Bush defends deficit-laden 2005 budget

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President Bush defended his 2005 budget, which will be officially introduced Monday with a projected deficit of $520 billion, maintaining it is consistent with his plan to cut the deficit in half in five years as long as Congress "is willing to make tough choices."

"The budget we'll submit Monday does fulfill that promise that we'll reduce the deficit in half," Mr. Bush told reporters yesterday after a meeting with economic advisers. "Congress is now going to have to work with us to make sure that we set priorities that are fiscally wise with the taxpayers' money."

Conservatives are grumbling about Mr. Bush's $2.3 trillion budget, complaining that it continues a spending spree greater than that of even the past two Democratic presidents.

"We've got to protect the family budget from the federal budget," said Sean Spicer, spokesman for House Budget Committee Chairman Jim Nussle, Iowa Republican. "There is definitely some concern from some of the members" over the higher Medicare price tag.

The spokesman said Mr. Nussle, however, will wait until he sees Mr. Bush's budget on Monday before commenting.

"The chairman is reserving judgment until he sees it," Mr. Spicer said. "He has no reason to doubt the president."

Mr. Bush defended the 30 percent increase in the cost of the Medicare bill he signed in December and claimed it fits in with his budget plan.

Donald Devine, vice chairman of the American Conservative Union, said conservatives see Mr. Bush as "the biggest-spending Republican president ever."

"You can't find any proof that he's a limited-government conservative," said Mr. Devine, who served in the Reagan administration. "Discretionary nondefense spending is up 8.2 percent across the board, more than four times the increase under [Democratic presidents] Carter or Clinton."