WASHINGTON — House Democrats came to Howard University to dramatize how, they say, Republican-initiated federal funding policies are disproportionately hurting black and Hispanic college students, black and Hispanic families and the educational opportunities for all public school students.
The policy, called sequestration, was enacted in 2011 by the Republican controlled House of Representatives as a plan to force Congressional to reduce the country’s federal budget deficit.
Under the plan, when Congress cannot agree on the budget, as the nation saw in 2013’s fiscal year, mandatory, across-the-board spending cuts are made under sequestration that Democrats say have unfairly and unwisely cut certain programs.
“There are no Democrats who support sequestration,” Democratic Whip Steny Hoyer of Maryland’s 5th District said. “Sequestration is a complicated word that starts with ‘S’ which stands for stupid. It is an irrational policy.”
The act lowers defense and non-defense spending by about $900 billion over 10 years. Sequester-level funding was avoided during the 2014 and 2015 fiscal years, but it is expected to return this year unless Congress takes action.
“In short, [sequestration is] a disinvestment in America,” Hoyer said.
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Briahnna M. Brown 