The flag of the Special Olympics raised as players attend the Opening Ceremony of the 2013 Pyeongchang Special Olympics World Winter Games at the Yongpyeong stadium on January 29, 2013 in Pyeongchang-gun, South Korea. (Photo: Chung Sung-Jun/Getty Images)
Demand Surges for DeVos to Cancel 'Unconscionable' Plan to Cut Special Olympics Funding
"To take money away from the Special Olympics at the same time that Betsy DeVos has a 15 percent increase in executive [salaries] in her budget makes no sense whatsoever."
Twenty-four hours after Education Secretary Betsy Devos defended cutting $18 million from the Special Olympics program--while spending more than three times that on expanding charter schools and increasing salaries for department executives--it is quite clear that people are not happy about it.
After Rep. Mark Pocan (D-Wisc.), demanded to know how DeVos justified slashing funds for the program, which serves athletes with disabilities, while also requesting a 15.6 percent increase in executive salary increases at her department, the congressman circulated a petition officially denouncing the move.
"The Trump administration seems to have no problem spending taxpayer money on the president's regular trips to golf and fly to Florida for weekends...But when it comes to our children's education, health, and well-being, we're supposed to believe they can't continue to fund some of the most popular programs in our nation?" --Rep. Mark Pocan (D-Wisc.)"The Trump administration seems to have no problem spending taxpayer money on the president's regular trips to golf and fly to Florida for weekends," wrote Pocan to supporters. "They seem to have no problem spending federal money to lock up children who have been separated from their parents. They seem to have no problem funding endless wars around the world."
"But when it comes to our children's education, health, and well-being, we're supposed to believe they can't continue to fund some of the most popular programs in our nation?"
As of this writing--and within an hour of being sent to supporters--the petition had gathered more than 25,000 signatures from people wanting to "tell the Department of Education not to cut funding for vital programs and commit to using public funding to help children who are counting on all of us to look out for them."
Pocan appeared on MSNBC's "Andrea Mitchell Reports" to discuss the Trump administration's budget, which also includes cuts to special education grants for states and funding for schools that serve blind and hearing-impaired Americans--while calling for $60 million in funding for charter schools.
"It is just unconscionable," Pocan said. "To take money away from the Special Olympics at the same time that Betsy DeVos has a 15 percent increase in executive [salaries] in her budget makes no sense whatsoever....This shouldn't be a partisan issue."
"You've got to remember the Trump budget has cuts to Social Security, to Medicaid, to the National Institute of Health where we find cures for diseases, and then programs like Special Olympics," he added. "So it's really an indication of a much bigger problem that we have with the president's budget."
FINAL DAY! This is urgent.
Dear Common Dreams reader, It’s been nearly 30 years since I co-founded Common Dreams with my late wife, Lina Newhouser. We had the radical notion that journalism should serve the public good, not corporate profits. It was clear to us from the outset what it would take to build such a project. No paid advertisements. No corporate sponsors. No millionaire publisher telling us what to think or do. Many people said we wouldn't last a year, but we proved those doubters wrong. Together with a tremendous team of journalists and dedicated staff, we built an independent media outlet free from the constraints of profits and corporate control. Our mission from the outset was simple. To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. Building Common Dreams was not easy. Our survival was never guaranteed. When you take on the most powerful forces—Wall Street greed, fossil fuel industry destruction, Big Tech lobbyists, and uber-rich oligarchs who have spent billions upon billions rigging the economy and democracy in their favor—the only bulwark you have is supporters who believe in your work. But here’s the urgent message from me today. It’s never been this bad out there. And it’s never been this hard to keep us going. At the very moment Common Dreams is most needed and doing some of its best and most important work, the threats we face are intensifying. Right now, with just hours left in our Spring Campaign, we're still falling short of our make-or-break goal. When everyone does the little they can afford, we are strong. But if that support retreats or dries up, so do we. Can you make a gift right now to make sure Common Dreams not only survives but thrives? There is no backup plan or rainy day fund. There is only you. —Craig Brown, Co-founder |
Twenty-four hours after Education Secretary Betsy Devos defended cutting $18 million from the Special Olympics program--while spending more than three times that on expanding charter schools and increasing salaries for department executives--it is quite clear that people are not happy about it.
After Rep. Mark Pocan (D-Wisc.), demanded to know how DeVos justified slashing funds for the program, which serves athletes with disabilities, while also requesting a 15.6 percent increase in executive salary increases at her department, the congressman circulated a petition officially denouncing the move.
"The Trump administration seems to have no problem spending taxpayer money on the president's regular trips to golf and fly to Florida for weekends...But when it comes to our children's education, health, and well-being, we're supposed to believe they can't continue to fund some of the most popular programs in our nation?" --Rep. Mark Pocan (D-Wisc.)"The Trump administration seems to have no problem spending taxpayer money on the president's regular trips to golf and fly to Florida for weekends," wrote Pocan to supporters. "They seem to have no problem spending federal money to lock up children who have been separated from their parents. They seem to have no problem funding endless wars around the world."
"But when it comes to our children's education, health, and well-being, we're supposed to believe they can't continue to fund some of the most popular programs in our nation?"
As of this writing--and within an hour of being sent to supporters--the petition had gathered more than 25,000 signatures from people wanting to "tell the Department of Education not to cut funding for vital programs and commit to using public funding to help children who are counting on all of us to look out for them."
Pocan appeared on MSNBC's "Andrea Mitchell Reports" to discuss the Trump administration's budget, which also includes cuts to special education grants for states and funding for schools that serve blind and hearing-impaired Americans--while calling for $60 million in funding for charter schools.
"It is just unconscionable," Pocan said. "To take money away from the Special Olympics at the same time that Betsy DeVos has a 15 percent increase in executive [salaries] in her budget makes no sense whatsoever....This shouldn't be a partisan issue."
"You've got to remember the Trump budget has cuts to Social Security, to Medicaid, to the National Institute of Health where we find cures for diseases, and then programs like Special Olympics," he added. "So it's really an indication of a much bigger problem that we have with the president's budget."
Twenty-four hours after Education Secretary Betsy Devos defended cutting $18 million from the Special Olympics program--while spending more than three times that on expanding charter schools and increasing salaries for department executives--it is quite clear that people are not happy about it.
After Rep. Mark Pocan (D-Wisc.), demanded to know how DeVos justified slashing funds for the program, which serves athletes with disabilities, while also requesting a 15.6 percent increase in executive salary increases at her department, the congressman circulated a petition officially denouncing the move.
"The Trump administration seems to have no problem spending taxpayer money on the president's regular trips to golf and fly to Florida for weekends...But when it comes to our children's education, health, and well-being, we're supposed to believe they can't continue to fund some of the most popular programs in our nation?" --Rep. Mark Pocan (D-Wisc.)"The Trump administration seems to have no problem spending taxpayer money on the president's regular trips to golf and fly to Florida for weekends," wrote Pocan to supporters. "They seem to have no problem spending federal money to lock up children who have been separated from their parents. They seem to have no problem funding endless wars around the world."
"But when it comes to our children's education, health, and well-being, we're supposed to believe they can't continue to fund some of the most popular programs in our nation?"
As of this writing--and within an hour of being sent to supporters--the petition had gathered more than 25,000 signatures from people wanting to "tell the Department of Education not to cut funding for vital programs and commit to using public funding to help children who are counting on all of us to look out for them."
Pocan appeared on MSNBC's "Andrea Mitchell Reports" to discuss the Trump administration's budget, which also includes cuts to special education grants for states and funding for schools that serve blind and hearing-impaired Americans--while calling for $60 million in funding for charter schools.
"It is just unconscionable," Pocan said. "To take money away from the Special Olympics at the same time that Betsy DeVos has a 15 percent increase in executive [salaries] in her budget makes no sense whatsoever....This shouldn't be a partisan issue."
"You've got to remember the Trump budget has cuts to Social Security, to Medicaid, to the National Institute of Health where we find cures for diseases, and then programs like Special Olympics," he added. "So it's really an indication of a much bigger problem that we have with the president's budget."