Obama's Bizarro-World Budget Plan

Investor's Business Daily ^ | 03/04/2014 | IBD Staff

[IBD editorial writer]

Fiscal Irresponsibility: Just how out of touch is President Obama? In the midst of a faltering economy and rising global threats, he proposes a budget that would sharply cut defense spending and impose $1.8 trillion in tax hikes.

Despite its relative insignificance in the grand scheme of things, the annual White House budget proposal does provide a window into the president's thinking on the size and scope of government.

The fiscal 2015 budget — released a month late on Tuesday — also manages to showcase Obama's worrisome detachment from reality.

The budget rests, for example, on the assumption that real GDP growth this year will be 3.1%. The Congressional Budget Office pegs it at 2.7%; the consensus in the financial sector is 2.5%.

Obama also expects us to believe...

[liberalh8ter]

In order to guarantee a more fair reporting of the devastating results of Obama’s actions, I propose they be means tested, whenever possible, on journalists for a full year before it can be introduced to Congress for consideration.

[AK_47_7.62x39]

There are no “cuts” in this budget. From the howling and screeching going on, one would think we were putting a “for sale or lease” sign in front of the Pentagon.

Only in the weird world of Washington DC wonkspeak is refusal to continue to increase a budget seen as a “cut.” This is the same thing that conservatives went apoplectic over a few years back when the marxist commies wailed we were “cutting” social programs by refusing to increase their budgets as much as earlier projected.

The truth of this budget, when you LOOK at it (novel thought there!) is that we are putting fewer troops in uniform and relying more on gadgetry and electronics.

That is really all there is to it.

Debate the merits of that all you wish, but let’s not adopt the pusillanimous crapspeak of the beltway and wail about budgets being cut to the bone, and echo the normal cry of the fear mongers who claim that unless we have a 4% budget increase for military every year, the militant muzzies are going to blow up all our buildings or something.

It is just not so.

[Drago]

Did O’s budget account for the $1 Billion “Lurch” Kerry just gave to Ukraine?

[liberalh8ter]

I'm not debating anything. My post was merely addressing the awful truth that journalists refuse to report the negative aspects of anything Obama does. Can you imagine how the average citizen would react if they were even truthful enough to explain how baseline budgeting works and then expand on that to explain what this budget would mean for our future?

[Popman]

Obama is not out of touch with reality....this budget is designed for political purposes...

To beat the republicans over the head with it...to help the dems in the 2014 election congressional cycle...

Of course the gop will balk at it and Obama and his minions will say .....see how the republicans are obstructing progress and wants to shut down the government again....

Until the responsible press realizes obama is about politics and not governance...they will never understand why he does what he does...

[Justa]

It’s a budget to give money to his crony Union supporters.

[AK_47_7.62x39]

Can you imagine how the average citizen would react if they were even truthful enough to explain how baseline budgeting works and then expand on that to explain what this budget would mean for our future?

They would switch channels and try to find something to entertain them.

[liberalh8ter]

Great point.

[Vaduz]

Detachment from reality indeed and it grows every day.