House

The vote came after a clear sign that at least half the Republican Caucus supports even tougher spending cuts.

Shouts on the floor of "close it down" as Democrats vote present to try to take down GOP budget.

The protesters targeted members of both parties, with 12 individuals arrested in demonstrations.

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Conservative Republicans on Friday encouraged their colleagues to support the Republican Study Committee (RSC) budget resolution for FY 2012, which would cut spending even more than the mainstream Republican proposal over the next decade and provide a solvency path for Medicare and Medicaid.

"The RSC budget … keeps tax rates low because we believe in economic growth, starts the process of saving Medicare and Social Security, protects national defense, which is after all is that area we are supposed to constitutionally spend taxpayer dollars," RSC Chairman Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) said. "But most importantly, what the Republican Study Committee budget does is it balances."

A House Republican agreed Friday to strike the word "socialist" from the record of the proceedings, a word he used to describe some unnamed members of the House for pursuing expanded government spending in the next decade.

During debate on a FY 2012 budget resolution from the Progressive Caucus, Rep. Mo Brooks (R-Ala.) warned that the United States is "at risk of insolvency and bankruptcy because the socialist members of this body choose to spend money that we do not have." Rep. Keith Ellison (D-Minn.) immediately objected to the use of the word "socialist" and asked for that word to be struck from the record.

Brooks offered to strike the word, but he noted he did not refer to any specific member of the House as a socialist.

The House on Friday rejected the a substitute FY 2012 budget resolution offered by the Congressional Black Caucus (CBC) by a 103-303 vote.

Every Republican voted against it, and even the Democrats were split on the CBC budget — 103 Dems supported it and 75 opposed it.

The CBC budget anticipated more spending in 2012 and the next decade than the budget that is expected to pass the House, which was offered by House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan (R-Wis.). In debate on the CBC resolution Thursday night, Democrats said their budget would restore cuts to education, transportation, food safety, security and veterans programs.

The CBC is the first of four substitute amendments that the House will vote on Friday, but none are expected to pass.

The House meets at 9 a.m. and almost immediately will start considering three remaining substitute amendments to the GOP's fiscal 2012 budget resolution.

The House debated the resolution for four hours on Thursday night, and also debated a substitute amendment from Rep. Emanuel Cleaver (D-Mo.). Another substitute from Rep. Jim Cooper (D-Tenn.) was withdrawn.

On Friday, the House will look at substitutes from Reps. Raul Grijalva (D-Ariz.) and Scott Garrett (R-N.J.) and House Budget Committee ranking member Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.).

Garrett's amendment will be of particular interest, as it has the chance to draw support from several dozen Republicans who want to cut more than the mainstream GOP bill from Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan (R-Wis.). All of the other Democratic amendments anticipate several trillion dollars more in government outlays over the next decade.

The House adjourned at 10:15 Thursday night after concluding four hours of debate on the fiscal 2012 budget resolution, and will return at 9 a.m. to finish work on a handful of substitute amendments.

Before adjourning, the House debated a substitute amendment from Rep. Emanuel Cleaver (D-Mo.) on behalf of the Congressional Black Caucus that Cleaver said would avoid cuts to education, health, technology and other programs that the House GOP budget resolution would make.

Cleaver asked for a recorded vote on his amendment, which will occur on Friday.

The Senate, having passed the 2011 spending bill after the House passed it, adjourned and returns in two weeks.

The first few hours of the House debate on the FY 2012 budget resolution found both parties on familiar grounds, with Republicans arguing that spending cuts will help promote job growth, and Democrats arguing that cuts will only hurt middle class Americans.

Democrats like Rep. Tim Ryan (D-Ohio) had little sympathy for the GOP arguments, and said wealthy Americans need to chip in to help fund federal priorities.

"Cry me a river," Ryan said. "Three wars we're in, and we can't ask the wealthiest to pay a few bucks?"

House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) on Thursday evening took an early shot against President Obama in the opening moments of the FY 2012 budget debate, calling Obama's Wednesday speech just a speech, not a real spending plan.

"We had a speech yesterday from the president, not a plan so to speak, but a speech," Ryan said. "And unfortunately, I think the speech, which was a framework with no details, was really not about solutions but about partisanship.

"I'm concerned ... that leaders here in town are more concerned about the next election than the next generation," Ryan added.