House Passes $60B in Cuts

Measure sets up deep divide between House, Senate
By Polly Davis Doig,  Newser Staff
Posted Feb 19, 2011 5:33 AM CST
House Passes $60B in Cuts
Nancy Pelosi gestures during a news conference, Friday, Feb. 18, 2011, to counter the plans of John Boehner and Republicans to cut the spending for the current budget year.   (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

The Republican-controlled House of Representatives passed $61 billion in federal spending cuts this morning, burning the midnight oil to hack federal cash going to coal companies, oil refiners, farmers, health care reform, and environmental initiatives. "The American people have spoken. They demand that Washington stop its out-of-control spending now, not some time in the future," says freshman Rep. Tim Huelskamp, R-Kan.

The measure passed largely on the might of the House's 87-member class of budget-conscious freshmen, and faces a fight in the Democrat-controlled Senate, reports the AP. Among the targets were Planned Parenthood, the ethanol industry, and the EPA, whose budget was slashed by about a third. The Pentagon was awarded a 2% increase, while the AP notes that domestic agencies largely saw around 12% in cuts. Click for more on the budget brawl. (More House of Representatives stories.)

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