President Obama on Monday pledged to cut the
federal deficit in half during his first term even though the first 30 days of
his administration have been dominated by the passage of unprecedented spending
programs.
Speaking to a bipartisan group of lawmakers in the East Room of the White
House, Obama said in the opening remarks of the fiscal responsibility summit
that the U.S. “cannot and will not sustain deficits like these without
end.”
{mosads}”This will not be easy. It will require us to make difficult
decisions and face challenges we’ve long neglected,” Obama said.
Lawmakers present said after the president’s remarks that it appeared to be a
preview of what they will hear when Obama makes his first address to a joint
session of Congress. What’s more, the president’s pledges and warnings Monday
were no doubt the opening salvo in the fight over his budget, which he will
unveil Thursday.
The White House acknowledged that Obama sees the situation — spending to
create jobs while at the same time promising to cut the deficit — as
“push-pull,” and Republicans continued to be highly critical of the
president’s economic policies.
Shortly before Obama convened the summit, the Republican National Committee blasted the event as a “fiscal farce.”
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