“Any budget is about values and priorities, and this President’s final budget is clearly out of sync with the values and priorities of middle-class families across Michigan and across our country,” said Stabenow. “From cutting health care for the most vulnerable among us, to failing to make any real investments to support American manufacturing, this President’s priorities are clear. I look forward to working with my colleagues to develop a responsible budget that invests in America’s working families and creates jobs here at home.”

“President Bush will be remembered as the most fiscally irresponsible President ever,” Conrad said. “His tax and spending policies have exploded the nation’s debt, threatening our economic security. Instead of paying our bills now, President Bush has been running up the charge card, passing on trillions of dollars of debt to our children and grandchildren.”

“In a number of ways, the administration’s budget leaves behind a legacy of missed opportunities, misguided priorities and misplaced values,” Menendez said. “Cutting some of the most important investments in our families while leaving out huge costs that will run up our debt – that’s a budget double whammy that only this President could pull off.”

Said Cato: “Means testing undermines the social insurance nature of the Medicare program, raising costs for seniors who are dependent on it. Over time, that would lead to more middle-class seniors like myself paying higher premiums.”

“The President's budget cuts over $800 million from college programs for low-income and middle-class Americans,” Pendas said. “Instead of funding the nation's priorities and investing in the future of our economy, his budget locks the doors to the college classroom for millions of students who need college the most. As a recent graduate with over $30,000 in debt, students like me are the ones who will suffer the most. Year after year, the President’s budget leaves millions of students and their families behind.”