GOP Budget Cuts Plan: President Obama Criticizes House GOP Budget Plan, Cuts $5.5 Trillion in Spending, Repeals Obamacare
President Barack Obama criticized House Republicans' latest budget plan, stating it lacks investment in key national priorities for job growth.
Following a bilateral meeting with Ireland Prime Minister Enda Kenny, Obama said he had hope to receive the "luck of the Irish" when it comes with the Republicans' budget plans on Tuesday.
"Unfortunately, what we're seeing right now is a failure to invest in education and infrastructure and research and national defense -- all the things that we need to grow to create jobs, to stay at the forefront of innovation, and to keep our country safe," said Obama. "It's not a budget that reflects the future. It's not a budget that reflects growth. It's not a budget that is going to help ensure that middle-class families are able to maintain security and stability and that people who are trying to get into the middle class will have the rungs on the ladder to get into the middle class."
The budget proposal, titled "A Balanced Budget for a Stronger America," would reportedly balance the federal budget in less than 10 years by $5.5 trillion cuts. With the GOP budget plan, the Affordable Care Act (ACA), also referred to as Obamacare, would be repealed and save an estimated $2 trillion, in addition to eliminating Medicare and Medicaid provisions and easing tax increases on "job creators and health care innovation."
"Obamacare is not working for America's families, doctors or employers. It is imperative that the President's health care law be repealed so that we can start over and make targeted, common sense reforms that will improve access to affordable health care choices," the budget plan noted.
Adjustments and financial freezes would also be in effect for educational grants, namely the Pell Grants. Funding for U.S. defense programs would increase at a higher level than Obama proposed.
"The proposal that the House Budget Committee has introduced...is a plan to force Washington to start tackling these challenges with positive solutions," said Rep. Tom Price, R-Md. "It is a plan that balances the budget in less than ten years, secures and strengthens vital programs - like Medicare - provides our military men and women with the resources they need to protect American families, and would make Washington more efficient, effective and accountable to hard-working taxpayers."
"This plan would get spending under control, bolster our national security, and balance the budget within ten years-all while promoting a simpler, flatter, fairer tax code. Our nation would be stronger and our economy would thrive," said Rep. Paul Ryan, R-Wisc., adding that the proposal is a "serious, substantive document, and it has my full support."
Obama disagreed.
"We're going to have a robust debate," said the president. "And my hope is, is that ultimately we can find some compromises where together we are financing the education, the research, the training, the building of roads and bridges and ports and railways and all the things that we need to grow and put people back to work and make sure that the incredible momentum that our economy has built over the last several years continues well into the future and future generations."
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