President says plan would keep economy growing

WHITE HOUSE (AP) — President Bush’s record $3.1 trillion budget is getting a frosty reception from both Democrats and Republicans on Capitol Hill.

The president says the plan is balanced and saves taxpayers money. It supports a surge in military spending while trying to save nearly 200 billion dollars from health care programs.

The top Republican on the Senate Budget Committee, New Hampshire’s Judd Gregg, says Bush’s 2009 budget has been “done with the understanding that nobody’s going to be taking a long,
hard look at it.” He says the White House has played games to make the $3 trillion budget look better.

House Budget Committee Chairman John Spratt says Bush’s budget leads to more deficits, more debt, more tax cuts and more cutbacks in critical services.

But the president says the budget would eliminate or reduce 151 “wasteful or bloated” programs, saving taxpayers $18 billion.