WASHINGTON, April 9 — Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), chairman of the Senate Budget Committee, on Friday issued the following statement after President Joe Biden introduced his FY 2022 discretionary budget request:

“At a time of massive wealth and income inequality, when tens of millions of Americans continue to recover from the worst economic and public health crisis in modern history, I’m glad that President Biden has presented a discretionary budget that begins to address the urgent unmet needs of working families, the elderly, the children, the sick and the poor. 

“President Biden’s budget request proposes a much needed and substantial increase in funding for education, affordable housing, health care, environmental protection and the needs of our veterans. At a time when over half of our people are living paycheck to paycheck, and millions of elderly people are experiencing poverty, this budget goes a long way in providing the help that so many Americans desperately need.

“I have serious concerns, however, about the proposed $753 billion budget request for the bloated Pentagon – a $12.3 billion increase compared to the last year of the Trump Administration. At a time when the U.S. already spends more on the military than the next 12 nations combined, it is time for us to take a serious look at the massive cost over-runs, the waste and fraud that currently exists at the Pentagon.

“As the Chairman of the Senate Budget Committee, I look forward to carefully reviewing the President’s request and working with my colleagues to write a budget that works for all of our people, not just the wealthy and well-connected.”