The United States Senate rejected President Obama’s 2013 budget yesterday by a unanimous vote of 99-0, bringing the nation one step closer to “Taxmageddon,” a $484 billion tax hike slated to begin on January 1st.
This marks the third year in a row Congress has failed to pass a budget, a feat they have not accomplished since Obamacare became law. During that same time period our national debt has risen $4.5 trillion.
A total of five budgets were rejected yesterday: Obama’s and four Republican alternatives. Sen. Pat Toomey’s, R-Pa., budget came closest to passing, earning 42 votes. House Budget Committee Paul Ryan’s budget got 41 votes, while Sens. Rand Paul’s, R-Ky., and Mike Lee’s, R-Utah, budget got 16 and 17 votes respectively. No Senate Democrat voted for any budget yesterday.
While budget resolutions do not actually create legally binding tax and spending policies, they do set the framework for future agreements. It is not a coincidence that our nation has suffered from recurring debt limit and spending shutdown crises since Democrats in Congress have failed to produce a budget. We’ll see if the economic uncertainty Democrats have created hurts their president this November.
Campaign 2012
Polls: A new Fox News poll shows President Obama pulling ahead of Mitt Romney 46 percent to 39 percent as American voters are feeling more positive about the economy.
Romney: Romney and the Republican National Committee raised $40.1 million in April, just shy of the $43.6 million that Mr. Obama and the Democratic National Committee raised for the month.
Obama: Obama and House Speaker John Boehner fought over the debt limit yesterday during a private White House lunch.
Super PACs: The New York Times reports that TD Ameritrade founder Joe Ricketts is considering spending $10 million on anti-Obama ad campaign, one message of which may highlight Rev. Jeremiah Wright. Crossroads GPS, meanwhile, will spend $25 million on this ad, highlighting Obama’s broken promises, this month alone.
Wisconsin: Gov. Scott Walker released a report yesterday showing that Wisconsin has gained 23,321 jobs since he took office.
Around the Bigs
The Washington Examiner, Obama budget defeated 99-0 in Senate: Obama budget defeated 99-0 in Senate. The House rejected 414-0 back in March.
The Wall Street Journal, Foreclosures Show No Sign of Decline: At the end of March, 11.8% of all loans were at least 30 days past due or in foreclosure, the report from the Mortgage Bankers Association said.
The New York Times, Whites Account for Under Half of Births in U.S.: Non-Hispanic whites accounted for 49.6 percent of all births in the 12-month period that ended last July, according to Census Bureau data made public on Thursday, while minorities — including Hispanics, blacks, Asians and those of mixed race — reached 50.4 percent.
The Washington Post, Md. passes income tax hike on six-figure earners: More than 300,000 Maryland residents will pay higher income taxes under a package given final approval by the legislature Wednesday.
The Wall Street Journal, Greece Sets Showdown Vote Over Euro: Greece will hold parliamentary elections on June 17th. A vote for the Coalition of the Radical Left, known as Syriza, would be considered a vote to stay in the euro.
Righty Playbook
AEI‘s James Pethokoukis posts three economic charts that could crash Obama’s reelection hopes.
Cato‘s Michael Tanner explains that it is the market’s job to punish JP Morgan for making bad trades.
At National Review, John Lott details how Obama has cooked the books on the GM bailout.
RedState‘s Daniel Horowitz links to a Politico story purporting to describe House Republican contingency plans for the Supreme Court’s Obamacare ruling and writes: “I’ve long struggled with the question of whether Republicans lack a full understanding of the free market or whether they simply lack the communication skills and fortitude to articulate free market positions to the public. I suspect that with most members there are elements of both.”
Lefty Playbook
Credo Action is mobilizing Democrats to oppose Republican efforts to save the defense budget from the debt limit sequestration.
Digby worries that Democrats are about to except “tax reform (another word for tax cuts for the wealthy and corporations) in exchange for tax hikes on the middle class and benefits cuts to social security and medicare.”
Talking Points Memo‘s Josh Marshall bids “buh-bye” to Facebook co-founder Eduardo Saverin, noting “US immigration law does not look kindly on former citizens who renounce their citizenship to avoid US taxes. Specifically, it doesn’t look like Saverin should ever be able again to get a Visa to enter the United States.”
