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President
Bush Pitches $2.9 Trillion Budget |
Posted:
02.07.07
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In the $2.9 trillion budget that President Bush submitted to
Congress this week, he proposed to erase the federal deficit in
five years while increasing spending on the military and national
security.
Printer-friendly version: PDF
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 Lawmakers
in Washington are churning through 2,500 pages of text, charts
and tables that outline President Bush's spending priorities for
the coming year. The plan, which awaits debate in Congress, aims
to eliminate the government's $248 billion deficit and create
a $61 billion surplus by 2012.
About $800 billion of the proposed budget would be directed toward
national security. More than $141 billion of that sum -- plus
a supplemental $93 billion not in the budget -- are intended for
the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.
To decrease the deficit, the president has proposed limiting
the growth of government spending on domestic programs in areas
such as health care and education.
He also wants extend tax cuts enacted during his first term past
their 2010 expiration date. The president credits those tax cuts,
which lowered the percentage of income Americans must give to
the government, for strengthening the U.S. economy.
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New funding
and cutbacks |
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Under Mr. Bush's plan, the defense budget would grow by 11 percent
to $481 billion. Growth in spending on many domestic programs,
however, would be limited to 1 percent or less.
 Over
the next five years, Mr. Bush's budget proposes to reduce Medicare,
the government health care program for the elderly, by $66 billion.
It seeks to reduce spending on Medicaid, the government health
care program for the poor, by $25 billion. Social Security, too,
would see a decrease.
The education law No Child Left Behind would receive $1 billion
in additional backing. Most of the money would be directed toward
more testing in high school, the Washington Post reported.
Mr. Bush's plan would cut federal money that goes to lending
organizations that offer student loans. But the maximum size of
Pell Grants, a government scholarship to help low-income students
pay for college, would be increased from $4,050 to $5,400 for
individual students over the next five years.
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The administration's
reasoning |
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President Bush emphasized the need for increased spending on
the war and on national defense, writing in his budget message
that "my highest priority is the security of our nation.
My budget invests substantial resources to fight the global war
on terror, and ensure our homeland is protected from those who
would do us harm."
 His
plan would provide funding for a permanent expansion of the military
by 92,000 troops, 21,500 of whom would be bound for Iraq.
This is the first time since the war began that the president
has included projected expenditures for military operations in
Iraq and Afghanistan in his budget proposal. Rob Portman, director
of the White House Office of Management and Budget, described
the move as the administration's "good faith effort to be
as transparent as possible" with Congress about the war and
its costs.
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Congress'
response |
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Democratic leaders in both the House and Senate have expressed
their disapproval of the plan's tax cuts, increased spending on
defense and small growth in spending on domestic programs.
Speaker of the House, Democrat Nancy Pelosi of California, criticized
Mr. Bush for "having the wrong priorities."
The chairman of the Senate Budget Committee, Kent Conrad of North
Dakota, told the NewsHour that Mr. Bush's plan "is a budget
of deception and debt, disconnected from reality, that leads America,
I think, in just the wrong direction."
 During
the interview, Conrad highlighted the costs for the war in Iraq
and Afghanistan: "When the war started, the secretary of
defense said it was not going to cost more than $50 billion. When
he was asked, well, some are saying it could cost as much as $300
billion, he said that that was malarkey or rubbish. And in fact,
now we're over $500 billion. So they were off by a factor of 10
to 1."
Mr. Bush's projected funding for domestic programs also drew
fire. Democratic Representative John Spratt Jr. of South Carolina,
chairman of the House Budget Committee, told the Washington Post
that "these things have been around the track numerous times
and never made it to the finish line. It's doubtful they're going
to pass."
If the program cuts are not passed, but the military increases
are, the government will continue to spend more than it receives,
which would increase the federal deficit.
For now, Congress will debate Mr. Bush's plan and work toward
a compromise with the administration.
--Compiled
by Noah Buhayar for NewsHour Extra
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I think we've been witnessing violence for years, whether in reality through the media or through video games, and I don't think that's a first-hand effect.
