House kills Dem budget plan with help from 31 Dems

The House on Thursday rejected a budget alternative offered by the Democratic Caucus, with the help of 31 House Democrats.

The House Democratic proposal, which is similar to President Obama’s 2015 budget and would spend $3.1 trillion in 2015, was defeated 163-261. The 31 Democrats opposed was a bit higher than the 28 Democratic defections seen in 2013.

{mosads}Still, most Democrats favored the plan, and said their alternative would restore the spending cuts outlined in the GOP budget.

“The Republican budget asks not what you can do for your country but proclaims your country refuses to do a thing for you,” said Rep. Jim McDermott (D-Wash.).

Republicans said the Democratic budget would keep spending more taxpayer money without any plan to eliminate the deficit.

“They’re encouraging us to borrow more, and borrow more, and borrow more, and never lay out any plan whatsoever for paying that money back to the children from whom we are borrowing it,” said Rep. Mick Mulvaney (R-S.C.).

The Democratic plan supports several Democratic policy priorities, including a yearlong extension of unemployment insurance and a minimum wage hike to $10.10 an hour. The GOP budget’s proposed cuts to domestic programs, such as food stamps, would also be restored.

Democrats also want to undo the proposed Medicare and Medicaid overhauls in the budget outlined by House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan (R-Wis.). The Democratic budget proposal would eliminate the sequestration cuts for mandatory programs, which includes Medicare.

Earlier Thursday, the House defeated a $2.8 trillion budget alternative from the Republican Study Committee that would eliminate the budget deficit within four years. Ninety-seven Republicans joined all Democrats in voting against the proposal.