Poor and disabled big losers in Trump budget; military wins

Eric Ueland, Republican staff director, Senate Budget Committee holds a copy of President Donald Trump's fiscal 2018 federal budget, before distributing them to congressional staffers on Capitol Hill in Washington, Tuesday, May 23, 2017. less Eric Ueland, Republican staff director, Senate Budget Committee holds a copy of President Donald Trump's fiscal 2018 federal budget, before distributing them to congressional staffers on Capitol Hill in ... more Budget Director Mick Mulvaney speaks about President Donald Trump's proposed fiscal 2018 federal budget in the Press Briefing Room of the White House in Washington, Tuesday, May 23, 2017.

Cabinet members head to Capitol Hill to defend Trump budget

Top officials in President Donald Trump 's Cabinet are heading to Capitol Hill to defend his plans to cut domestic programs and parry Democratic criticism of his tax proposals. Budget Director Mick Mulvaney appears Wednesday before the House Budget panel while Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin will testify at the tax-writing House Ways and Means Committee .

Trump budget hard on ‘forgotten’ rural American supporters

Trump budget hard on 'forgotten' rural American supporters Trump's budget could be punishing for the rural, working-class voters who overwhelmingly supported him Check out this story on USATODAY.com: https://usat.ly/2rQU26R WASHINGTON - Sen. Al Franken, the former comedian from Minnesota, had a not-so-funny response to President Trump's first budget that relies on deep cuts to the nation's health care and safety-net programs: "This piece of legislation is cruel," said Franken, who co-chairs the Senate rural health caucus. It could be particularly punishing for the rural, working-class voters who overwhelmingly supported Trump, according to a USA TODAY review.

With big spending cuts, Trump’s budget highlights clash of values

To the Trump team, the president's budget proposal is rooted in unassailable values: respect for the people "who are actually paying the taxes," as White House budget director Mick Mulvaney puts it. In President Trump's $4.1 trillion fiscal 2018 budget plan, released Tuesday, that approach translates into deep cuts in social safety-net programs that Mr. Mulvaney suggests discourage work and hinder economic growth.

The Latest: Many in GOP cool to Trump’s budget plan

Another senior Republican lawmaker, Fred Upton of Michigan, questioned inclusion of money for Trump's border wall, remarking: "I thought Mexico was going to pay for the wall, why is this in our budget?" House Speaker Paul Ryan of Wisconsin dismissed such criticism as typical rhetoric and praised the budget because it balances over 10 years. Independent economists say the budget relies on unrealistic projections of economic growth, but Ryan sidestepped that question, saying faster growth would "help so many of our problems."

Trump Seeks $3.6 Trillion in Cuts to Reshape Government

President Donald Trump would dramatically reduce the U.S. government's role in society with $3.6 trillion in spending cuts over the next 10 years in a budget plan that shrinks the safety net for the poor, recent college graduates and farmers. Trump's proposal, to be released Tuesday, claims to balance the budget within a decade.

Nation-Now 18 mins ago 9:46 p.m.Trump budget promises balance in decade, relies on deep cuts

President Donald Trump is proposing to balance the federal budget within a decade by making sharp cuts to social safety-net programs like food stamps and Medicaid and offering optimistic estimates of economic growth and tax revenues to fulfill the promise of a government back in the black. Tuesday's budget blueprint faces a skeptical reception from Congress, where Republicans and Democrats oppose Trump proposals to cut domestic agencies and foreign aid by 10 percent and are recoiling from a $1.7 trillion cut over the coming decade from mandatory government benefit programs.

Republicans already giving Trump’s budget a cold shoulder

President Donald Trump's budget hasn't been released yet, but that's not stopping some of Capitol Hill's most important Republicans from giving it a cold shoulder. Trump's blueprint for the 2018 budget year comes out Tuesday, and it's certain to include a wave of cuts to benefit programs such as Medicaid, food stamps, federal employee pensions and farm subsidies.

President’s 2018 budget to include paid family leave

President Donald Trump's 2018 budget proposal will require states to provide paid family leave programs, a senior budget official said Thursday. The official said the budget - set to be released Tuesday - will include a plan to provide six weeks of paid leave to new mothers, fathers and adoptive parents.

House bill would eliminate comp benefits for convicted legislators

U.S. Rep. Rodney Davis, R-Ill., on Wednesday introduced legislation that would eliminate workers compensation for members of Congress who have been convicted of a crime related to their public office. According to recent media reports, the bill is a response to a situation involving former Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr., D-Ill.

Sean Brune: No estimates on how bad Social Security fraud is

Social Security can't even give a ballpark estimate for how much fraud there is in the program, a top official admitted to Congress on Wednesday - though he insisted they care about the matter and are working to weed out bogus payments, particularly in disability payments. Sean Brune, assistant deputy commissioner at the Social Security Administration's budget office, said they're trying to become more aware of the problems and looking for new tools to fight back, but said he couldn't guess at how bad the problem is.

DACA-eligible immigrants annually pay $2 billion in state and local taxes

A new Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy report examined the state and local tax contributions of young immigrants eligible for DACA and found that, collectively, they annually contribute $2 billion in state and local taxes, but this number would drop by nearly half without DACA protection. The Trump Administration has sent mixed signals on whether it intends to honor the DACA executive order in the long term.

Five fights for Trump’s first year

Congress is facing a string of deadlines that set up a number of fights for the rest of President Trump's first year in office. When lawmakers return on Washington from a two-week recess, they'll have just five days to pass a funding measure to prevent the government from shutting down on April 29. Lawmakers are locked in talks, with GOP leaders eager to show they can govern pledging to avoid a shutdown just 100 days into the Trump administration.

Lest we forget

To those who do not want immigrants or refugees in Peterborough for fear that they will use "our funds": I say immigrants make us stronger. Consider that most refugees/ undocumented immigrants are younger than the average age of 48 in Peterborough, that most jobs they do pay less than jobs that Americans have, that they pay taxes , but do not collect Social Security, that they are often professionals who work in jobs far below their educational training.