(Daily Mail) Joe Biden‘s new budget plan, released on Thursday, is light on initiatives for dealing with the drug crisis sweeping the county but heavy on gender politics, according to a new analysis.
Biden mentioned ‘equity’ 63 times in the document, Fox News found – more than double the references to the word ‘border’.
The word ‘fentanyl’ was only mentioned twice.
The word ‘transgender‘ featured eight times, and ‘queer’ seven times – but the word ‘opioids’ was mentioned four times.
‘Equity’, a key focus, was mentioned in the context of racial equity, equal access to healthcare, and equity for veterans.
President Joe Biden speaks about his 2024 budget proposal at the Finishing Trades Institute on Thursday
The White House on Thursday released a video on social media promoting the budget plan
The document has been published online. It is not thought likely to pass
It has largely replaced the word ‘equality’ in progressive circles. Equality means offering everyone the same opportunity, while equity means ensuring everyone achieves the same outcome.
Supporters say equity helps eliminate unfair barriers which make it harder for some to achieve their full potential. Critics say it often involves unfair bias against certain groups deemed as successful, and that equal outcomes are often achieved artificially, by lowering overall standards.
‘On his first day in office, the President signed a sweeping Executive Order directing the entire Federal Government to advance an ambitious equity and racial justice agenda—not as a one-year project, but as part of a sustained commitment to make the promise of America real for every American,’ the document reads.
‘Since then, the Administration has made significant progress advancing equity across the Federal Government, including by releasing a second Executive Order that strengthens its ability to create opportunities for communities and populations that have been historically underserved, and continues to build an America in which all can participate, prosper, and reach their full potential,’ it continues.
Biden’s 2024 plan is seen as unlikely to pass.
Analysts are describing the proposal as a blueprint for the issues he will run on in 2024, if he decides to seek re-election.
Biden also threw down the gauntlet to his Republican rivals, demanding they too unveil their spending plans.
‘I’ve now laid out my budget,’ he said.
‘Republicans in Congress should do the same.’
Biden said his plan was designed to help ordinary working people
Here’s how President Biden’s budget will continue our work to grow the economy from the bottom up and the middle out – not the top down.https://t.co/fjDcj4092E pic.twitter.com/lpSZYnzgtx
— The White House (@WhiteHouse) March 9, 2023
Biden’s plan would cut deficits by $2.9 trillion over the next decade – a proposal that Republicans already intend to reject.
On Thursday, the president spoke at a union training center in Philadelphia, discussing his plan for the government’s finances and how his values contrasted with Republican priorities.
‘I just laid out the bulk of my budget,’ Biden said.
‘Republicans in Congress should do the same thing. Then we can sit down and see where we disagree.’
Yet the president doubted that Republican members of Congress could make their numbers match their calls for a balanced budget and he suggested that any efforts to do so could come at the expense of middle-class families.
‘How are they going to make the math work?’ Biden said. ‘What are they going to cut?’
House Speaker Kevin McCarthy said the president’s proposed deficit reduction was inadequate.
‘It just seems like it’s going to create the biggest government in history.
‘I don’t think that’s what we need at this time,’ he said.
In addition to deficit reduction, Biden’s 10-year budget largely revolves around the idea of taxing the wealthy to help fund programs for the middle class, older adults and families.
