In debt ceiling talks, Obama offers to cut $2 billion from next year's spending?

One almost has to read this Reuter's news article a few times to make sure that you read it correctly. In a budget of some $3.73 trillion (see Table S-1), Obama is willing to cut $2 billion in spending. That is 5 hundredths of one percent! How can anyone cut so little? Obviously, the Democrats want to push of any cuts, even small ones well off into the future, so they can be undone at a future date. Taxes though are to start right now. My previous post showed how Obama wasn't willing to name any cuts in his press conference yesterday.

President Barack Obama has offered a spending cut of $2 billion for the coming fiscal year in White House budget talks, far below the level sought by Republicans, Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell said on Thursday.

"We have not been able to get them to a place that we're comfortable makes a serious difference and getting our spending trajectory headed downward," McConnell said on the Hugh Hewitt radio show.

Republicans are already moving spending bills through the House of Representatives that would cut $30 billion from the current fiscal year's funding levels. Because the Pentagon would get a spending increase, cuts would be even steeper for the domestic programs beloved by Democrats.

The two sides are working on a budget deal that would cut roughly $1 trillion over 10 years from the annual discretionary spending that funds everything from space exploration to law enforcement.

Republicans want as big a cut as possible for the coming fiscal year, which starts October 1, to set a lower baseline for the coming years.

"So far it's been pretty puny," McConnell said of the Democrats' $2 billion offer. "Our response to that is the government borrowed $4 billion today." . . .