Emergency Responders Face Deep Aid Cuts

Source: AP via Breitbart

The Bush administration intends to slash counterterrorism funding for police, firefighters and rescue departments across the country by more than half next year, according to budget documents obtained by The Associated Press.
The Department of Homeland Security has given $23 billion to states and local communities to fight terrorism since the Sept. 11 attacks, but the administration is not convinced that the money has been well spent and thinks the nation's highest-risk cities have largely satisfied their security needs.

The department wanted to provide $3.2 billion to help states and cities protect against terrorist attacks in 2009, but the White House said it would ask Congress for less than half—$1.4 billion, according to a Nov. 26 document. The plan calls outright elimination of programs for port security, transit security, and local emergency management operations in the next budget year. This is President Bush's last budget, and the new administration would have to live with the funding decisions between Jan. 20 and Sept. 30, 2009.

The Homeland Security department and the White House Office of Management and Budget, which is in charge of the administration's spending plans, would not provide details about the funding cuts because nothing has been finalized. "It would be premature to speculate on any details that will or will not be a part of the next fiscal year budget," OMB spokesman Sean Kevelighan said, because negotiations between the White House and the Cabinet departments over the budget are not finished.

Read more: http://www.breitbart.com/article.php?id=D8T87V5G1&show_article=1&catnum=0

Oops, I mean "the terrorists"

and other first responders. We need a few more Blackwater jackboots.

Oh. And make us safer. :sarcasm:

Help the Republican candidate?

Divert the money to other accounts?

FIGHTING CHANCE to fend off another 9/11-type "terrorist" attack.

Can't have us able to do that, now, can we?

That's exactly what it looks like to me too. Seriously, I'm not kidding.

I do agree some of the stuff bought was overboard.

Bush and the ReThuglicans know the next President is going to be a Democrat, so start cutting this funding now so that when the NEXT Terrorist attack comes, sometime after January 20, 2009, any fighting chance the next Democratic President had for preventing such an attack will be near Zero chance, or at least much less than is is now with all the money Bush and his minions are throwing at the effort currently. :tinfoilhat:

I hope I'm not the only one here in this country who has noticed that the best time to attack the U.S. is during the transition period between Presidents, especially after a divisive and ugly election.

I hate to say this, but the best thing that could happen to this country, is that we get hit with another attack (hopefully smaller than 9/11) before he leaves office, like sometime in the Fall of 2008, sort of like what happened with the U.S.S. Cole in the Fall of 2000.

I won't even try to predict what the Republic Party's reaction would be, but I bet it would stop these stupid cuts.

Bush* can't figure out how he and his cronies can Profit from this so they may as well get rid of them or at least cut way back..The money must go where the GOP can make Profits such as with War materials..

Like the 3 "Batboats" used in Boston Harbor. 1 for the city 2 for the state police, capable of over 60MPH and turning on a dime. For a waterfront of only a couple miles and all no wake (6 mph) at that. And nobody was allowed to take them outside of the inner harbor. The two state police boats were recently auctioned off. Having only served as a joyride tool during the DNC.