Quotes About Bush's 2008 Budget Proposal

-- Quotes on President Bush's proposed budget for 2008:

"I strongly believe Congress needs to listen to a budget which says no tax increase and a budget, because of fiscal discipline, that can be balanced in five years." _ President Bush.

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"Despite the historic fiscal failures of the past six years, President Bush's budget proposes more of the same. The budget uses deception to hide a massive increase in debt, and its priorities are disconnected from the needs of middle class Americans." _ Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev.

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"To reach our goal of a balanced budget we need to hold the line on spending, reduce earmarks and pass line-item veto to crack down on worthless pork. ... I hope Democrats will give the president's proposal the due consideration it deserves. Even more important, I hope Democrats will join us in taking the necessary steps to balance the budget without raising taxes." _ House Minority Leader John Boehner, R-Ohio.

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"The sums involved in the defense budget requests are staggering. We cannot provide an adequate national defense on the cheap, but neither can we afford to simply ratify the president's request without performing the due diligence and oversight." _ House Armed Services Committee Chairman Ike Skelton, D-Mo.

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"The president's budget makes clear that we can balance the budget in five years without raising taxes or allowing the tax relief that has fueled our economic growth to expire. This is a great opportunity for Republicans and Democrats to work together to eliminate the deficit and bolster economic growth." _ Rep. Roy Blunt, R-Mo., the Republican whip.

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"The burden is on the president to show us what our investments in Iraq and Afghanistan _ which already exceed $500 billion _ are buying before additional taxpayer dollars are spent." _ Rep. Elijah Cummings, D-Md.

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"The president's budget is filled with debt and deception, disconnected from reality, and continues to move America in the wrong direction. This administration has the worst fiscal record in history and this budget does nothing to change that. It clings to the same misguided policies: costly tax cuts that primarily benefit the wealthiest, cuts in domestic priorities and more fiscal irresponsibility." _ Senate Budget Committee Chairman Kent Conrad, D-N.D.

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"In some places this budget shows vision, and in some places the president's eyes are shut tight to this country's fiscal reality. ... I will work with the president to break our country's dependence on foreign oil and to invest in renewable energy. We should go much further than this budget does to keep kids healthy, to get a handle on health care costs, to increase our economic competitiveness and to make sure that unpaid taxes are collected to fund America's priorities." _ Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus, D-Mont.

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"I doubt that Democrats will support this budget, and frankly, I will be surprised if Republicans rally around it either." _ Rep. John Spratt, D-S.C.