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WASHINGTON (AP) — Republicans are dismissing President Barack Obama's new $3.9 trillion budget as nothing more than a Democratic manifesto for this fall's congressional campaigns.
But the fiscal plan is taking hits from another quarter too — anti-deficit groups.
Obama on Tuesday sent lawmakers a 2015 budget top-heavy with provisions that have little chance of becoming law. They included $1 trillion in tax increases — mostly on the rich and corporations — and a collection of spending boosts for programs like consumer protection and improved technology in schools.
Obama calls it an evenhanded attempt to spur the economy.
Groups that advocate tougher steps to reduce federal deficits are critical. They're unhappy with the plan's $2.2 trillion in 10-year deficit cuts, saying they are not serious attempts to control the budget's long-range problems.
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