Obama aims to cut deficit in half by 2013

[Americanhero1]

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – President Barack Obama wants to slash America's ballooning deficit in half by 2013 by cutting spending on the Iraq war, eliminating wasteful public programs and raising taxes on the wealthy, an administration official said on Saturday.

"The deficit this administration inherited was $1.3 trillion or 9.2 percent of GDP. By 2013, the end of the president's first term, the budget cuts the deficit to $533 billion or 3.0 percent of GDP," the official said on condition of anonymity.

"Most of the savings will come from winding down the war in Iraq, increased (tax) revenue from those making more than $250,000 a year, and savings from making government work more efficiently and eliminating programs that do not work," the official said.

Obama's administration is due to deliver the outline of its first budget on Thursday, for the 2010 fiscal year. It will reflect big increases in spending on public works that were part of the $787 billion economic recovery plan that Obama signed this week.

"Over time, the budget deficit will make it harder for our economy to grow and create jobs. That's why the president's budget for FY (fiscal year) 2010 puts us on the path to cut the deficit he inherited on January 20, 2009, in half by the end of his first term," the administration official told Reuters.

Earlier on Saturday, Obama said he had ordered the U.S. Treasury to implement tax cuts for 95 percent of Americans, fulfilling a campaign pledge he hopes will help jolt the economy out of recession.

The tax cuts are part of the economic recovery plan passed by the Democratic-controlled Congress over Republican opposition. The aim is to put more money in the pockets of Americans and stimulate the economy by increasing consumer spending.

"I'm pleased to announce that this morning the Treasury Department began directing employers to reduce the amount of taxes withheld from paychecks, meaning that by April 1st, a typical family will begin taking home at least $65 more every month," Obama said in his weekly radio address.

"Never before in our history has a tax cut taken effect faster or gone to so many hard-working Americans," he said.

With tens of thousands of Americans losing their jobs in the midst of a global economic meltdown, Obama has said fixing the U.S. economy is his top priority. He has acknowledged that his success or failure in that will define his presidency.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20090221/ts_nm/us_obama

[arksis]

At the rate Obamanation is happening, there won't be a 2013! Have you heard the world is ending in 2012? I am almost believing this!

[eb22]

At the rate Obamanation is happening, there won't be a 2013! Have you heard the world is ending in 2012? I am almost believing this!

Dawn,     I'm even concerned that the United States will even GET to 2012 at the rate Barack Hussein Obama and co.  are destroying the country.      Disaster in the U.S. is inevitable.    The only questions are when,   where,   and to what extent.

[Zionist Revolutionary]

Its impossible. How the hell can you cut a deficit at all when you increase spending via Porkulus to Soviet levels, and only cut military spending?

Its a PR game. Business as usual.

[cjd]

It's been a bad month since the shvartza President planted his a-s in the Oval Office. The stock market has been on a death spiral that only gets worse every time the P.M.P opens his mouth. He claims the market doesn't matter anyway. This filthy animal and his administration will say anything that will get the few Americans that still have their marbles off his back. Aiming to close the deficit is just an excuse for him to impose ever increasing taxes on everything under the sun. Before long he will be taking so much of working American's income they will wonder why they even bother going to work. The worse part of the picture is you will be working longer and harder and keeping less and less of your income in the name of deficit reduction. He says he will only tax the higher incomes however when that is not bringing in enough revenue in he will soon be over taxing everyone with an income. This administrations goal is to bring 95% of all Americans down to the same level one where people live a pay check to pay check existence and are dependent on government for everything. They say slavery is dead well guess again!

[Ulli]

Obama promises exactly the same thing, like the German Socialists did in 1998.

But Schröder and Fischer never succeed, so Obama will not too. It lies in the nature of the issue.

Every Socialist is thinking, that he is able to spent the money smarter than the citizens. So he takes one area of responsibility and independency after the other away from the citizen. This makes the spendings higher and higher.

In addition to that the lazy electors of the Socialist demand more and more money, because they become used to it and greedy.

All words of Obama are hot air. 

[SavetheWest]

I heard on Rush Limbaugh that 40,000 New Yorkers pay 50% of the taxes.  All it takes is 10,000 of these people to leave and they are in serious trouble. Smart nations will lower taxes to invite these people in.  When there is lower taxes, people buy more and there is more tax revenue.  I love how this administration think brining troops home will solve all the problems.  Wait until Iraq becomes a civil war when the Kurds and Shiites are no longer kept apart from one another.  You think now we have high oil prices?  When all the contractor and military jobs come back I'm sure they have thought of a contigency plan for all the jobless that will be returning here.  Boeing, Lockhead Martin and McDonnel Douglas will have to cut more jobs too.

If people think the $250,000+ people will cover the taxes, they are wrong.  Obama will ask for the $50,000 - $250,000 income level to "do their part" when his friends suck up all the money and cry for more. 

[HiWarp]

This is what the majority of the American public wanted and voted for.  It takes a population that has a slightly greater attention span than your typical flea to be able to read a bit of history and discover for themselves what socialism has led to in the past.

Wait a minute, did I use the terms "read", "history" and "discover for themselves" in the same sentence?  What a fool I am! 

[cjd]

I don't know if this is the case for most news programs however each night for the past month Fox news has been showing the money printing press rolling along each time they talk about the new administrations policies. I don't know how many Americans know as the money supply increases the dollars Americans have become more and more worthless. We are being taxed in just this respect alone. I am not so sure this Administration will fail in dismantling the American way of life. The demographics of 1998 Germany were very different then what we are dealing with here in America today. The administration is operating in a perfect storm one that has most Americans on the ropes. They will be able to do many things in the name of taking action that administrations in the past would never have dreamed of trying. Most Americans feel that America is indestructible and that this is just a bump in the road. I saw a bit of hope as the week closed that some Americans are starting to see the light. They are starting to see that they are in the stock yards and the slaughter house is not all that far off. Lets hope the eye opening trend continues.

[cjd]

This is what the majority of the American public wanted and voted for.  It takes a population that has a slightly greater attention span than your typical flea to be able to read a bit of history and discover for themselves what socialism has led to in the past.

Wait a minute, did I use the terms "read", "history" and "discover for themselves" in the same sentence?  What a fool I am! 

Even a flea knows what it has to do to survive so you may be giving Americans a bit more credit then they deserve. Next time you see a person pick up a news paper watch and see what section of the paper they turn to first. If they are male 90% of the time they go right to the sports section if its a female they start somewhere in the part 2 section. Most people only give the news section of the paper a passing glance. Tell them to read a history book and they look at you as if you told them to go to h-ll.

[P J C]

All he's doing is trying to cement re-election.

[arksis]

 "Disaster in the U.S. is inevitable."  Such a TRUE sentence!

cjd, I could not agree more. This is what my husband says too, that people will be thankful to get/have a job and work for $1.00 an hour! The stock market has been on a death spiral since May! (When he won the candidacy.) I too, hope this eye opening trend continues!

PJC, if this country continues down this path, I can't see a re-election for Obamanation! But...........one good example, is the Mayor of Detroit, many years ago, Coleman Young, he was such a racist black bass turd. Called white reporters "crackers" on the air and would only speak to black reporters, was a huge crook and took the city into the dumpster. Yet, every election, they voted him back in! Will probably be the same darn way with Obamanation. G-d help us all!

[HiWarp]

This is what the majority of the American public wanted and voted for.  It takes a population that has a slightly greater attention span than your typical flea to be able to read a bit of history and discover for themselves what socialism has led to in the past.

Wait a minute, did I use the terms "read", "history" and "discover for themselves" in the same sentence?  What a fool I am! 

Even a flea knows what it has to do to survive so you may be giving Americans a bit more credit then they deserve. Next time you see a person pick up a news paper watch and see what section of the paper they turn to first. If they are male 90% of the time they go right to the sports section if its a female they start somewhere in the part 2 section. Most people only give the news section of the paper a passing glance. Tell them to read a history book and they look at you as if you told them to go to h-ll.

cjd, you may be right about my giving Americans too much credit.  I picked fleas because of their short life cycle but you are correct in that during that short period the flea will do everything it has to to survive.  As for your newspaper question, I can't accurately answer it.  About 75% of the people on the subway that I ride in the morning are reading Spanish newspapers so I don't know what section they go to.  As for the other 25%, your assessment is about right.