–House Budget Chairman: Obama Avoided All The Tough Choices on Budget
–Rep. Ryan: Obama Ignores ‘Crushing Burden of Debt Coming Our Way’
–Rep. Ryan Declines To Say If GOP Plan Will Attack Entitlements
–Sen. Sessions: Obama Offers ‘No Reform’ Of Entitlements
By John Shaw
WASHINGTON (MNI) – House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan and
Sen. Jeff Sessions, the ranking Republican on the Senate Budget
Committee, Monday intensified their attacks on President Obama’s fiscal
year 2012 budget, arguing that what little savings it claims are
achieved by gimmicks and fiscal sleight of hand.
At a briefing, Ryan and Sessions launched a blistering attack on
the president’s budget. Ryan said it constituted an “abdication of
leadership.”
“This budget does not address the drivers of our debt … . The
trajectory of the budget is in the wrong direction,” Ryan said.
He added: “This is a punt” which ignores the “crushing burden of
debt that is coming our way.”
“This debt crisis is coming,” Ryan warned.
“We definitely are facing a danger,” Sessions said, but added that
fiscal progress is still possible.
“We can get the deficit under control. It’s not impossible,” he
said.
Both Ryan and Sessions blasted the administration for failing to
include meaningful entitlement reforms in this plan.
“There is no reform on the entitlements,” Sessions said.
“Clearly we need to go there,” Ryan added.
But under repeated questions, Ryan refused to say if the budget
plan that he offers in the spring for the House GOP will include
specific entitlement reforms.
He said he has not yet begun to write the FY’12 budget.
** Market News International Washington Bureau: (202) 371-2121 **
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