Budget Includes Fishing Lessons, Moon Shot

First look at proposed 2011 budget shows sharp break between haves and have-nots

(NEWSER) - President Obama delivered his proposed 2011 budget to Congress today, and the Washington Post drills down to find the winners and losers. Winners first:

• K-12 education: The Department of Education's budget will increase by 6%, or $3 billion.
• Research: The proposal pumps up the Energy Department's budget 7%, or $2 billion, and the National Science Foundation's budget climbs 8%.
• The military: The Defense Department's budget rises 3.4%, and that's not counting spending on the Afghanistan and Iraq wars.

Record shortfall in current fiscal year would shrink to $1.3T in 2011

(AP) - President Obama's proposed budget predicts the national deficit will crest at a record-breaking $1.6 trillion in the current fiscal year, then start to recede in 2011 to $1.3 trillion, a congressional official said today. The new budget, out tomorrow, says deficits over the next decade will average 4.5% of the size of the economy, a level economists say is dangerously high if not addressed, said the official, who was not authorized to discuss the budget before its public release. More»

(NEWSER) - The federal budget deficit will surpass $1.8 trillion during the current fiscal year, the Congressional Budget Office said today. The figure far outstrips the previous estimate of $1.2 trillion and spells trouble for President Obama's proposed budget, the Wall Street Journal reports, but the White House budget director said the projection won't derail the administration's plans. More»

Budget would institute 'Buffett Rule,' boost infrastructure

(NEWSER) - President Obama officially unveiled his $3.8 trillion budget today, and as expected it draws a 2012 battle line, calling for higher taxes on the wealthy combined with spending measures intended to bolster the economy, the AP reports. "We built this budget around the idea that our country has always done best when everyone gets a fair shot, everyone does their fair share, and everyone plays by the same rules," Obama said, according to CNN . "This is not about class warfare. This is about the nation's welfare." More»

He wants to beef up domestic spending, raise taxes on rich

(NEWSER) - The major news outlets are getting details of the budget plan President Obama will unveil on Monday, and it sounds like it's designed to set up election-year comparisons with Republicans. Two big themes: It calls for higher taxes on the rich and big spending on roads and manufacturing projects. It also projects the 2012 deficit will rise slightly to $1.33 trillion before dropping to $901 billion in fiscal 2013. Other details: More»