President’s Budget Out of Touch With Reality
President's Budget Out of Touch With Reality
Increases Taxes and Spending, Comes One Month After Legal Deadline
(Washington, D.C.) – Today President Obama released his proposed annual budget for fiscal year 2015, calling for an increase in federal spending to $3.9 trillion – about $350 billion more than in 2014. The document acknowledges that "too many Americans are working more than ever just to get by… And too many still are not working at all." It calls for $302 billion in new infrastructure spending over 4 years, as well as other new spending initiatives. The budget anticipates historic levels of federal revenues – boosted largely by significantly more optimistic economic assumptions than the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office. As a result, the plan projects smaller annual deficits despite increased spending. Nevertheless, it would add $8.3 trillion to the debt over the next 10 years.
Daniel Garza, Executive Director of The LIBRE Initiative, released the following statement:
"Nearly two-thirds of all Americans favor a smaller government with lower taxes. But the President's budget – delivered more than a month after the legal deadline – calls for more spending and higher taxes. It features a tax increase of more than $1 trillion – on top of the $600 billion in higher taxes enacted last year, and the $570 billion in tax increases included in the health care law. It increases spending by $56 billion next year alone, and grows the deficit to $564 billion – without ever balancing the budget. It withdraws the President's previous proposal to begin to save Social Security – a program that millions depend on.
Our nation faces serious challenges: a slow economy, international threats, a troubled health care system. The President recently promised a 'year of action' on these priorities, but so far he is missing in action. We cannot address these challenges unless both parties put forward serious proposals that can be reviewed and debated. This is a missed opportunity, and the American people will suffer because of it."
For interviews with a LIBRE representative, please contact: Brian Faughnan, 571-257-3309 or Steven Cruz, 202-578-6173.
###