Here’s the White House budget. As noted previously, it’s weighted pretty heavily toward spending cuts. If fully enacted (which it won’t be) it would reduce the deficit by $1.1 trillion relative to current law over the next 10 years.
The key thing to keep in mind about this budget is that the White House wants to make good on its pledge to pursue investments in education and infrastructure (the key ingredients in “winning the future”) while also abiding by a self-imposed domestic discretionary spending freeze. That means they’ve had to shift money around from other priorities, which explains why, as leaked last week, they’ve proposed slashing heating and energy assistance to poor families, and why other existing progressive programs will be hit.
Republicans have already attacked the plan for not cutting enough and not addressing entitlement reform. After turning the deficit into a major issue, and proposing some domestic spending cuts of their own, the GOP has passed the buck to Obama to lead the discussion on Social Security, Medicare, etc. Top budget committee Republicans have scheduled a press conference for Monday afternoon to hammer away at these themes.
Remember, this is a budget proposal for 2012, which starts October 1. Congress will ultimately decide what the government’s spending priorities are for that year — this is what the White House wants. But it’s all completely separate from the spending fight already under way on Capitol Hill over how to fund the government between March 4 and the end of this budget year in September.
House Republicans and Senate Democrats must bridge that impasse quickly, or the government will shut down.
