A bipartisan two-year budget deal was recently approved by
the United States Congress, despite some conservative opposition, and was today
signed into law by President Barack Obama.
The budget
deal increases spending, but at a slower rate in order to save $23 billion. In other words, there are no spending cuts in
the deal, but it does reduce spending overall from the level at which it would
have been had the deal not been reached.
It spares the military more of the sequestration cuts that are
threatening its readiness, while keeping the overall sequestration cuts in
place by raising other revenue, such as user fees. There will also be a reduction of cost of
living adjustments for future military retirees, a spending reduction that
there was some bipartisan support in the Congress to restore later. The deal also prevents yet another extension
of unemployment benefits that were sought by liberal Democrats.
The measure
is expected to avoid government shutdowns over the budget. However, there will be another contest over
the raising of the debt limit within months.
Conservative Republicans in Congress are expected to push for real spending
cuts in exchange for an increase in the debt limit. We conservatives must continue to encourage
them to have the political fortitude to follow through on their plan. We also must work to elect more conservative
Republicans to Congress, especially the Senate, in 2014.
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