Republicans squeak through budget package slashing aid to students, the poor, and farmers

Whoah! What a battle! And you think things get rough here? They showed the floor debate on this budget matter on C-Span and it was like a cage-match.

But in the end, the Republicans managed to get their bill through, 217 to 215 at around 2:00 a.m. in the morning with 14 Republicans joining all House Democrats in opposition, thus avoiding a futher set-back for Bush and all those who want to balance the budget and pay for Katrina related expenses on the backs of the poor and disadvantaged, students, environmental protection, etc. while preserving enormous tax breaks to the rich.

What better way to fund help to the devastated poor of the gulf region than to take more money away from the poor and middle class, right?

But what's more outrageous is that while Republicans crow about this measure and the modest savings it acheives, they're planning to introduce a tax cut bill that would more than eat up every dime of it!

In passing the bill, Republicans buffed up their party's budget-cutting credentials as they try to reduce a deficit swelled by spending on the Iraq war and Hurricane Katrina. Democrats countered that a companion tax bill that could advance as early as Friday would more than eat up the savings.

Here's WaPo's full account of the attrocity.

How heated did the debate get? At one point, Rep. Marion Berry (D-Ark.) called this guy, Rep. Adam Putnam (R-Fla.) a "Howdy Doody-looking nimrod." Not nice, but hilarious nonetheless, in my humble opinion.