A lot of people have been telling me how confused they are with the current budget proposal put for by President Obama today. I told them all not to worry as it seems like President Obama, Republicans, and Democrats also seem to be in that same boat. But in order for my readers to be better informed than everyone else, I am dedicating today's session to a quick but effective summary of what this debate is all about.
In one corner we have the Democratic Party coming off of a significant defeat in the 2010 election cycle. Trying to respond to their constituents grievances on the economy, they actually cut many activities that they hold dear including Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program and Community Development Grants. The proposed budget will be 3.73 trillion dollars and acknowledges that our deficit will INCREASE next year. However, it also promises the American people that in the long run the debt will go down (something I hope is true because it seems like my generation will bear the brunt of it if it keeps expanding). President Obama plans to also raise income from a spending freeze on many discretionary activities, eliminating current tax breaks (there are new reports that the bipartisan tax break that was agreed to only a month ago is now going to be repealed by Obama), as well as increasing taxes. This, according to President Obama, will lower the deficit, make our debt more manageable, and make our overall economic situation stronger.
In the other corner we have the Republican Party coming off of significant gains in the 2010 election cycle. They were swept into Congress on many campaign promises, but for this particular purpose 'slashing the budget' is chief amongst them. Republicans have already said it is not enough. They claim that for the 2011 fiscal year there are still many more cuts to be made (Republicans estimate another 62 billion in cuts), so for the 2012 fiscal year President Obama simply did not do enough and that more cuts are needed. Republicans claim that the budget President Obama is suggesting will only increase our already trillion dollar deficit.
Also, they acknowledge that while President Obama did put forth 'ideas' that Medicaid and Social Security need to be fixed, they also point out that no concrete plans were put forward, and that everything surrounding these two huge issues has already been said before.
In regard to the tax proposals President Obama put forward, Republicans pointed out that many of these issues had been put forward in Congress already and met strong opposition there signaling that what President Obama offered is just not enough. Responding to criticism from Democrats that are calling on Republicans to stop pointing out flaws and put forward ideas, House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-VA) says Republicans intend to lay out their own version of a budget in March or April.
Who has time in our hectic lives to read through massive newspapers to find the one or two articles we actually care about? That is where I come in. It is my job to provide you with the news that every Republican must know. If we are going to take back the White House in 2012 we must be able to inform our peers of the political situation, and to do that we ourselves must be knowledgeable. So please read, enjoy, and comment on all the articles posted.
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