(11 Mar 2019) The White House's top budget official is defending the Trump administration's economic forecasts and new budget proposal.
President Donald Trump on Monday proposed a record $4.7 trillion spending plan for the budget year that begins Oct. 1. It relies on optimistic 3.1 percent economic growth projections alongside accounting shuffles and steep domestic cuts to bring future spending into promised balance in 15 years.
Acting budget director Russell Vought briefed reporters from the White House Monday, insisting this budget will balance in 15 years and saying Washington's "spending problem...endangers the future prosperity of our nation for generations to come."
The deficit is projected to hit $1.1 trillion in the 2020 fiscal year, the highest in a decade. The administration is counting on robust growth, including from the Republican tax cuts - which Trump wants to make permanent - to push down the red ink.
Vought blamed the Barack Obama administration and Congress for the skyrocketing deficit which continues to march upward. Republicans controlled both houses of Congress during Trump's first two years in office.
The president's proposal also includes boosting military spending and slashing some domestic programs.
Vought said the increase in defense dollars "is not funding for endless wars," rather it's for research and development to "fund the most awe-inspiring military the world has ever known."
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