“You have to have compassion for folks receiving federal funds, but you also need compassion for folks paying it,” said White House Budget Director Mick Mulvaney while briefing reporters. Mulvaney stressed that Trump’s budget request reflected an effort to “bring some fiscal discipline” to federal spending. Trump’s budget relies on an optimistic projection of 3.0 percent economic growth in coming years, and assumes that the Trump tax overhaul, still in its infancy, will be deficit-neutral, Mulvaney said. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer called it “fantasy math.”The budget leaves Social Security retirement benefits and Medicare untouched, fulfilling a long-held campaign pledge. But it appears to break Trump’s promise not to cut Medicaid.

Source: Manila Times May 23, 2017 21:45 UTC