On Friday, President Joe Biden is set to reveal the budget for the coming fiscal year. The New York Times has reported that it would increase spending to $6 trillion and the annual deficits will cross $1.3 trillion over the next decade. The budget will be comprehensive in outlining all the plans that have already been released. It aims to boost the middle and lower class. It provides huge spending proposals for infrastructure, health, education, transportation, climate change and more. It also said that this would be the highest federal spending since World War II.
The Republicans have already started commenting and objecting to the budget even before it has been released.
Almost all presidential budgets have been aspirational. Currently the Democrats hold narrow margins in the House and the Senate. The budget might currently be a proposal that would have to be trimmed down to get bipartisan support though it could perhaps be passed through a filibuster.
The administration says that there would be no rapid inflation unlike the predictions of some Wall Street pundits and says that it would not rise above 2.3 percent per year. It also predicts that the labor market, which was down mainly due to the economic impact of the pandemic, will rebound and will stay at about 4.1 percent by the following year and remain below 4 percent in the coming decade.
When asked for comments on the report by the Times, there was no response from a spokesman for the Office of Management and Budget. However, White House press secretary Jen Psaki defended the size of the budget but did not confirm the $6 trillion figure.
After the budget is delivered there will be a lot of activity in Congress as it begins voting on the 12 annual spending bills that are required to keep the government open after October 1, which is when the new fiscal year will begin. None of these bills have received bipartisan support, as yet.
The government plans to release the green book. It will detail all the spending, proposals and other related matters. However, it could create more conflict between the Democrats and Republicans. This was not released when Trump was the president.
Although President Biden has always looked for bipartisan support, the Democrats could use the budget reconciliation process to pass the budget. The 2022 midterms are drawing close, and the Democrats are looking to keep their lead and the Republicans are looking to get back control of Congress. Bipartisanship to pass the budget is a lofty goal. Whether it will be reachable after the hundreds of pages of the budget proposal will be unveiled by President Joe Biden, on Friday, remains to be seen.
Photo-Gage Skidmore
