Sunday, March 29, 2015

The U.S. Congress Passes A Budget

The republican controlled congress passed a budget in both houses that they claim would balance the federal budget in 10 years.  Really?  The budget cuts $5 trillion over 10 years the republicans say including cuts to medicare and medicaid.  Dana Milbank a noted columnist said the budget is one big gimmick.  And if the word gimmick sounds familiar its because this writer has described Gov. Jindal's budgets that way here in "PolitiDose" many times over.

No democrat in the House or Senate voted for passage because they are familiar with past republican failures to balance the budget.  They have yet to walk the talk since 1960, the year President Eisenhower balanced the federal budget.  That was over 55 years ago.  Now they say they need 10 more years.  At the end of Presidnet Obama's last fiscal year budget that ended 9/30/14 the federal deficit was $483 billion.  It was $1.4 trillion at the end of President Bush's last fiscal year budget.  So the Obama administration has reduced the deficit over $900 Billion in just 5 years.  The republicans are telling the people they need 10 more years to balance less than half the $900 billion reduction in 5 years by the President.  The President has already put the country on the path to a balanced budget.

The republican budget also contains tax breaks for the wealthy  and the repeal of the ACA.  The republican control of congress and their actions so far still represent the failed policies of past republican administrations.  Their conservative right wing ideology still will not allow them to be truthful to the people, not even those who support them.

But America still has hope because President Obama will not allow this bankrupt budget to become law.


This commentary written by Joe Lorio