Bush Threatens to Veto Dent's Public Safety Initiatives

Would you like to see 300 digital video camera systems for police in Allentown, Bethlehem and Easton? These protect officers while providing oversight.

How about better radio gateways for Allentown cops, so they can at least talk to police in surrounding departments?

For those of us living near the unpredictable Delaware river, wouldn't it be nice if the Delaware River Basin Commission improved its flood warning system?

And for our greatest asset, our children, I'm sure we'd all like to see improvements in Northampton County's Child Advocacy Center, so it can respond quickly to child abuse reports.

These four public safety initiatives have been proposed by Lehigh Valley Congressman Charlie Dent. Now kids can't vote, and cops don't make up a big voting block. His proposals have received scant attention and won't get him many votes. But these are all good ideas, the right thing to do.

Total cost? $1.75 million, according to a report filed by The Express Times' Bill Cahir. That's a lot of money, but pales in comparison to the $446 billion this country has spent on the Iraq war effort.

Yet President Bush now threatens to veto a spending bill designed to protect our safety here. According to Cahir, this bill spends 5% more than Bush thinks is acceptable. Iraq war costs will exceed $1 trillion dollars, so Bush wants to reduce spending here where it is needed. Children’s health, education, reducing the deficit and public infrastructure repairs will just have to wait.

And so will public safety right here in the Lehigh Valley if Bush has his way.

Update: Keystone Politics has also posted this topic, and claims the White House Budget Office has tagged this modest spending plan as irresponsible. I see.