WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) released a statement on Thursday after voting to block Senate Republicans’ FY 2018 budget. Their budget – which passed the Senate by a vote of 51-49 – would increase the deficit by $1.5 trillion, cut Medicare by $473 billion over 10 years, cut Medicaid by more than $1 trillion, and raise taxes on middle class families.

“People in Connecticut should be worried. This Republican budget cuts Medicare to funnel billions of dollars of tax cuts to people who are already rich. It’s cruel, and it will hurt a lot of people in Connecticut. Opposing this was one of the easiest decisions I’ve ever made,” said Murphy. “I beg my Republican colleagues to ditch this skewed tax giveaway and work on a bipartisan plan that focuses tax cuts on the people and small businesses that need them most.”