House Conservatives Prepare Austere Alternative Budget

New York Times ^ | March 7, 2006 | CARL HULSE

[RWR8189]

WASHINGTON, March 6 — With Congress heading into a politically perilous budget season, influential House conservatives plan this week to propose an austere alternative spending plan that would pare more than $650 billion over five years, balance the budget and drastically shrink three cabinet agencies.

The legislation, part of a push by some Republicans to re-establish themselves as champions of fiscal restraint, was taking shape as President Bush struck a similar theme on Monday by asking Congress to grant him line-item veto power to eliminate federal spending that he might judge wasteful.

"We can't be all things to all people when it comes to spending the taxpayers' money," Mr. Bush said at a ceremony installing a new chairman of the Council of Economic Advisers.

But House conservative leaders would go far beyond the president's own budget proposal, illustrating the difficulty the White House and the Republican leadership have had in persuading the caucus to speak with one voice on the matter.

Senior aides say the conservatives' plan would wring about $350 billion from Medicare, Medicaid and other social programs and save $300 billion partly through a major reorganization of the Education, Commerce and Energy Departments.

"We are putting our money where our mouth is," said one of the officials, who would discuss the proposal only without being identified because it was still being prepared for release Wednesday by leaders of the Republican Study Committee.

[Non-Sequitur]

Oh my, everyone is negative this morning.

What has the GOP done to merit anything but a cynical response to a ploy like this?

[LibLieSlayer]

It is a stunt. These guys run scared from the President's poll numbers, but wait until they get all the polls (we know the MSM cooks them) showing 72% want Republicans shot for making granny eat dog food, in lieu of paying her rent. reid will haul out Anna Mae Smith whose medicine was cut off from her when the "austere and draconian" cuts were implemented. CHILDREN WILL BE DYING, and Pubbies will be at about 7% approval rating.

Reality is your friend... no, it really is!

LLS

[LibLieSlayer]

"What has the GOP done to merit anything but a cynical response to a ploy like this?"

A hell of a lot of them are sounding like schumer and the hildebeast! Some must be longing for Secretary of State... chucky schumer! Secretary of Defense... howard dean... and Attorney General... plugs biden!

LLS

[LibLieSlayer]

"there wasn't a lick of difference between the Democrat and the Republican parties."


Well, there is a great deal of difference when it comes to things of GOD and Defense!

LLS

[GeorgefromGeorgia]

Is the Contract with America reborn? Bring back the BBA.

[ClaireSolt]

The GOP has done so much that people now expect them to do everything. More to the point, what have you done but bitch? And what does that make you?

[Vote 4 Nixon]

Agreed, look at the state of our border security, this country has gone to hell in a hand bag. Someone on here posted that at least lip service was a good thing. Well I have got to say that they weren't elected just to give lip service to the American people but to make this country a better place to live. When you compromise your principals on things like homeland defense and border security your headed the way of the Dodo IMHO.

[Non-Sequitur]

The GOP has done so much that people now expect them to do everything. More to the point, what have you done but bitch? And what does that make you?

It makes me wonder what the hell the GOP has done so much of?

[putupjob]

It really kills me to see so many Freepers singing the praises of the loser phony Republicans. I am beginning to feel like Ronald Reagan when he spoke of the Democratic Party. I haven't left the Republican Party, they have left me.

And I'll never vote for Democrats, no matter what. I'll either vote for real conservatives or I'll just stop voting, period. I'll not support open borders, gold visa cards for criminal aliens and I won't take a ride on the highway to hell on selling out the country to foreign interests.

[ClaireSolt]

look it up. George Bush is famuos for doing what he promises in campaigns. So far, Social Security reform is the only thing he ran on that he has not accomplished. Also they have responded to the events of 9/11 and Enron with major reforms. They have tried and convicted 500 terorists and 500 corporate crooks. They have liberated 50m people and negotiated historic trade agreements, especially with India and China to sell them clean energy technology. The economy has recovered and the DOW is back to pre 2000 bubble bursting level. But you would know this, if you hadn't had an ideological lobotomy sometime. So, I am surely wasting my time.

But what about the border, you demand. That problem peaked in 1999. Both Congress and the administration have been working on it. You cannot fix something that huge in a day.

[Vote 4 Nixon]

The Republican party has sold out its base on border defense. They want the Hispanic vote so bad that they will do NOTHING that makes them look anti-immigrant.

[ClaireSolt]

I agree that looking anti=anybody is undesirable, and the story of how they lost CA has led them to work quietly without a lot of populism. However, they have been working steadily and 1999 was the highpoint of immigration. They have not sold out, but you may well have underestimated what it will take to get this completley under control. Many have.

[eraser2005]

look it up. George Bush is famuos for doing what he promises in campaigns. So far, Social Security reform is the only thing he ran on that he has not accomplished

I'm laughing so hard at this that I can hardly breathe.

But what about the border, you demand. That problem peaked in 1999. Both Congress and the administration have been working on it.

Stop it!!! It hurts!!! :)

[ClaireSolt]

Better lay off that stuff.

[eraser2005]

:)

Yeah, the caffeine in the coffee has me WIRED. I just can't believe people still think Bush has kept his campaign promises (ok, he's kept some, but what about not spending Social Security money on other things and paying down the debt?)...

[Always Right]

If passed it would be the first bill bush vetos, maybe two if he vetos the Port deal bill.

Don't worry about the veto. It will be a cold day in hell before the GOP Senate goes along with significant cuts. In the House there is a chance.

[ClaireSolt]

What makes you say he promised that? He wanted personal accounts in Social Security. It was Clinton that was hung up on paying down the debt. And it was Clinton who concealed a recession and packed regulatory agencies with cronies so that we had corporate scandals. Frankly, you don't talk about paying off debt in a down economy. Now, we did pay off $20b with last month's surplus.

[eraser2005]

Whoah... talk about CLUELESS. The government routinely gets monthly surpluses during certain months. January did pull a surplus, but that is normal considering quarterly corporate tax payments.

“We’re going to set aside all the payroll taxes for one thing, Social Security,” - George W. Bush, November 3, 2000

"To make sure the retirement savings of America's seniors are not diverted to any other program, my budget protects all $2.6 trillion of the Social Security surplus for Social Security and for Social Security alone" - George W. Bush, February 27, 2001

"We owe it to our children and grandchildren to act now, and I hope you will join me to pay down $2 trillion in debt during the next 10 years. At the end of those 10 years, we will have paid down all the debt that is available to retire" - George W. Bush, February 27, 2001

In 2001, The gov't raided 36 billion of the 163 billion social security surplus. In 2002-2004, it raided all $530 of the social security surplus for other spending.

The on-budget deficit for this year will be near $600 BILLION. It is readily apparent that he has backtracked on promises for social security and for debt management. Some could not be avoided (recession) - but we aren't in a recession now, and the deficit is worse than ever in absolute terms. Shouldn't we be paying off the debt now? If you think Bush is any better than Clinton on cronies, you're completely delusional.

[ClaireSolt]

If you think Bush is any better than Clinton on cronies, you're completely delusional.

I have read the quotes and I admit that things have not worked out that way. However, you did not provide any quotes from his campaign, did you?

This quote, however, indicates we cannot talk, anymore. " If you think Bush is any better than Clinton on cronies, you're completely delusional." I'll just remmind you that whereas Libby is the lone indictment, Clinton admin had 61. More important, though, many areas of the government were staffed with complete incompetents such as the electrity and corporate regulators. The need to reorganize intel and homeland security, also. It was let the good times roll and roll out of DC with rolls of dough.

I had not payed attention to politics for years, but Clinton admin was shockingly corrupt. Most of the Bush are sqeaky clean. Too bad you can't tell the differance, but since you can't I'll pass on continuing this conversation.

[eraser2005]

The first quote - 3 days BEFORE the 2000 election. I can dig up plenty more, if you'd like.

And describing Bush's cronies as "squeaky clean" is pure BS. Its depressing that Democrats can't acknowledge Clinton's past, and even more so that Republicans (given their "claim" to moral high ground) can't acknowledge problems with the current admin.