By: Trevor Loudon
New Zeal

The Communist Party USA approvingly reports that their claimed “friend’” Barack Obama wants to raise taxes on the rich and cut military spending.

From the latest People’s World:

In contrast to the Republican budget proposals, President Obama today rolled out a “framework” he said will reduce the deficit by $4 trillion but save Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security, end the Bush tax cuts for the rich and cut military spending.

In his nationally televised speech this afternoon Obama emphasized that he would not renew Bush’s tax cuts for the 2 percent of Americans making $250,000 or more.

The president also called for a $400 billion cut in defense spending by 2023 and $773 billion in non-discretionary spending by then…

The president said his approach is to “put every kind of spending on the table, protect the middle class and preserve and protect seniors who have worked all their lives.” The approach detailed by Obama contrasts sharply with the plan put forward by Republican Rep. Paul Ryan.

The president said Ryan’s plan was “not about budget deficit reduction but about extinguishing the long cherished social compact in America.” He pledged that the Republican budget would never become law “as long as I am president…”

About $1 trillion of the president’s deficit reduction would come from tax increases while $3 trillion would come from spending cuts.

Peoples World went on to quote a policy analyst from the Democratic Socialists of America-controlled Economic Policy Institute. “The Republican plan,” said analyst Heidi Shierholz, “does nothing to help the 24.5 million underemployed and unemployed people who are out there. In fact, it would deny access to the American dream to even more millions. Elimination of Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid would throw many millions more into poverty.”