Dear Members of Congress:
The undersigned organizations represent millions of Americans with a tremendous stake in the outcome
of the ongoing budget process. As Congress debates the debt ceiling, automatic spending cuts and
spending in 2013 and going forward, our organizations urge you to ensure adequate funding to preserve
the basic functions of government and real security for all our people.
There are two paths toward accomplishing this goal and both must be followed. First, additional new
revenues must be enacted. President Obama has identified at least $600 billion in new revenues if the
wealthiest Americans are required to pay their fair share. We can raise more than $600 billion by closing
tax loopholes for corporations, for the wealthiest 2 percent and for companies that outsource jobs
overseas.
Second and just as important: we must rein in wasteful Pentagon spending. We believe Pentagon
spending should be cut by a minimum of $500 billion to $550 billion over 10 years – similar to the
automatic cuts to the Pentagon that go into effect beginning in March if Congress does not act (the
“sequester”). We note that many military experts say cuts could be as high as $1 trillion to $1.5 trillion
over the next decade without compromising national security.
Pentagon spending, which comprises more than half of the current discretionary budget, continues to
absorb the lion’s share of the money Congress appropriates. Without more cuts to Pentagon spending,
even very deep cuts to all other discretionary funding taken together will fall far short of alleviating deficit
spending and the rising debt.
We view reining in wasteful Pentagon spending as a mandate. We must stop paying for the things we
don’t need so that we can afford to pay for the things we do need. This includes Social Security, Medicare,
Medicaid, food stamps, and the Affordable Care Act. And it includes discretionary domestic programs
such as Head Start, nutrition aid, job training, education and cancer screening, just to name a few.
As a community of advocates, we are committed to creating good jobs here in America, providing our
families with security and building a brighter future for our children. If we invest some of the billions we
spend on the Pentagon in other sectors of our economy, we would actually generate MORE jobs,
strengthening the middle class and protecting essential services that help our families. Economists at the
University of Massachusetts-Amherst found that public dollars invested in clean energy, health care, and
education all create significantly more jobs within the U.S. economy than investing an equivalent amount
in the military.** As we struggle with high unemployment rates across the nation, this is a critical point to
consider.
We want a safe and secure nation. The safety of our residents is of utmost importance. Proposals to rein in
wasteful Pentagon spending should not threaten that priority. But the Pentagon budget should not be
immune from oversight and fiscal responsibility. Like any other department, the Pentagon must be held
accountable for its spending and be able to prove that its programs are a responsible and worthwhile use
of our limited tax dollars.
We believe budget decisions reflect our values, and we believe that we can responsibly pare down wasteful
Pentagon spending without compromising our nation's security. We can shift from spending on outdated,
unnecessary weapons to investments in projects that keep us secure and help us prosper- first responders,
teachers, bridges, roads, and rails. As you face some of the most difficult budgeting challenges in our
nation's history, we urge you to consider all the paths we must embark upon in order to achieve
responsible investments at home.
Sincerely,
9to5
Action for the Common Good
Advocacy for Justice and Peace Committee of the Sisters of St. Francis of Philadelphia
Alliance for a Just Society
Alliance for Global Justice
Amalgamated Transit Union
American Friends Service Committee
American Voices Abroad Berlin
Americans for Democratic Action
Baptist Peace Fellowship of North America
Brake the Cycle of Poverty
Campaign for America's Future
Campaign for Community Change
Caring Across Generations
Center for Conscience & War
Center for Effective Government
Center for International Policy
Center for Law and Social Policy (CLASP)
Children's Defense Fund
Cleric of St. Viator Provincial Council (Viatorians)
Coalition for Peace Action
Coalition of Labor Union Women
Coalition on Human Needs
CoffeePartyUSA.com
Collaborative Center for Justice
Committees of Correspondence for Democracy and Socialism (CCDS)
Common Cause
Community Action Partnership
Conference of Major Superiors of Men
Courage Campaign
CREDO Action
Democracy for America
Democratic Socialists of America
Demos
Disciples Justice Action Network
Documents International
Earth Peace
Education Equals Making Community Connections
Every Child Matters Education Fund
Families USA
Fellowship of Reconciliation
Feminist Majority
Foreign Policy In Focus
Franciscan Action Network
Friends Committee on National Legislation
Friends of the Earth
Grassroots Global Justice Alliance
Gray Panthers
Greenpeace
Historians Against War
Independent Living, Inc.
Jobs With Justice
Just Foreign Policy
Leadership Conference of Women Religious
Leadership Council, Sinsinawa Dominican Sisters
Maryknoll Office for Global Concerns
Metropolitan Community Churches
Military Families Speak Out
MoveOn.org
NAACP
National Advocacy Center of the Sisters of the Good Shepherd
National Alliance of HUD Tenants
National Black Justice Coalition
National Council of Jewish Women
National Employment Law Project
National Gay and Lesbian Task Force
National Health Care for the Homeless Council
National Immigration Law Center
National Jobs for All Coalition
National Law Center on Homelessness & Poverty
National Low Income Housing Coalition
National Network of Abortion Funds
National Organization of Legal Services Workers, UAW Local 2320
National People’s Action
National Priorities Project
NETWORK, A National Catholic Social Justice Lobby
New Priorities Network
No FEAR Coalition
Office for Justice, Peace & Integrity of Creation Franciscan Friars (OFM) Holy Name Province
Office of Peace and Justice, Augustinians : Province of St. Thomas of Villanova
Peace Action
Peace Action West
Pentagon Budget Campaign
Physicians for Social Responsibility
Progressive Democrats of America (PDA)
Progressive USA
Progressives United
Promise the Children (Unitarian Universalist)
Rebuild the Dream
RootsAction.org
School of the Americas Watch (SOA Watch)
Service Employees International Union (SEIU)
Sierra Club
Sisters of Mercy of the Americas, Institute Justice Team
Social Justice Ministry of Sacred Heart Catholic Church
Social Security Works
Sugar Law Center for Economic & Social Justice
SumOfUs
The Global Justice Institute
The Shalom Center
U.S. Labor Against the War (USLAW)
United Church of Christ, Justice and Witness Ministries
United Electrical Workers (UE)
United for a Fair Economy
United For Peace and Justice
United Methodist Church, General Board of Church and Society
United States Student Association
US Missionary Oblates, JPIC
US Peace Council
USAction
Veterans For Peace
Voices for Creative Nonviolence
Voices for Progress
VOTE MOB
War Resisters League
Wider Opportunities for Women
Win Without War
Women's Action for New Directions (WAND)
**The U.S. Employment Effects of Military and Domestic Spending Priorities: An Updated Analysis,
University of Massachusetts-Amherst, Department of Economics (December 2011)