Mishnah Torah 10:7-14
The highest level of tzedakah (righteousness), exceeded by none, is that of the person who assists a poor person by providing him with a gift or loan or by accepting him into a business partnership or by helping him to find employment – in a word, by putting him where he can dispense with other people's aid.
 
Last week, President Trump sent his 2018 budget proposal to Congress.  Widely denounced as cruel and heartless, pundits and lawmakers on both sides of the aisle have sought to placate us with the pronouncement that the proposal is “dead on arrival”.  This message is meant to persuade us that we have dodged a bullet. But make no mistake, the bullet is still speeding toward us.
 
The Trump budget is very much in line with previous Republican budget proposals, as illustrated in this chart from the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities. So, while the Trump budget might be dead, the same policy proposals will still be put forth, just under other names.
 
Our faith traditions teach us to share our bounty with those less fortunate than ourselves. Jewish tradition teaches that the highest level of giving is to provide the poor with the means to lift themselves out of poverty, to the point that they no longer need help. The Republican policies would turn this teaching on its head. They would withdraw the assistance (food stamps, health care, housing assistance), without providing the means to end poverty (education, job training, economic development).
 
These extremist policy proposals target the most vulnerable in our communities.  Those most at risk include the elderly, children, and the disabled, as funding for Medicaid and Medicare, Social Security Disability Insurance, and Supplemental Security Income are slashed. Working families will struggle to get even their most basic needs met, as nutrition assistance, health care subsidies, and low-income housing are all on the chopping block.

Touted as a ‘job creation budget’, the reality is these policies will end funding for education programs, student loan supports, job trainings, and other supports for low-income workers and their families.  Instead, the real winners will be the wealthiest Americans, who will see an average of $50,000 in tax savings every year.
 
This week, Congress is on recess.  We must take advantage of this recess to call and visit our Senators and Representatives in their home offices or attend their town hall meetings and urge them to oppose budget policies that will make America sicker, hungrier, and poorer.  Instead, we urge them to support policies that help people meet their basic needs, that invests in our future by investing in infrastructure, education, health care, renewable clean energy, and provides needed support for the elderly, disabled, and our children. Use this link to find your Congressperson.
 
Further resources:
https://americansfortaxfairness.org/trumps-budget-steals-working-families-give-tax-breaks-billionaires-big-corporations/
 
http://www.chn.org/fiscal-year-2018-budget/
 
https://www.americanprogress.org/issues/economy/reports/2017/05/26/433065/trump-budget-threatens-american-people/

Wisconsin Faith Voices for Justice is outraged at the passage of the American Health Care Act in the House of Representatives. We can only hope that wiser, more compassionate, heads will prevail in the Senate.  This dangerous legislation will result in the loss of health care for 24 million Americans, including the millions of Americans who live with pre-existing conditions. This legislation is immoral and unconscionable.  We call upon all members of the Senate to stand against pressure from those extremists who promote tax credits and benefits for the wealthy at the expense of the health and well-being of moderate and low-income Americans. We are appalled that a cynical political calculation on the part of certain members of Congress placate their base by passing “Trumpcare” was placed above the welfare of the American people.
 
The American Health Care Act was passed before the Congressional Budget Office could issue its assessment of the impact the bill will have on Americans’ access to health care and the impact on the national budget and the economy.  However, we do know that it will gut Medicaid, slashing $849 billion dollars from this vital program, and putting at risk millions of the elderly, the disabled, and children.  It strips the protections from the 130 million Americans with pre-existing conditions. And it eliminates the Ten Essential Health Benefits that had guaranteed free preventive care measures such as mammograms and other cancer screenings, brought mental health services on par with other health care, and ensured access to habilitative and rehabilitative health care, among other provisions.
 
In exchange, the American Health Care Act provides tax breaks and tax shelters to wealthy Americans, allows Americans aged 50-64 to be charged premiums up to five times those of younger individuals regardless of their income or ability to pay, and allows for annual and life-time caps on coverage, which means the sickest Americans, such as people with chronic disease or cancer, will use up their coverage and be faced with the devastating choice of bankruptcy or forgoing necessary treatment.
 
As people of faith, we believe that access to affordable, comprehensive health care is a right, not a privilege.  We call upon members of the Senate to refuse to consider this legislation and allow it to die the death it deserves. Otherwise, millions of Americans will die premature deaths for lack of access to affordable care.