Politics & Government

Schakowsky, Schneider Vote Differently on Funding

North Shore representatives both vote against latest Ryan budget but disagree on Continuing Resolution to fund government through September.

Local members of the Congress voted differently today as the House of Representatives passed a continuing resolution to fund the government through September but stood up together to oppose a Republican drafted budget.

Rep. Brad Schneider (D-Deerfield) and Rep. Jan Schakowsky (D-Evanston) chose to reject the House Republican Budget authored by Rep. Paul Ryan (R-WI) but took a different route on a Senate passed continuing resolution funding the federal government through September.

Schneider joined 114 other Democrats and 203 Republicans voting to avoid a government shutdown and fund the government through Sept. 30. He believes a shutdown is worse than some provisions in the bill he does not like. He thinks the only long term solution will have to be bipartisan.

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“I hope passing this bill today will help spur action from both sides to begin working on a long-term framework to address our nation’s financial planning and provide certainty for our communities and small businesses,” Schneider said.

Schakowsky chose to oppose the legislation hoping a better solution could be negotiated before the March 27 deadline. She believes the spending cuts which will remain in place will do too much damage.

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“It (the Continuing Resolution) keeps the indiscriminate across-the-board sequestration cuts in place and underfunds implementation of health care reform and efforts to finalize rules that will protect consumers from unscrupulous practices,” Schakowsky said.

The measure now goes to President Barack Obama for signature. Sen. Mark Kirk (R-Highland Park) voted in favor of the legislation last week in the Senate.

Both Schakowsky and Schneider attacked the provisions of the House Republican Budget for its continuing efforts to divide the American people and put a disproportionate share of the burden of balancing the budget on the working class.

“The Ryan Republican budget reflects everything that the American people rejected in the last election,” Schakowsky said. “The Ryan budget asks nothing from the wealthiest Americans and rich corporations that ship jobs and profits overseas, while it turns Medicare into a voucher program and slashes investments that create jobs.

While Schneider voted for the Continuing Resolution in part because of his wish to see cooperation between the parties, he saw no strains of collaboration in the budget.

“The Ryan Budget highlights exactly what's wrong with Washington,” Schneider said. “Instead of focusing on creating common ground and enacting thoughtful, sensible solutions to address our nation’s debt, the Ryan Plan simply repeats again the same misguided policies that were widely rejected last year.”

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