US Democrats to unveil first budget in four years
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WASHINGTON (AFP) - President Barack Obama's Democrats will unveil their first budget in four years this week in the United States Senate, while House Republicans will put forward their own blueprint. But the two are unlikely to be reconciled.
Congress, aiming to ultimately craft a broad plan that can help reduce the swollen national debt, appears to be embracing its traditional role of setting forth federal spending requirements.
But when the budget chiefs in the House and Senate roll out their plans for fiscal year 2014, the documents will serve to highlight political differences between the two parties over tax and spending policy.
House Budget Committee chairman Paul Ryan on Tuesday will unveil a blueprint that contains no new tax revenue and demands massive spending cuts, as well as major changes to cherished entitlements like Medicare and Medicaid, in a bid to balance the budget within a decade.
