(Newser)
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House Republicans rolled out a new Paul Ryan-penned budget proposal today that calls for a drastic tax-code overhaul, major changes to Medicare and Medicaid, and deep cuts in domestic spending, all while softening a set of automatic defense spending cuts set to hit in January. The budget would scrap our current six-bracket tax system for a two-tiered one: one at 10% and one at 25%, the Washington Post reports. Half of the spending cuts would come from health care moves, including completely eliminating "Obamacare," turning Medicaid into a block grant, and implementing the Medicare overhaul Ryan devised with Ron Wyden.
The budget has no chance of passing the Democrat-controlled Senate; indeed, it starts the budget wars anew, Politico reports, because it scraps the spending targets agreed on in last summer's debt ceiling debate. "This is outrageous and deeply disappointing," said Sen. Patty Murray, chair of the failed super committee. "They have shown that a deal with them isn't worth the paper it's printed on." If Ryan's assumptions are correct, his budget would shrink the deficit to just under $800 billion next year, and $166 billion by 2018, according to CNN.
