Biden’s Out-of-Touch Budget
President Biden submitted his budget proposal for the Fiscal Year 2023 to Congress last week, which serves as a wish list of his funding priorities. Although presidential budgets are only requests, his legislative ideas, with a price tag of $5.8 trillion, are simply out-of-touch with the real needs of the American people. His far-left agenda attacks American energy, inadequately funds our military, fails to keep up with China, removes the critical Hyde Amendment that protects taxpayers from funding abortions, and would further out-of-control inflation.
The Fiscal Year 2023 budget would be the highest sustained level of government spending in American history and would lead to record-high deficits. There’s no doubt additional reckless government spending would increase the skyrocketing inflation – which has been a tax on all Americans. Considering that the average U.S. household will spend an extra $5,200 this year due to the stark increase in prices of daily goods, it is unthinkable that the President’s budget would increase taxes on American families and our small businesses. Additionally, the Tax Foundation estimates that his plan would kill 159,000 jobs and shrink the economy by $720 billion. Hardworking Americans simply can’t afford to keep paying the price of President Biden’s devastating policy decisions.
America is also experiencing an unprecedented energy crisis. Despite record-breaking gas and heating prices, his proposal would add $45 billion in new taxes on domestic oil and gas production. One would think he would learn from his failed energy policies, yet he continues to double down on his anti-domestic energy agenda which has resulted in a severe financial burden on Americans.
Additionally, the lack of military funding in President Biden’s budget is unacceptable. For the second year in a row, President Biden proposed a defense budget that fails to keep pace with inflation, which is currently at 8%. I joined my House Armed Services Committee colleagues in urging the administration to boost our defense budget by 5% above inflation. As proposed, nearly every dollar increase in this budget will be eaten by inflation, which will leave inadequate amounts to modernize and expand our capabilities. It’s imperative that we maintain our strategic advantage as a reliable deterrent against China, Russia, and other foreign adversaries.
Currently, China is working to leapfrog the United States in the development of cutting-edge technologies. China is in the middle of an unprecedented military expansion and modernization, growing their defense budget by more than 7% this year alone. While China builds up their Navy and Army, Biden wants to cut our armed services to the lowest level since 1940. Due to growing tensions and international disasters across the world, it is unimaginable that this administration has placed our national security on the backburner. Maintaining a strong military and national security presence should be an utmost priority.
Overall, it’s evident that Biden and the Democrat party are painfully out-of-touch with the dire needs of the American people. This bloated budget not only ignores the multitude of pressing issues facing our nation but would actively make them worse.