Budget

The former OMB director said that he believes the administration feels unappreciated by the business world for its "sensible path."

House Republican Whip Eric Cantor (Va.) slammed President Obama on Wednesday for what he said was a mischaracterization of congressional Republicans in the president's economic speech.

Cantor accused Obama of saying Republicans had not proposed specific cuts to federal spending, and asked the president to "clarify or withdraw" the remark.

"President Obama must have misspoken today, because I have personally sat across the table from him and suggested specific ways to cut spending," Cantor said. "Furthermore, House Republican Leader John Boehner and I urged President Obama to work with Republicans to cut spending by using his authority to send Congress a 'rescissions' package. In fact, we sent President Obama a letter twice pledging to work together with him on that effort. We still have not heard back — seven months later.

"It doesn’t end there," he added. "Through the YouCut program House Republicans have offered over $120 billion in spending cuts, only to be voted down by Democrats in the House. Finally, House Republicans Jeb Hensarling and Paul Ryan have introduced a 'Cut Spending Now' package of specific cuts that would save taxpayers more than $1.3 trillion.

The Hensarling/Ryan package included a $925 billion savings over 10 years if spending is held at 2008 levels. The plan also includes returning unused economic stimulus, saving $266 billion, saving $16 billion from the Troubled Asset Relief Program, reduce federal government employment and freeze salaries to save a combined $65 billion, adopt the line-item veto to save up to $23 billion and reform Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac for an estimated savings of $30 billion, according to estimates by the Congressional Budget Office. 

"President Obama is entitled to his opinion, but he’s not entitled to his own facts," Cantor went on, "and with that in mind I am asking him to either clarify or withdraw the accusation that he made earlier today.”

The president gave the speech in Cleveland.

--Vicki Needham contributed to this story. 

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton called the expected $1.3 trillion U.S. deficit a "message of weakness internationally."

The Senate Budget Committee will hold a hearing on Jacob Lew's nomination to be the next White House budget director on Thursday, Sept. 16.

Critics of the panel are using the former senator's controversial remarks to try to torpedo the commission itself.

The Wisconsin Republican said he could draft a budget that would offset the cost of tax cuts for the wealthy.

Rep. Ann Kirkpatrick (D-Ariz.) is renewing her push for passage of a bill that calls for lawmakers to take a pay cut, following the release of a poll that shows a majority of Americans support the move.     

Kirkpatrick's bill calls for lawmakers to take a 5 percent pay cut from their $174,000 annual salaries, saving about $4.7 million a year. 

A Rasmussen poll released this week shows 75 percent of likely voters want Congress to take a pay cut until the federal budget is balanced.

"This poll is a clear sign that folks want Congress to take action now," Kirkpatrick said in a statement. "That starts with having every member vote on this issue on the House floor as soon as possible."

The 5 percent cut would amount to about $8,700 a year for each lawmaker. 

An overwhelming majority of likely voters (75 percent) say Congress should cut its own pay until the federal budget is balanced, according to a new Rasmussen Reports survey. 

Rep. Paul Ryan said the U.S. could suffer the same lost decade the Japanese lived through in the 1990s.

Boehner's spending reductions would total more than $700 billion in savings beyond cuts that Democrats have proposed.