President Obama and a divided Congress kick off a week of jockeying over the federal budget as House Republicans and Senate Democrats unveil competing fiscal blueprints and the president heads to Capitol Hill to continue his personal campaign for compromise.
The president spent part of Monday prepping for three trips to Capitol Hill over
the next three days for closed-door meetings with House and Senate lawmakers in
both parties. Obama is seeking an alternative to sequestration, the $1.2
trillion, across-the-board, 10-year spending cut that kicked in March 1.
White House spokesman Jay Carney said the president will also urge Congress to
use the budget process to reduce the deficit. "Our focus now ... is on working
with Congress in regular order on the budget process, and through that process,
hopefully produce a bipartisan agreement on deficit reduction," Carney said.
The challenge of finding compromise between the two parties will be underscored
as House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan, R-Wis., and Senate Budget
Committee Chairwoman Patty Murray, D-Wash., unveil their party's budgets today
and Wednesday, respectively.
Ryan, a potential 2016 presidential contender, has said the GOP budget will
achieve balance in 10 years without raising taxes. It is also expected to
include his proposal to change Medicare from a guaranteed benefit to a system in
which seniors receive federal subsidies to buy health care on the private
market.
Democrats are again maneuvering to use the GOP Medicare overhaul as a political
cudgel in 2014. The Senate Democratic campaign operation said Monday that
Democrats would use the Ryan budget to target Senate candidates, highlighting 14
House Republicans who are either declared Senate candidates or mulling a run.
Republicans are likewise plotting to use the Senate Democrats' budget as
political fodder in 2014. Their blueprint is expected to outline proposals to
raise more revenue by closing tax loopholes.
"Democrats up for election in 2014 will be forced to defend a budget that
features massive tax hikes, reckless spending and more debt," said Brad
Dayspring, a spokesman for the Senate GOP's campaign outfit.
Sen. Tammy Baldwin, D-Wis., who sits on the budget panel, said she is still
confident that a long-term bipartisan agreement can be reached.
"It's going to take a little while but there are a lot of pressures that could
lead us in that direction," Baldwin said in an interview Monday with USA TODAY's
Capital Download.
"As this plays out in the months ahead, we have a real opportunity to at least
stop living from fiscal crisis to fiscal crisis, which is something that has
been very frustrating to the American people," she said.
Contributing: Susan Page
