Federal Budget

TOP STORY - White House budget director Jack Lew Op-Ed in the N.Y. Times, "The Easy Cuts Are Behind Us: President Obama made tough budget choices [in the budget out Feb. 14]. So must Congress": "[T]o achieve the deeper cuts needed to support this spending freeze, we have had to look beyond the obvious and cut spending for purposes we support. We had to choose programs that, absent the fiscal situation, we would not cut. Since they were instituted, community service block grants have helped to support community action organizations in cities and towns across the country. These are grassroots groups working in poor communities, dedicated to empowering those living there and helping them with some of life's basic necessities. These are the kinds of programs that President Obama worked with when he was a community organizer, so this cut is not easy for him. ... Another difficult cut is a reduction of $125 million, or about a quarter of current financing, to the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative, which supports environmental cleanup and protection. And a third is a reduction in the Community Development Block Grant program. These flexible grants help cities and counties across the nation finance projects in areas like housing, sewers and streets, and economic development in low- and moderate-income neighborhoods. ...

"We must take care to avoid indiscriminate cuts in areas critical to long-term growth like education, innovation and infrastructure - cuts that would stifle the economy just as it begins to recover. That, in turn, would deprive us of one of the most powerful drivers of deficit reduction, a growing economy. Next week, a debate will begin in Washington and throughout our country about the best way forward. The Obama administration will come to these discussions with a responsible, sensible and achievable plan to put the country on a fiscally sustainable path. The plan will incorporate many tough choices and deep cuts - as well as smart investments - to broaden our recovery, spur job creation and prepare the United States to win in the world economy." http://nyti.ms/fKcrVz