• If you want to cut the budget, you have to cut useful and necessary things…[Obama is] explaining to the public that the free-ride view of budget cutting — we can cut our way out of the deficit by eliminating waste and spending that only benefits foreigners — is wrong.
• Jon Chait • Interpreting the message behind Obama’s budget. There’s a widespread perception, often repeated by politicians, that if we’d just cut earmarks, foreign aid, and general wasteful spending, we’d eliminate the deficit. But that just ain’t the case. The real culprits are Social Security, defense, and Medicare — programs we actually like. So if we’re serious about taking a bite out of the deficit, we’re gonna have to make some tough decisions. That, Chait says, is the point behind Obama’s proposal. source

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