President Biden's 2024 budget looks to protect Social Security and workers' rights

Washington DC - President Joe Biden released his $6.8 trillion budget plan for 2024, and while it looks to reduce the national deficit by trillions, some politicians have already slammed the proposal.

Biden unveiled his 2024 budget proposal, and not everyone's on board.
Biden unveiled his 2024 budget proposal, and not everyone's on board.  © SAUL LOEB / AFP

Despite many Republicans' asks to scale back government spending, the White House unveiled Biden's proposed $6.8 trillion budget that looks to increase military spending by $886 billion and increase funding of new social programs, while imposing roughly $5 trillion in tax hikes over a decade.

The proposed tax increases would affect high-profiting corporations and Americans in the top 1.8% of income-earners who make over $400,000 a year.

"This Budget closes tax loopholes for the wealthy and cracks down on tax cheats, and it once again ensures that no one earning less than $400,000 a year will pay a penny more in new taxes, period," Biden said.

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In the budget's introduction, Biden called the proposed 2024 budget a "blue-collar blueprint to rebuild America in a fiscally responsible way that leaves no one behind. The Budget continues lowering costs for families – with new measures to expand health coverage, cap prescription drug costs, invest in quality child care, build affordable housing, reduce home energy bills, make college more affordable, and more."

In addition, Biden said his budget "protects and strengthens Social Security and Medicare – lifelines that tens of millions of seniors have paid into their whole lives with every paycheck so they can retire with dignity."

The proposed budget would provide an additional $1.4 billion to the Social Security Administration.

Biden lays out 2024 budget as GOP weighs in

Biden's 2024 budget proposal calls for a tax increase on those who make over $400,000 a year.
Biden's 2024 budget proposal calls for a tax increase on those who make over $400,000 a year.  © SAUL LOEB / AFP

Biden claimed his newly released budget, which calls for $400 billion to solidify expanded health care coverage, will keep the economy growing by investing in the American people.

"That means helping families by providing paid family and medical leave and restoring the full Child Tax Credit, which cut child poverty in half in 2021 to the lowest level in history. It means expanding small business loans; standing up for workers and their fundamental right to organize; investing in science and innovation; expanding access to preschool; and improving pathways to community college, career-connected high schools, and other high-quality job training," the president said.

Biden's 2024 budget proposal also aims to expand free preschool, invest $500 million in a new grant program to help provide free community college, and provide national paid leave for workers. Additionally, it looks to curb inflation on prescription drug prices and cap the cost of insulin products at $35 for a monthly subscription, per the White House.

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the Budget also includes proposals to curb inflation in prescription drug prices and cap the prices of insulin products at $35 for a monthly prescription.

To offset the costs, the budget calls for a tax increase on wealthy people and corporations, including a 25% tax on billionaires, and a request to increase the corporate income tax from 21% to 28%.

"We propose a billionaire minimum tax, requiring the wealthiest Americans to pay at least 25 percent on all of their income, including appreciated assets – because no billionaire should ever pay a lower tax rate than a school teacher or a firefighter," the budget reads.

the Biden administration claims the proposed budget will cut the deficit by nearly $3 trillion over a decade.

Despite this, Republicans have already publicly slammed Biden's 2024 budget proposal.

GOP responds and President Biden calls for a counter

President Biden spoke in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania hours after unveiling his proposed 2024 budget.
President Biden spoke in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania hours after unveiling his proposed 2024 budget.  © Chip Somodevilla / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA / Getty Images via AFP

Texas Sen. John Cornyn tweeting his takeaways: "Taxes, taxes, and more taxes." Congressman Dan Meuser told Fox Business that the proposed 2024 budget was "an anti-growth budget," and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy reportedly said Biden's proposal "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."

However, the GOP has yet to release a proposal of their own, and Biden called them out during a speech in Philadelphia hours after releasing his proposed budget, per the Associated Press.

"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."

"How are they going to make the math work?” Biden asked. "What are they going to cut?"

Cover photo: SAUL LOEB / AFP

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