Ryan budget would hurt poor and elderly, critics say - KansasCity.com

Ryan budget would hurt poor and elderly, critics say - KansasCity.com

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Ryan's allies say he keeps the safety net intact through free enterprise and federalism. His critics say he shreds it.

A group critical of the plan says that 62 percent of the $5.3 trillion in non-defense budget reductions over 10 years that it calls for comes from programs to assist low-income Americans. According to the liberal Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, many of the programs targeted for $3.3 trillion in cuts, such as Medicaid, food stamps, public housing and Medicare, anchor the nation's safety net of public assistance programs for the poor, elderly and disabled.

Programs that assist middle-class families, like Pell Grants and job training, would likely face cuts as well, according to Ryan's plan.

"This budget is actually a very extreme proposal," said Paul Van de Water, a senior fellow at the center. "The extent to which it would scale back virtually all the basic functions of government, including programs that are highly important to middle-income people, like Medicare, is just something that is unparalleled."

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