Government money short to help poor pay heating bills

[deminks]

http://today.reuters.com/news/articlenews.aspx?type=politicsNews&storyid=2007-10-19T214417Z_01_N19363069_RTRUKOC_0_US-POOR-USA-WINTER.xml

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - About 30 million low-income American households who will need help paying heating bills this winter from a U.S. government program will be left in the cold because of a lack of funding for the program.

The poor, already digging deep to pay for expensive gasoline, also will face much higher heating fuel costs, especially if oil prices stay near record levels.

Consumer groups and state energy officials have sounded the alarm, saying a federal program to help poor families pay heating bills will have nowhere near the money needed to cover those expected to seek assistance.

The government's Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program, known as LIHEAP, only has enough funding to cover 16 percent of the 38 million poor households eligible for the program.

(end snip)



LBJ had a war on poverty.
AsswipeGeorge has a war on the poor.

[Selatius]

1. Hugo Chavez can help. He's been providing discount oil to working poor in America for...

the last couple of years now when the winter rolls around. Hell, he even sent some senior folks at Citgo to New Orleans to help airlift out survivors in the aftermath. That's more than oil company executives on Wall Street have done for anybody here.

[gateley]

2. Hmm. I just can't imagine where the money has been going. I'm stumped. nt

[usregimechange]

3. Dead elderly this winter, ask your GOP rep for body bags

[Blaze Diem]

4. Those FDA Bonuses should be returned and placed in a fund to

assist in heating these homes for the winter.
Since when do civil servants get CEO-like bonuses? What have they done to earn even their annual salary?
Those bonuses belong back in the hands of the people. The home heating fund is a good place to start.

I am so pissed about this.
The tax on Bush's top 1% would be another way to keep people from freezing or starving this winter.
Sanity and humanity needs to be reinstilled in the conscience of the leaders of this nation.

[Bluerthanblue]

5. ah- but you see, they're free!- free

to freeze to death in their homes.

:sarcasm:

It won't be long till Laura starts telling us to eat cake.

What have we become?

how do we stop this runaway train?

[Blaze Diem]

7. Yes bet Laura is busy planning the White House Xmas Photo,

and The Xmas Tree, the lights and the glamor, the Xmas parties with all the holiday food, the gifts to the "special people" on Bush's list, paid for by our tax $$, no less. And then there's the designer clothes for all those Holiday parties and State functions, the entertainment. And all the many many holiday Christmas Lights..everywhere..

Our tax Dollars SHOULD be going to keep people from freezing this winter. Maybe the Bush White House Holiday Lights should be turned OFF for a week this year, & donate the savings to the home heating fund.
Fuck You Bush Family.

[usregimechange]

6. k&r

[Raejeanowl]

8. Send Them To Middle East

They'll be nice and warm in the middle of whichever war.

[rodeodance]

9. CONTACT INFO:------get busy folks-----your congresscritters are awaiting your memo!

CONTACT INFO:



http://www.visi.com/juan/congress/
"Glory Days"

[rodeodance]

10. Bush seeks cut in LIHEAP, threatens veto (dead elderly this winter):

Forum Name General Discussion
Topic subject Bush seeks cut in LIHEAP, threatens veto (dead elderly this winter)
Topic URL http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x2092695#2092695
2092695, Bush seeks cut in LIHEAP, threatens veto (dead elderly this winter)
Posted by usregimechange on Fri Oct-19-07 09:33 PM

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - About 30 million low-income American households who will need help paying heating bills this winter from a U.S. government program will be left in the cold because of a lack of funding for the program.

The poor, already digging deep to pay for expensive gasoline, also will face much higher heating fuel costs, especially if oil prices stay near record levels.

Consumer groups and state energy officials have sounded the alarm, saying a federal program to help poor families pay heating bills will have nowhere near the money needed to cover those expected to seek assistance...

Still, the administration did not back away from its threat to veto legislation to boost funding for LIHEAP to levels it has called too high.

LIHEAP has an interim annual budget of $2.16 billion, but the White House wants to cut the program to $1.78 billion for the 2008 spending year that began on October 1.

The House of Representatives has passed legislation to boost the program to $2.66 billion, while a Senate committee has cleared a bill keeping LIHEAP at its current $2.16 billion budget.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20071019/pl_nm/poor_usa_winter_dc_1

Tell congress to pass/override or ask FEMA for body bags.

[rodeodance]

12. give it a few RECS

[rodeodance]

13. k

[rodeodance]

14. k

[marmar]

11. Perhaps Bush will counter with: "But we can't keep the power on in Iraq, either.....

....so you freezing poor people aren't alone."

[rodeodance]

15. k

[CountAllVotes]

16. a shameless KICK

:dem: :kick: & recommend !!

[The Doctor.]

17. How many people to a household?

Seems to me we're talking about a huge number of people that either didn't vote, or voted against their own self-interest.