Senate GOP takes aim at White House budget

Senate Republicans laid into President Obama's fiscal 2013 budget proposal Monday, calling it unserious, disturbing and an insult to the American people.

GOP lawmakers said the White House's $3.8 trillion proposal was proof that the president was failing to take the nation's debt burden seriously, and was actually hindering the economic recovery.

"This budget makes a mockery of the American people," said Sen. Bob Corker (R-Tenn.) of the $3.8 trillion package unveiled by the White House. "If a governor of our state presented a budget like this, they would literally be run out of our state."

The president sought to push short-term stimulus like infrastructure spending while touting that it would cut the deficit by $3 trillion over 10 years. But Republicans maintained any perceived savings are reliant on budgeting gimmicks, and the document does nothing to alter the growing levels of government debt.

Several lawmakers pointed to ongoing strife in Greece as proof of what awaits America without substantial change.

"Basically, there's no change on our debt course, and it's a deeply troubling thing for me," said Sen. Jeff Sessions (R-Ala.), the ranking member of the Senate Budget Committee.

"I believe the president has abandoned his role as leader of this nation by not being honest with the American people about the significance of the debt problems we're facing," added Sen. John Barrasso (R-Wyo.). "This is an ambush budget. The president is ambushing the American people."

Sen. Rob Portman (R-Ohio), who served as director of the Office of Management and Budget under former President George W. Bush, sought to paint the newest proposal as truly egregious, even in a politically charged election year.

"To me, this budget goes beyond the line. It goes beyond being just a political document, it goes to being an irresponsible document," he said.

Senate Republicans also used the latest proposal to ding their Democratic counterparts for failing to pass a budget of their own, while vowing to do things differently if they take charge of the upper chamber after the elections.

"We will pass a budget. We will have a bicameral budget," said Sessions. "It will alter the debt course of America and put us on a path to growth and prosperity, and not the path of debt and decline."

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