As the sequestration deadline approaches, President Barack Obama is campaigning hard amongst middle-class Americans to push his budget plan, but so far, little progress is being made in negotiations with Republicans in Congress.
Obama said that he has a plan to pay down the deficit in a balanced way, and he put the plan on the White House website.
According to Obama’s personal webpage, it is “The President’s Plan vs. Republican Inaction.”
At the Newport News Shipbuilding factory in Newport News, Virginia, on Feb. 26, President Obama said that if Congress doesn’t take action on Friday, then the U.S. economy will get hit with sweeping automatic cuts.
According to Obama, the sequester will hurt middle class families. Obama choose to speak at the Newport News Shipbuilding because he wanted to highlight 5,000 companies and small businesses in the nation that supply parts to the shipbuilding company will be impacted by cuts. The shipbuilding company, with 21,000 employees, designs, builds, and refuels U.S. naval ships.
Obama said that he would like to come together with Republicans in Congress and find a way to reduce the deficit without making cuts to “vital services.”
But he is not hopeful.
“I’ve told them my door is open. I am more than willing to negotiate. I want to compromise,” Obama said at the recorded event. He and Democrats in Congress conceived the plan.
John Boehner, the House speaker and a Republican, said that he does not think Obama is focused on finding a solution to the sequester.
Speaking to Republican leaders on Feb. 26 at a televised press conference, Boehner said, “The president has been traveling all over the country and today going down to Newport News in order to use our military men and women as a prop in yet another campaign rally to support his tax hikes.”
According to Boehner, Obama is traveling the country holding rallies instead of sitting down with Senate leaders to forge an agreement to move a bill.
“We detailed $930 billion in sensible spending cuts that we’re willing to make and $580 billion in wasteful tax loopholes and deductions that we’re willing to eliminate through tax reform,” he said, to the shipbuilding workers in a televised event.
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