Washington:Inhis first budget sent to Democratic controlled Congress, President George Bushhas proposed a spending of $2.9 trillion, including $481.1 billion on defence, inthe fiscal year beginning Oct 1.

 

The budget sent Monday to Capitol Hill where it wasimmediately criticised by Democrats calls for big increases in militaryspending, including the campaigns in Iraqand Afghanistan,and much more modest increases in most domestic spending.

It also calls on the lawmakers to make permanent the taxcuts Bush pushed through Congress earlier in his presidency, when the Senateand House were controlled by Republicans.

The document assumes that, even with spending on militaryand homeland security needs, the government will balance its books by 2012.

"Our economy is strong and growing," Bush said inan introduction.

"Federal revenues are robust, and we have madesignificant progress in reducing the deficit,"he said.

The president said his goal of achieving a balanced budgetby 2012 reflects the priorities of battling terrorism, keeping the economystrong through low taxes and controlling spending while making federalprogrammes more effective.

The proposed basic budget for the Defence Department is$481.1 billion, a 62 percent increase over 2001, Bush's first year aspresident, and an increase of $49 billion over what Congress provided for thisfiscal year.

But the figure does not include more than $93 billion insupplemental money in this fiscal year and about $145 billion in the nextfiscal year for the Iraq andAfghanistancampaigns.

The budget proposes $21.8 billion in discretionary fundingfor the justice department with $227 million in programme increases anddirected state and local assistance for counter terrorism and intelligenceprogrammes.

This reflected the department's continued and expandingfocus on national security and the prevention of terrorist attacks, saidAttorney General Alberto R. Gonzales.

"For those of us at the Department of Justice, everyday is September 12th, and every day requires a sustained commitment tocombating terrorism and protecting our homeland," he added.

Pentagon's staggering figures are topped by the proposedspending for the Department of Health and Human Services - some $700 billion -and for the Social Security Administration, about $656 billion.

But Democrats attacked the spending on many socialprogrammes as inadequate. For instance,Bush's proposal for cutbacks of some $70 billion in Medicare and Medicaid overthe next five years was dismissed as an idea as "just asking forcontroversy." by Charles B. Rangel, the new Democratic chairman of the

House Ways

andMeans Committee.

When Bush gained Congressional passage of"temporary" tax cuts in 2002 and 2003, he and his advisers doubtlessknew that lawmakers would be wary of letting them expire, for fear of incurringthe wrath of taxpayers.

Democratic leaders said there was no need, yet, to revisitthe tax cuts, because they are not set to expire until the end of 2010.Meanwhile, they argue, the government can bring in billions more a year bybeing more aggressive about collecting taxes owed but not paid.