Catholic nuns on bus tour, protesting Ryan's budget proposal

MILWAUKEE -- A group of Roman Catholic nuns is speaking out against the budget proposed by Republican Congressman Paul Ryan. Ryan says he applied his Catholic upbringing when drafting the proposal, but the nuns disapprove. The nuns hit the road on a bus tour to spread the word against the proposed federal budget cuts.

The group of nuns is embarking on a nine-state bus tour to speak out against Ryan's budget proposal.

Ryan says he's offering a solution to the country's debt crisis, as the nuns say he's forgetting about the Catholic principle of caring for the poor.

The second day of the bus tour brought the nuns to Milwaukee, where they dined with the hungry at St. Benedict the Moor, before taking their message to Ryan's Janesville office.

"We're not used to having attention on ourselves.  We're always about caring for the need of those on the margins of society. The Ryan budget undercuts the people at the bottom, and gives tax cuts to people at the top. He's doing it with the guise that it's going to help the deficit, and it's not," Sister Simone Campbell said.

Ryan's budget calls for deep cuts to safety-net programs for the poor, and overhauls Medicare. 

Ryan spoke about his budget proposal at a recent listening session in Wisconsin.

"I don't think our government, let alone our president, should treat people as if they're stuck in some station in life or stuck in some class. The government is here to help them cope with it," Ryan said.

In a statement Tuesday, Ryan said: "To avoid a debt crisis and restore the promise of greater opportunity and greater prosperity, Washington owes the American people bold and targeted reforms and real solutions that address today's most urgent fiscal challenges."

In a statement, the Milwaukee Archdiocese had this to say, regarding the nuns' visit to the area: "We may not agree with all the elements of the Ryan plan, but we choose to view the budget proposal as an opportunity to open dialogue about the best course of action to address a difficult problem."

"I think it's important for the American people to understand what's at stake in our country," Sister Mary Wendeln said.

The nuns' message is not endorsed by the Vatican.

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