{"id":57182,"date":"2023-03-21T12:25:43","date_gmt":"2023-03-21T19:25:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lapost.us\/?p=57182"},"modified":"2023-03-22T17:15:14","modified_gmt":"2023-03-23T00:15:14","slug":"unpacking-bidens-budget-the-president-wants-guns-and-butter","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lapost.us\/?p=57182","title":{"rendered":"Unpacking Biden\u2019s Budget \u2014 The President Wants Guns and Butter"},"content":{"rendered":"
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By<\/span>Peter White<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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President Biden’s recently announced budget proposal promises to maintain entitlement programs while dramatically increasing defense spending.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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\"Joe<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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When President Biden formally\u00a0unveiled his budget last week in Philadelphia, he took direct aim at the political football that is entitlement reform. \u201cI guarantee you I will protect Social Security and Medicare without any change,\u201d the president said.<\/p>\n

But analysts say looming shortfalls will put those commitments to the test.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey\u2019re really two choices, very straightforward. You can increase revenues going in, or you can reduce benefits being paid out,\u201d said Andrew Eschtruth, associate director for external relations at the Center for Retirement Research at Boston College.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe president\u2019s budget did not go into any detail other than to say that it was absolutely not going to propose any benefit reductions and would fight any benefit reductions that were proposed by the Congress,\u201d Eschtruth added.<\/p>\n

He was among a panel of speakers during an\u00a0Ethnic Media Press briefing<\/a>\u00a0last week examining the president\u2019s proposed budget.<\/p>\n

Biden wants high-income workers to pay more taxes to ensure the nation\u2019s popular Social Security program will have stable financial footing in the future. Social Security is the backbone of the retirement and disability income systems in this country, providing inflation-adjusted benefits to more than 65 million people.<\/p>\n

According to Eschtruth, based on incoming payroll taxes the program could continue to pay full benefits until 2035, at which point it would only be able to pay about 80% of benefits.<\/p>\n

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