Secretariat
02-07-2005, 11:53 AM
"The Bush administration predicts that the deficit will rise to $427 billion this year.
Brian Riedl, a federal budget analyst at the conservative Heritage Foundation, said Republicans must bear responsibility for their current predicament.
"The Republicans have controlled the House, Senate and White House for the past few years, therefore the budgets were their creation," he said. "Many in Congress are not used to working within strict budget limits, and the days of lawmakers playing Santa Claus may be over."
Lawmakers on Capitol Hill said last week that they are bracing themselves for proposed cuts to agriculture programs, Amtrak operating subsidies, Medicaid, Community Development Block Grants, vocational education, the Even Start literacy program, and Upward Bound and Talent Search, which are college-access programs for the disadvantaged.
President Bush sent Congress a $2.57 trillion budget plan today that seeks deep spending cuts across a wide swath of government from reducing subsidies paid to the nation's farmers, cutting health care payments for poor people and veterans and trimming spending on the environment and education.
Democrats immediately branded it a "hoax" because it left out the huge future costs for the war in Iraq and Afghanistan and did not include the billions of dollars that will be needed for Bush's No. 1 domestic priority, overhauling Social Security.
Bush's budget does not reflect the costs for his No. 1 domestic priority, overhauling Social Security by allowing younger workers to set up private investment accounts. Aides said since the plan is still being developed, accurate cost estimates could not be made.
The budget also does not include any new spending for military operations in Iraq and Afghanistan. The administration has said it will seek in coming weeks an additional $80 billion for the cost of operations in Iraq and Afghanistan for this year.
The spending document projects that the deficit will hit a record $427 billion this year, the third straight year that the red ink in dollar terms has set a record.
"This budget is part of the Republican plan to cut Social Security benefits while handing out lavish tax breaks for multimillionaires," said Senate Democratic Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev. "Its cuts in veterans programs, health care and education reflect the wrong priorities and its huge deficits are fiscally irresponsible."
In all, the president proposed savings of $137 billion over 10 years in mandatory programs with much of that occurring in reductions in Medicaid, the big federal-state program that provides health care for the poor, and in payments the Veterans Administration makes for health care."
In summary cut health care for the poor, Veteran's adminstration health payments, god forbid any money spent on the environment, plus don't include your touted Social Security plan in budget which you are going on a campaign tour on and don't include the costs of Iraq and Afghanistan and you're still at a record deficit. Sad
Brian Riedl, a federal budget analyst at the conservative Heritage Foundation, said Republicans must bear responsibility for their current predicament.
"The Republicans have controlled the House, Senate and White House for the past few years, therefore the budgets were their creation," he said. "Many in Congress are not used to working within strict budget limits, and the days of lawmakers playing Santa Claus may be over."
Lawmakers on Capitol Hill said last week that they are bracing themselves for proposed cuts to agriculture programs, Amtrak operating subsidies, Medicaid, Community Development Block Grants, vocational education, the Even Start literacy program, and Upward Bound and Talent Search, which are college-access programs for the disadvantaged.
President Bush sent Congress a $2.57 trillion budget plan today that seeks deep spending cuts across a wide swath of government from reducing subsidies paid to the nation's farmers, cutting health care payments for poor people and veterans and trimming spending on the environment and education.
Democrats immediately branded it a "hoax" because it left out the huge future costs for the war in Iraq and Afghanistan and did not include the billions of dollars that will be needed for Bush's No. 1 domestic priority, overhauling Social Security.
Bush's budget does not reflect the costs for his No. 1 domestic priority, overhauling Social Security by allowing younger workers to set up private investment accounts. Aides said since the plan is still being developed, accurate cost estimates could not be made.
The budget also does not include any new spending for military operations in Iraq and Afghanistan. The administration has said it will seek in coming weeks an additional $80 billion for the cost of operations in Iraq and Afghanistan for this year.
The spending document projects that the deficit will hit a record $427 billion this year, the third straight year that the red ink in dollar terms has set a record.
"This budget is part of the Republican plan to cut Social Security benefits while handing out lavish tax breaks for multimillionaires," said Senate Democratic Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev. "Its cuts in veterans programs, health care and education reflect the wrong priorities and its huge deficits are fiscally irresponsible."
In all, the president proposed savings of $137 billion over 10 years in mandatory programs with much of that occurring in reductions in Medicaid, the big federal-state program that provides health care for the poor, and in payments the Veterans Administration makes for health care."
In summary cut health care for the poor, Veteran's adminstration health payments, god forbid any money spent on the environment, plus don't include your touted Social Security plan in budget which you are going on a campaign tour on and don't include the costs of Iraq and Afghanistan and you're still at a record deficit. Sad