Washington -Members of Congress from Maryland and other states protested President Barack Obama's budget cuts Thursday, even as critics dismissed them as trivial savings in a $3.55 trillion spending plan.
Projects in Maryland that received budget increases included the Environmental Protection Agency's Chesapeake Bay program, NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center and medical research programs at the National Institutes of Health.
Obama, criticized by Republicans and some conservative Democrats for spending too freely, tried to focus attention on the nearly $17 billion he'd like to save. The president said that "even by Washington standards, that should be considered real money." But with those cuts, his budget still contains a $1.17 trillion deficit.
The latest budget documents offered new details of the ambitious spending request Obama announced in late February but also included more than 100 programs that he wants to reduce or eliminate entirely. Many are the same ones that former President George W. Bush tried to end and which Congress has kept alive, year after year.
For example, Obama hopes to save $400 million by eliminating the State Criminal Alien Assistance Program, which helps subsidize state and local governments for the cost of jailing illegal immigrants accused of committing crimes.
The president's budget criticized the Justice Department program, which can be used for "extraneous items and services," including bonuses, consultants and buying vehicles. The money could be better spent protecting the borders and quickly deporting illegal immigrants who commit crimes in the U.S., according to the White House.
Last year, when Bush proposed eliminating the program, Maryland lawmakers helped lead a successful fight in Congress to keep it alive. Maryland is not a major recipient of funds under the program, which mainly helps border states. Maryland has received more than $25 million since 1997, including $3.1 million in 2008.
Last year, Democratic Sen. Barbara A. Mikulski, who heads an Appropriations Committee panel that controls spending for the program, strongly criticized Bush's budget for "leaving state and local law enforcement without the tools they need to protect our communities." Democratic Rep. C.A. Dutch Ruppersberger of Baltimore County also joined Mikulski in preserving funds for the program.
