The proposal includes an additional $1.8 trillion in deficit reduction over the next decades, bringing total deficit savings to $4.3 trillion based on the administration’s calculations. The main element of the budget proposal is a new cost-of-living formula that would help reduce future Social Security benefits. The current method of measuring increases in the consumer prices index (CPI) would be modified to follow a process known as ‘chained CPI.’ The new method would take into account changes that occur when consumers substitute goods that have risen in price with less expensive products, resulting in a slightly lower annual reading for inflation rates. Social Security will not be the only program affected if the budget plan is passed: According to the Obama administration, the switch in the inflation formula would cut spending on government benefit programs by $130 billion over 10 years. The plan also proposes cutting $400 billion from Medicare and other healthcare programs over the next decade. The cuts would come in a variety of ways, including negotiating better prescription drug prices and asking wealthy seniors to pay more.Boosts to education and infrastructure spendingObama’s plan is not all about budget cuts. It also proposes an additional $50 billion in infrastructure investments, including a $40 billion ‘Fix it First’ program to provide immediate funding to repair highways, bridges, transit systems and airports. An additional $1 billion would be provided to launch a network of 15 manufacturing innovation institutes across the country. President Obama is also proposing the establishment of a program designed to offer preschool to all 4-year-olds from low- and moderate-income families. The money would come from increased taxes on tobacco products.Taxing the wealthyWhile Obama’s proposal includes cuts in government spending, it also involves increasing taxes for the country’s wealthiest 2 percent. The plan ensures that Obama would raise an additional $580 billion by restricting tax deductions for America’s richest. The budget would implement the ‘Buffett Rule,’ requiring that households with incomes of more than $1 million pay at least 30 percent of their income in taxes. Charitable giving would be excluded from the calculations.Republican rejectionObama has prepared himself for what will most certainly be an uphill battle with Republicans, who have been adamant in their rejection of higher taxes.”When the president visited the Capitol last month, House Republicans stated a desire to find common ground and urged him not to make savings we agree upon conditional on another round of tax increases. If reports are accurate, the president has not heeded that call,” Republican House Speaker John Boehner said in a statement last week. As part of the administration’s effort to win over the most conservative members of Congress, Obama is holding a private White House dinner with about a dozen GOP senators Wednesday night. The budget is expected to be the primary topic, along with proposed legislation dealing with gun control and immigration.Dubious DemocratsObama will likewise need to win over Democrats to his plan. While most Democrats in Congress agree on higher taxes for the wealthy, they strongly oppose cuts to Social Security benefits. “You can’t call yourself a Democrat and support Social Security benefit cuts,” Stephanie Taylor, co-founder of the Progressive Change Campaign Committee said in a statement last week.“The President is proposing to steal thousands of dollars from grandparents and veterans by cutting cost of living adjustments…Social Security is the core of the progressive and Democratic legacy. The President has no mandate to cut these benefits, and progressives will do everything possible to stop him,” she added. Democrats are also unhappy with Obama’s proposed cuts to Medicare and other health programs over the next decade.Turning up late Obama’s spending and tax plan is arriving at Congress two months late. The administration blames the delay on December’s ‘fiscal cliff’ negotiation and fights over the March 1 automatic spending cuts. It is unlikely that Congress will get down to serious budget negotiations until this summer, when the government will once again be confronted with the need to raise the government’s borrowing limit or face the prospect of defaulting on US debt for the very first time. … Read More
Former Republican Sen. Olympia Snowe voted ‘yes’ for marriage equality in Maine
Former U.S. Senator Olympia Snowe (R-ME) said on Friday that her views of same sex marriage have changed along with the majority of the U.S. public’s. In an interview with CNN, the moderate Republican said that she no longer supports the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) — the 1996 law…
Market Buzz: All quiet as US and Europe on Easter holiday
Despite pessimistic data released Thursday in the US, Russian stocks managed to end the March 28 session in the black. The MICEX rose 0.64% to 1434.18 and RTS grew 0.6% to 1454.7. On Friday, March 29, oil prices are displaying moderate growth, which may boost markets. Some Asian floors are closed Friday for Easter holidays. Mixed dynamics on Asian floors on March 29 could also influence Russian floors, and prompt a slight market correction.European stocks are on holiday for Good Friday celebrations, as is the US. However, new data will still be released on March 29 – France will release its PPI (producer price index) update for February, which is expected to add 0.3%. France will also publish its consumer spending indicator, which has been forecasted to rise by 0.4%. The EU will also see a GDP update from the Netherlands for Q4 on Friday. The US will release data that could influence trading on Monday. A February update on private spending and earning will be released on March 29, and is expected to add 0.8% and 0.6% respectively. March’s Michigan Consumer Sentiment Index will also be published on Friday.Asian floors have demonstrated mixed dynamics for Friday. US macroeconomic data released Thursday pushed Asian indicators into the red, as the US is a key market for many Asian companies. Japan has released a number of important updates on Friday. The Japanese unemployment rate rose to 4.3% in February from 4.2% the previous month, despite expectations that it would remain unchanged. The country’s Manufacturing PMI proved better than expected, reaching 50.4. Industrial production shrank by 0.1% in February, while investors expected 2.6% growth. Japanese consumer prices were down 0.3% in February. Markets in Australia, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, New Zealand, the Philippines and Singapore are closed for Easter holidays. The Nikkei has gained 0.5%, the Kopsi has added 0.8%, the Taiex has risen 0.6% and the Shanghai Composite has fallen by 0.2%. … Read More
Rand Paul to filibuster gun control vote
Less than a month after the junior US senator spent 13 hours lecturing about the Obama administration’s use of deadly drones, Sen. Paul says he’s willing to once again try to stop his fellow lawmakers from letting legislation slip by.Paul’s last marathon filibuster occurred during the confirmation hearing for incoming CIA Director John Brennan, a maneuver that the senator said was more about kick-starting discussion than actually halting US President Barack Obama’s nomination. This time, however, he wants to stop the Senate dead in its tracks before American lawmakers are left to shape legislation that will limit access to firearms and ammunition.Joined by Sens. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) and Mike Lee (R-Utah), Sen. Paul sent a letter to Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nevada) on Tuesday letting him know that the three leading conservative lawmakers are looking to curb an upcoming discussion on gun control. And while neither politician is asking for it to be easier to obtain high-powered weaponry in the US, it’s likely that even letting a scheduled debate get off the ground in the coming weeks will lead to more liberal lawmakers attempting to tag on restrictive regulations.“Conservatives are concerned that once that bill reaches the floor, amendments could stiffen restrictions on gun control,” Politico’s Jonathan Allen reports. “Moreover, they understand that Reid intends to allow liberal amendments that would limit clip [sic] capacity and ban certain assault weapons to be offered — even though they would be defeated — to give Democrats a chance to vote on them. For moderate Democrats in competitive states, that amounts to an opportunity to vote no and show allegiance to gun rights.”The GOP lawmakers don’t exactly say that in as many words, but it’s evident from the brief letter sent to Sen. Reid this week that neither Paul nor his conservative counterparts want any gun limits to come up for vote. Speaking on behalf of her boss, Cruz spokesperson Catherine Frazier tells the Washington Post that the senator from Texas “is prepared to use any procedural means necessary to prevent stricter gun control laws.”“We, the undersigned, intend to oppose any legislation that would infringe on the American people’s constitutional right to bear arms, or on their ability to exercise this right without being subjected to government surveillance,” the trio writes in the letter sent to Sen. Reid on this week. “The Second Amendment to the Constitution protects citizens’ rights to self-defense. It speaks to history’s lesson that government cannot be in all places at all times, and history’s warning about the oppression of a government that tries.”“We will oppose the motion to proceed to any legislation that will serve as a vehicle for any additional gun restrictions,” conclude the senators.Although the GOP lawmakers don’t say they want it to be easier to get a gun, some of their opponents are already suggesting that the letter to Sen. Reid comes at a time when Americans should be looking to find a solution that will stop another bloody massacre like the ones caused by high-powered assault weapons last year in Newtown, Connecticut and Aurora, Colorado.”While this threat is entirely unsurprising, it’s outrageous that these senators are unwilling to even engage in a debate over gun violence in America. No matter your opinion on this issue, we should all be able to agree with President [Barack] Obama when he said that the children and teachers of Newtown, along with all other Americans who have been victims of gun violence, at least deserve a vote,” Adam Jentleson, a spokesman for Reid, tells Huffington Post. … Read More
South Dakota senator expected to step down
SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (AP) — The anticipated retirement announcement from South Dakota Sen. Tim Johnson gives Republicans one of their best chances of picking up a seat in their quest to regain control, as the veteran moderate Democrat steps aside.Johnson, the chairman of the Senate Banking Committee, is expected to say Tuesday afternoon that he will not seek a fourth term in the Senate next year.The fifth Senate Democrat to call it quits, Johnson was facing a potentially difficult challenge from popular Republican Gov. Mike Rounds and still coping with the constraints of a 2006 brain hemorrhage that left his speech impaired and limited his mobility. The absence of the well-funded former congressman who has never lost an election in this GOP-trending state pushed the race to the top of the priority list, Republican strategists said.”I believe South Dakota moves into the top slot as the most likely Republican pickup,” said Greg Strimple, a Republican pollster and past consultant to the National Republican Senatorial Committee.Johnson was scheduled to speak Tuesday at the University of South Dakota in Vermillion.Continue Reading… … Read More
‘Give Afghan staff jobs to skip asylum process’
A Moderate Party MP has suggested the Swedish armed forces solve the dilemma of interpreters in Afghanistan fearing retaliation after the troop pull-out by employing them in Sweden. … Read More
Moderate support drops to three-year low
Support for the Moderate Party is at its lowest for three years, according to a new collated survey published on Sunday. … Read More
