Claims by President Barack Obama that he has met Republicans halfway on budget cutting contain “significant factual error.” The president made the claim in his weekly radio address March 5, an address that included other “questionable comments,”
The Washington Post said.
In his radio address, Obama said, “My administration has already put forward specific cuts that meet congressional Republicans halfway. And I’m prepared to do more.”
Despite the fact that most measure any cuts from the last budget signed into law in 2010, Democrats and the White House have been pushing for a baseline of the president’s 2011 proposal and now the 2010 budget adjusted for inflation, the Post said in fact checking the president’s claims.
“However, we are not convinced by the White House presentation. The inflated baseline helps demonstrate that even a "freeze" would mean a cut in some spending, but it still makes more sense to compare the 2011 proposals to the 2010 numbers,” the Post said.
Other questionable comments made during the address include that the 2012 budget "will reduce our deficits by $1 trillion over the next decade."
The proposal would actually increase the deficit in 2012, the Post said.
In concluding the president’s claim includes “significant factual error and/or obvious contradictions", the Post said the “Democrats' posturing that they have met Republicans ‘halfway’ on budget cuts does them no credit. Either they should take a stand and say they won't accept any further cuts, or they should begin a real negotiation that leads to a higher number.”
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