By Brandon Moseley
Alabama Political Reporter
On Wednesday, President Barack H. Obama’s (D) administration finally presented their fiscal year 2014 budget. Under Obama’s plan the federal government would continue to run deficits all the way past 2050, estate taxes would rise, new federal tobacco taxes would increase so that the federal government could implement national pre-k.
President Obama also proposed selling the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA), capping the balance of tax deferred investments (including 401ks and IRAs) at $3 million per person, and some cuts to Social Security’s automatic cost of living adjustments.
Congressman Robert Aderholt (R) from Haleyville said in a written statement in response to the President’s FY14 budget proposal: “Today the President submitted his budget proposal to Congress,” said Aderholt. “While there are some important funding items in the President’s budget, the reality is his budget will never balance. Further, it includes $1.1 trillion in new taxes and the
Administration is once again relying on budget gimmicks, rather than real cuts, to claim their budget reduces our nation’s staggering $16.7 trillion deficit.”
Congressman Mike Rogers (R) from Saks said, “I am very disappointed in initial reviews of the president’s budget, which was released today over two months late. East Alabamians know Washington has a spending problem, not a revenue problem. The House passed a plan to help balance the budget in ten years, cut spending, reform the tax code and preserve and protect important entitlement programs like Medicare. I urge President Obama to continue working with House and Senate leaders to forge a compromise that truly helps get our country’s fiscal house back in order.”
Alabama Republican Party Chairman Bill Armistead said, “President Obama is on record calling for a ‘balanced approach’ to the budget, but his newest budget is far from balanced. I applaud the House Republican’s budget and I urge the President and the Senate to turn from their failed policies and join Republicans in trying to move this country forward.”
Congresswoman Martha Roby (R) from Montgomery said, “The good news is that President Obama has finally released his budget. The bad news is that it’s 65 days late and $744 billion short of balance. One thing is clear: President Obama is still on a mission to raise taxes. His budget proposal calls for $1 trillion in new taxes, and that’s on top of the more than $600 billion he got in January.”
Rep. Aderholt said, “We cannot spend our way to prosperity, nor can we tax our way to a balanced budget. That is one reason why I supported the House-passed budget last month that makes the tough choices necessary to get our nation’s budget to balance in ten years, without raising taxes on hardworking American families and small businesses.”
Chairman Armistead said, “President Obama has failed at creating jobs, failed at saving Americans in Benghazi, and once again he has failed at creating a sensible budget that will turn this weak economy around. Unfortunately this President has been an utter failure on every front from uniting the country to solving our debt crisis. Furthermore, the President’s budget proposal fails to make social Security solvent and strengthen Medicare and Medicaid. Not only does the House Republican plan seek to balance the budget over the next ten years, it also seeks to strengthen these programs and refuses to kick the can down the road.”
Rep. Roby said, “I am glad the President has begun to show some interest in addressing the future explosion of mandatory spending programs, but we still have a long way to go in order to reach a sustainable path. Last month, the House passed a plan that would reform federal spending, keep taxes low and balance the budget, leading to greater economic security and job growth. I remain hopeful that this process will result in finally enacting a sensible federal budget plan that offers our country a much needed path to fiscal strength and prosperity.”
Congressman Aderholt concluded, “It is clear that Republicans and Democrats in Washington see budgeting differently. The question remains how does the President view his budget, as a final offer or as a start to finding common ground and to finally completing a fiscally responsible budget, that balances and does so without raising taxes.”
In previous administrations, the President’s budget would be released in February and then Congress would use his budget as a starting point for their own budget process: either adjusting it to meet their priorities or replacing it all together. This year the administration missed the deadline so both the Republican controlled House and the Democratic controlled U.S. Senate have already passed their own 2014 budgets. This is the first time the Senate has prepared a budget in five years.
