Senate Approves Bush Budget Plan
W A S H I N G T O N, April 6 -- The evenly divided Senate voted 65-35 to approve President Bush's budget plan today, but only after it moved to trim his mammoth tax-cut proposal by $400 billion.
Bush brushed aside the reduction, claiming victory in the budget battle.
"The result will be the largest tax relief in decades," he said during an East Room ceremony at the White House. "I applaud today's action."
The adoption of the 10-year blueprint for government spending capped a week of often-spirited debate and intense legislative maneuvering on the Senate floor, particularly over Bush's plan to cut federal income taxes by $1.6 trillion over the next decade.
Dems Trim Bush Tax Cut
Bush and his GOP allies in the Senate argued the tax-relief measure was necessary to revive the flagging economy, while Democratic critics charged the cut would squander expected budget surpluses and necessitate deep cuts in funding for many key domestic spending priorities, including health care and education.
Democrats led a successful effort earlier this week to shrink the tax cut to $1.2 trillion — $400 billion less than the president sought. A Republican effort to restore the $400 billion in tax relief was defeated on a 49-51 vote after two GOP senators crossed party lines to oppose the measure. A lone Democrat voted in favor of it.
Though the budget resolution is nonbinding and has often been ignored in previous Congresses, today's much-anticipated vote provides an important measure of support for the president's economic agenda in the Senate where, given the 50-50 split between Republicans and Democrats, every vote matters.
In the final vote today, all 50 Senate Republicans were joined by 15 Democrats in voting for the budget outline. Its adoption laid the groundwork for Bush's efforts to enact his plan to slash marginal tax rates across all levels of income.
Both Sides Claim Victory
The White House and leading Republican senators hailed the vote as a crucial victory for the president as his administration approaches the 100-day benchmark.
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