Andrew Stiles at The Corner notes that the newly passed continuing resolution -- which will fund the federal government through April -- passed by a slimmer margin than previous short-term spending measures. It cuts $6 billion from the budget. Of course, Republicans see these cuts as savings, and as a good thing.
The increasing number of votes against these short-term fixes means we're finally, possibly, headed for a spending fight. I went to an off-the-record session at the Treasury Department last week, and a senior official noted that there would be a point at which President Obama said no to more of the two-week deals, but also that the administration is waiting for a real proposal from Republicans. The Republicans know their numbers are impossible to achieve, and the administration has a point at which they're not willing to cut spending further. For Obama, a long-term budget plan to reduce the deficit should decrease pressure on cutting non-defense discretionary spending right now, which, of course, would be damaging to the economy. But getting to the point at which we're actually talking about long-term budget plans is what's going to be painful.
