Portman: Obama budget dodged ‘tough choices’

Sen. Rob Portman (R-Ohio) in the GOP weekly address is blasting President Obama’s fiscal 2016 budget proposal, saying its spending levels will leave a legacy of massive debt.

Portman said Obama avoided making any “tough choices” to reduce spending in his budget, while families across the U.S. struggle to balance their checkbooks.

{mosads}”Boy, the numbers are now simply staggering. Every year of the Obama presidency, the federal government has spent hundreds of billions of dollars more than it takes in, and those massive yearly deficits – they add up,” Portman said.

“In the first six years of his administration, President Obama has added a record $7.5 trillion to the national debt. To put that in perspective, that’s about $60,000 in new debt for every American household,” he continued. 

“By the end of his presidency, President Obama will have added nearly as much debt as every previous president in history combined.” 

Obama this week released his $4 trillion, 2,000-page budget proposal that shatters budget caps under sequestration and raises taxes on the rich.

The budget is dead on arrival in the Republican-controlled Congress, where conservative lawmakers are intent on reining in spending after their midterm victory.

“Instead of bringing us closer to living within our means, President Obama’s plan includes $1 trillion in new government spending, adding $8.5 trillion to our national debt over the next decade,” said Portman, who sits on the Senate Budget and Finance committees. 

Obama, though, argues that the country can afford to spend more given the improved economy and ensure the recovery reaches the middle class.

On Friday, the Labor Department reported the economy beat expectations and added 257,000 jobs last month. November and December figures were also revised upward. The unemployment rate ticked up slightly to 5.7 percent. 

Still, Portman argued that 2.6 percent GDP growth in the last three months of 2014 was “disappointing.”

“The economy has only grown half as fast as previous economic recoveries. If it had been as strong as the historical average, our economy would have created 10 million more jobs since the recession ended,” he said.

Portman argued $2.1 trillion in increased taxes from Obama’s plan would hit the middle class, whose decreased average wages have left many underwater. 

“It’s not just we’re treading water. We’re actually sinking,” Portman said. “Something has to change.”

The lawmaker promised a “very different budget” from Republicans in the coming weeks, saying it will “cut waste.”

“It will spend smarter, putting efficiency and effectiveness of government at the top of the agenda.”