Federal agencies are warning that the spending cuts proposed by Kevin McCarthy and Republican extremists in the House would have devastating impacts on nearly all government services.

The Hill reports that cabinet secretaries have warned Rep. Rosa DeLauro, the top Democrat on the House Appropriations Committee, that among other things, the Republican proposals could:

• eliminate health care access for 2 million vulnerable people relying on Community Health Centers
• cut WIC nutrition assistance for 250,000 families and Meals on Wheels for 1 million seniors
• evict 430,000 families from Section 8 housing
• chop Head Start slots by 170,000 children
• shutter 125 air traffic control towers impacting a third of all airports

Axios reports that a powerful group of Republican extremists in the House is calling these cuts "prerequisites" for its members to support raising the debt ceiling.

President Biden and Democratic leaders in Congress need to make very clear: We don't negotiate with economic hostage takers.

Join over 90,000 people who have signed the petition urging President Biden not to negotiate with extremists -- and to accept nothing less than a clean debt-ceiling increase.

These cuts are just the beginning. Federal agencies are warning that the proposed cuts could also slow processing of Social Security claims, deny tens of thousands of people access to opioid addiction treatment, and slow our efforts to address the climate crisis.

Esquire calls Republican plans what they are: "Debt Ceiling Brinkmanship is just Republican hostage-taking."

And so far, Democrats are still mostly saying the right things.

The White House told reporters, "We are not going to be negotiating over the debt ceiling." And last November, at our urging, President Biden said "Under no circumstances will I support the proposals put forward...to cut or make fundamental changes to Social Security and Medicare."

But not all Democrats have said the right thing. And as the intensity increases, Democratic leaders will feel pressure to make the same mistake President Obama made.

Obama negotiated with extremist Republicans, offered them Social Security cuts in a "Grand Bargain," and ultimately agreed to crippling "sequestration" that slashed important programs and prolonged the Great Recession.

We can't let that happen again.

To be clear, the debt ceiling is not about future spending. This is money that has already been spent. Failure to raise the debt ceiling would destabilize our entire economic system and lead to mass unemployment and financial instability.

If Republicans cared about the debt, they wouldn't have passed trillions in Trump's tax cuts for the rich. We need to tax billionaires and corporations that don't pay their taxes -- not take a torch to programs millions of American families rely on.

We are talking with the White House, our allies in Congress, and the media about this issue -- and will keep them informed of the growing public mobilization.

Sign on here to tell the president and top Democratic leaders to stand strong. No negotiating with hostage takers -- we demand a clean debt ceiling increase and NO cuts to Social Security and Medicare benefits.

Thanks for being a bold progressive.

-- The PCCC Team (@BoldProgressive)

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