Could Defense Cuts Lead Us Back Into a Recession?
A $500 billion sword is hanging over the Pentagon when it comes to automatic cuts in defense spending. Cuts to the Pentagon budget are scheduled to take place unless Democrats and Republicans agree to do something else. The impact of those cuts would extend far beyond the Pentagon.
A recent study found that one million people are likely to lose their jobs if the cuts go through as planned, including 400,000 manufacturing jobs, 50,000 health and education jobs and 78,000 jobs in Pennsylvania alone.
Mayor of Phoenix, Arizona Greg Stanton (D) joined Happening Now to discuss the impact of sequestration, saying, “If Washington can’t get together, Republicans and Democrats can’t get together, it will have a devastating impact on our local economy and
a devastating impact on our national economy. We may go back into a recession. That’s exactly the wrong step for our country to take right now.”
“Sequestration is not just regular budget cuts. We all know that the federal government has to decrease the size of the federal budget, but this was never meant to be public policy, it was meant to motivate Congress to get together and reach compromise, and unfortunately it hasn’t worked.”
Stanton asserted that sequestration would be the wrong step, and said that this is why mayors across the country are telling Congress not to wait until after the election to settle this because these cuts will go into effect in January of 2013.
“If you’re a Republican or a Democrat, get to the bargaining table. Reach resolution, reach compromise. Do the right thing for the American people,” he concluded.
