.
(laughter)
