Page 2 The Skanner April 5, 2017
Challenging People to Shape
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Opinion
Trump’s Budget Blueprint Cuts Close to Home
F
rom youth yearning for
the time to have their own
place, to older Americans
hoping to age in place,
the need to have a home is a
shared concern of consum-
ers of all ages and locales. It’s
where children are raised and
memorable moments dwell.
It’s also where many people
rest, reflect, and shut out the
worries of the day.
Right now, the future of
our country’s commitment
to housing is in jeopardy. In
the recently-released White
House Budget Blueprint, the
Department of Housing and
Urban Development (HUD)
will not resemble its former
self. While some programs
are proposed to become
smaller, others are identified
for extinction. Fortunately,
while the President proposes
a budget, Congress must hold
hearings that offer opportu-
nities to amend what some
would deem indefensible.
The irony is that so many
HUD programs and services
that have enjoyed longstand-
ing, broad and bi-partisan
support across the country
are among those proposed to
end.
For example, since 1974,
HUD’s Community Develop-
ment Block Grant (CDBG) pro-
gram has provided local and
state officials the flexibility to
fund local priorities for ser-
Charlene
Crowell
NNPA
Columnist
vices, projects and partner-
ships. Whether the need was
affordable housing, blight re-
moval, community support-
ive services or a way to lever-
age capital in redevelopment
projects, local concerns have
guided how to make the best
“
tional League of Cities (NCL),
an organization that advo-
cates for 19,000 cities, towns,
and villages. “These unprec-
edented cuts would be devas-
tating to all our nation’s cit-
ies—with the worst impacts
felt in small towns and rural
communities.”
Yana Miles, a policy counsel
with the Center for Respon-
sible Lending noted that, “In
housing, the proposed bud-
get would end some of HUD’s
most successful programs
that help underserved com-
munities including: Com-
The future of our country’s com-
mitment to housing is in jeopardy
use of federal funds.
According to the White
House Budget Blueprint,
CDBG would absorb $3 bil-
lion of HUD’s proposed $6.2
billion agency cut. Reactions
from municipal leaders and
organizations were swift.
“From CDBG block grants,
to Community-Oriented Po-
licing Services, the programs
targeted for cuts provide sup-
port for millions of working
Americans and help cities
invest in public-good proj-
ects like police stations, food
banks and domestic violence
shelters,” said Matt Zone, a
Cleveland city councilmem-
ber and president of the Na-
munity Development Block
Grants, the HOME Investment
Partnerships, and Choice
Neighborhoods.”
Two of the HUD programs
that Miles cites are the focus
of another proposed $1.1 bil-
lion in cuts: Choice Neighbor-
hoods and the HOME Invest-
ment partnerships program.
The Choice Neighborhoods
program provides funding
and technical assistance to
support local community ef-
forts to improve struggling
neighborhoods dotted with
distressed public or HUD-as-
sisted housing. Like CDBG,
eligibility is formula-based
and requires a formal revital-
ization strategy or Transfor-
mational Plan.
This past December, HUD
announced that from 34 com-
petitive applications, five cit-
ies were selected to receive
grants totaling $132 million:
Boston, Camden, Denver, Lou-
isville, and St. Louis.
An estimated 1,853 units
of severely distressed public
housing will be replaced by
nearly 3,700 new, mixed-in-
come, mixed-use housing
units as part of an overall
effort to revitalize neighbor-
hoods
For every $1 in Choice
Neighborhoods
funding,
awardees and their partners
typically leverage for their
projects an additional $5 in
public and private funding.
Together, the five cities are
expected to leverage $636
million through other public/
private sources and expect to
stimulate another $3.3 billion
indirectly to magnify their
impact.
The HOME Investment Part-
nerships program focuses
exclusively on creating af-
fordable housing opportuni-
ties for low-income families.
Until now, it has also been the
single largest block grant ded-
icated to expanding this hous-
ing sector.
Read the rest of this commentary at
TheSkanner.com
CBC Opposes Gorsuch Nomination and the Senate Should Too
O
n January 31, Presi-
dent Trump nominated
Judge Neil Gorsuch for
Associate Justice of the
Supreme Court. If confirmed,
Gorsuch’s lifelong appoint-
ment to the court would have
serious consequences for all
Americans, but especially
African Americans and vul-
nerable communities. Judge
Gorsuch has displayed hostil-
ity to the rights of minorities,
women, people with disabil-
ities, and workers, which is
why the Congressional Black
Caucus submitted testimony
recently opposing his nom-
ination. His judicial record
on race and related matters
and constitutional and equal
rights litigation does not mer-
it our support or the support
of the Senate.
All interpreters of the law
should be committed to fair-
ness and justice, not a specific
legal philosophy of judicial
interpretation. Judge Gor-
such’s commitment to “orig-
inalism,” or, interpreting the
Constitution in a way that’s
consistent with the intent of
those who wrote it, often re-
sults in him ruling in favor
of the big guy instead of the
little guy, the strong instead
of the weak, and the majority
instead of minorities. From
2007 to 2016, Judge Gorsuch
issued 14 published judg-
ments related to employee
Rep. Cedric
Richmond
(D-La.)
Chairman,
CBC
discrimination cases. Nine of
those decisions were in favor
of the employer. We need a
Supreme Court justice who
will judge cases on the merits,
not based on his or her per-
“
out a warrant, minimizing the
Fourth Amendment protec-
tions against unauthorized
search and seizure.
Judge Gorsuch’s ruling in
police accountability cases
are particularly troubling
given the increasing number
of shooting deaths of so many
unarmed African Americans
by the police, and recent De-
partment of Justice investi-
gations that have found that
police departments across the
country have had a “pattern
Americans need a Supreme Court
justice who will judge cases on the
merits, not based on his or her per-
sonal philosophies
sonal philosophies.
For example, Judge Gorsuch
believes that police officers
should be granted qualified
immunity, which prevents
law enforcement and other
government officials from be-
ing held accountable for the
excessive use of force. In the
case of Wilson v. City of La-
fayette, Gorsuch decided that
a police officer was entitled
to qualified immunity from
an excessive force claim aris-
ing from the use of a stun gun
that ultimately killed a young
man. In three other cases in-
volving police accountability,
Gorsuch ruled in favor of po-
lice searches of vehicles with-
and practice” of racial dis-
crimination.
In addition to his poor judi-
cial record on police account-
ability, Judge Gorsuch has a
poor judicial record on work-
ers’ rights.
His record is one of sup-
porting employers over em-
ployees, even in the case of
employees with disabilities.
In Hwang v. Kansas State Uni-
versity, Judge Gorsuch ruled
that “showing up” for work is
an essential job function and
that the Rehabilitation Act
should not be used as a safety
net for employees who cannot
work. This case focused on a
professor employed by Kan-
sas State University who was
diagnosed with cancer, and,
after treatments that weak-
ened her immune system, re-
quested an extension due to a
flu outbreak on the campus.
Judge Gorsuch denied her re-
quest and sided with the uni-
versity, compromising her
health and recovery.
Because of the decisions
rendered by the Supreme
Court, African Americans
have been granted the oppor-
tunity to attend the school
of their choice, women have
been granted reproductive
health rights, and workers
have been granted safety and
security from exploitative
labor practices. Judge Gor-
such’s record in each of these
areas raises concerns.
His commitment to “origi-
nalism” also raises concerns.
The Constitution is a living
and breathing document that
is meant to evolve with our
society and it should be inter-
preted as such.
As the Senate evaluates
Judge Gorsuch’s judicial re-
cord, it is imperative that Sen-
ators focus on consistency.
Judge Gorsuch has consistent-
ly used the bench to protect
corporations, and limit the
rights of minorities, women,
and workers. Consequently,
the Congressional Black Cau-
cus opposes his nomination
and urges the Senate to also.