Obama plans to slash deficit in half by 2013

Cutting our deficit isn’t a sexy thing, but an aggressive plan is what we want to see. Let’s just not wuss out on it.

After a string of costly bailout and stimulus measures, President Barack Obama will set a goal this week to cut the annual deficit at least in half by the end of his term, administration officials said. The reduction would come in large part through Iraq troop withdrawals and higher taxes on the wealthy. Obama’s budget outline, which he will release on Thursday, will also confirm his intention to deliver this year on ambitious campaign promises on health care and energy policy. The president inherited a deficit for 2009 of about $1.2 trillion, which will rise to more than $1.5 trillion, given initial spending from his recently enacted stimulus package. His budget blueprint for the 2010 fiscal year, which begins Oct. 1, will include a 10-year projection showing the annual deficit declining to $533 billion in the 2013 fiscal year, the last year of his term, officials said. – From International Herald Tribune

While President Barack Obama has campaigned for and won hundreds of billions of dollars in stimulus to help revive the economy he is also working on a plan to cut the federal deficit in half by the end of his first term. Obama inherited a deficit of about $1.3 trillion from former President George W. Bush. An administration official Saturday, Obama’s budget blueprint for the 2010 fiscal year, which begins Oct. 1, will include a 10-year projection showing the annual deficit declining to $533 billion in the 2013 fiscal year, the last year of his term. While that suggests a two-thirds reduction, exceeding Obama’s goal of at least half, advisers note that the current deficit as a starting point is inflated by one-time expenses to stimulate the economy. After a White House fiscal policy summit on Monday Obama will address his efforts to restore fiscal discipline to Congress on Tuesday. On Thursday he plans to send at least a summary of his first budget request to Capitol Hill. – From ChattahBox.com

President Barack Obama plans to increase taxes on the wealthy and cut spending for the war in Iraq as part of a plan to slash the U.S. budget deficit to $533 billion by the end of his first term, according to an administration official. Obama wants to reduce the deficit because he’s concerned that over time, federal borrowing will make it harder for the economy to grow and create jobs, said the official, speaking on the condition of anonymity. – From Bloomberg