Memory Lane

April 13, 2011

Obama sets deficit target, rips Republican plan

(Reuters) - President Barack Obama set a goal on Wednesday of cutting the U.S. budget deficit by $4 trillion over 12 years through spending cuts and tax increases on the rich and rejecting a Republican plan as too radical.

While calling for talks with Republicans on spending cuts, Obama devoted much of his speech to attacking their plan to overhaul the government health programs Medicare and Medicaid while reducing taxes on wealthy individuals and businesses. 

Obama said the Republican plan by Paul Ryan, the House of Representatives Budget Committee chairman, offered a "deeply pessimistic" view of the country's future and would change the "basic social compact." "There's nothing serious about a plan that claims to reduce the deficit by spending a trillion dollars on tax cuts for millionaires and billionaires," Obama said as Ryan listened in the audience at George Washington University.





May 15, 2011



May 17, 2011

Newt Gingrich apologizes to Paul Ryan

Republican presidential candidate Newt Gingrich apologized in a telephone call to House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) on Tuesday afternoon for his remarks on “Meet the Press,” where the presidential candidate referred to Ryan’s Medicare proposal as “radical change.” 

“Newt apologized,” said Rick Tyler, his press secretary and longtime aide. “The call went very well.” 

Gingrich, his nascent campaign in jeopardy, has shifted into fervent damage control following a furious conservative reaction to his comments — and is even expressing a rare bit of contrition. 

From Iowa, Gingrich held two conference calls with tea party leaders scattered throughout the nation – one on short notice Monday night, and another Tuesday morning. Aides said Gingrich started each of the half-hour calls by explaining what he meant on “Meet the Press,” and acknowledging that he could have expressed it better. “We’ve tried to correct the record and admit it could have been done better,” Tyler said. “We move on.”