"Slush Fund" Is Just Rightwing Rhetoric

Rendell has responded to the stimulus bill which passed the US Senate today.

[He]warned Tuesday that a $1 billion reduction in Pennsylvania's expected share of federal economic stimulus aid in a bill passed by the U.S. Senate would force deeper state spending cuts and result in the loss of hundreds of additional state jobs.

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The federal money removed by the Senate would have been set aside for the Corrections Department, which plans to add 2,400 beds to state prisons and community correctional facilities. It would free up an equal amount of state dollars for other programs at a time the national recession has caused a multibillion-dollar budget shortfall.

Failure to restore any of that money would likely require additional spending cuts for such services as education and health care. The governor said it also would result in the loss of 1,500 state workers along with the 2,600 jobs already scheduled to be eliminated under his budget.

"This is not a slush fund for governors," Rendell said of the federal aid for states. "This is all about state services, local services and jobs."

Republicans who control the state Senate are also closely monitoring the debate in Washington.

"If the federal stimulus bill passes in this form, we will be very interested in the details of the governor's additional proposed cuts," said Erik Arneson, spokesman for Senate Majority Leader Dominic Pileggi, R-Delaware.

I'm keeping an eye on this, but I will withhold judgment until after the conference committee on the bill hammers out a compromise.

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