Posted on 05/06/2015 5:24:40 AM PDT by GIdget2004
Republican presidential hopefuls in the Senate split over their party's budget blueprint Tuesday, staking out different positions as they battle for the party’s nomination.
Sens. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) and Ted Cruz (R-Texas) were the only Republicans to side with Democrats and vote against the joint House-Senate budget, which passed in a 51-48 vote.
Sens. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) and Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), two other White House contenders, voted in favor of the budget, as did all 24 Senate Republicans up for reelection in 2016.
The joint House-Senate budget agreement would balance within 10 years, boost funding for the Pentagon by $38 billion and seek the repeal of ObamaCare.
Rubio, who has positioned himself as defense hawk in the 2016 race, voted for the budget, despite expressing concerns about the level of defense spending within it.
During votes on budget amendments in March, Rubio and Paul both sought to push defense spending over the congressionally mandated spending caps. Members of both parties banded together to reject those amendments.
Cruz, meanwhile, had said didn't support the initial Senate blueprint because it used revenue from President Obama's healthcare law to balance the budget.
"We need meaningful entitlement reforms, without budget gimmicks," he said. "I cannot support a budget that claims to balance in the year 2025 by utilizing revenue increases generated by ObamaCare taxes."
(Excerpt) Read more at thehill.com ...
We've been hearing that for, what?, about 20 years now. Every budget will balance the budget within 10 years. Anyone willing to bet that we have a balanced budget in 10 years?
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Thank you, Ted Cruz. These imbeciles would be abject failures if they worked in the private sector. You don't balance a budget by robbing Peter to pay Paul.
No it won't. This is just a political gimmick lie to calm the masses.
Opinionated Blowhard (love that FR name) in reply #2 above got it right.
Ted Cruz got it right by voting against this POS. It's time for some reality in Washington!
Ted and Rand got it right. No one else did. Wonder if Mike Lee abstained. (99 votes tallied).
Mike Lee voted yes. Vitter was the non-vote.
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