Obama Defends Budget Proposal
ABC News reports:
President Obama today defended his 2012 budget proposal amid criticism from Republicans that it does too little to rein in the burgeoning U.S. deficit and costly entitlement programs such as Medicare and Medicaid.
"You cut back on what you can afford, focus on what you can't do without. That's what we've done with this year's budget," the president said in his first news conference of the year.
"By the middle of this decade, annual spending will match annual revenues. We won't be adding to the national debt," he said when asked about the GOP criticism. "We're not going to be running up the credit card anymore."
Touting his plan, Obama urged the kind of bipartisanship that was achieved late last year in extending tax cuts for Americans.
"I recognize there will be plenty of arguments in the months to come and I understand everyone's going to have to give a bit," he said in the hour-long news conference. "We've found common ground before."
Republicans panned the president's 2012 budget proposal unveiled Monday, with House Budget Committee Chairman Rep. Paul Ryan, R-Wis., dubbing it "debt on arrival."
Republicans have specifically objected to plans to end subsidies for oil and gas firms, impose higher taxes on multinational corporations and to reduce tax deductions for higher-income groups. Others say the budget doesn't tackle the issue of the $14 trillion debt.
While Democrats were less vocal in their objections, many are against the deep cuts the White House is proposing in community grants and the home heating assistance program, both of which help lower-income groups.
Obama's 10-year budget plan would increase the national debt by $7.2 trillion in 10 years; $1.1 trillion less than if it weren't implemented.
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