THE FINE PRINT – AT 10:37 A.M. ET:  While there is much relief in Washington, it may be short-lived, as the fine print of the budget deal is published.  Michele Bachmann, for one, isn't pleased.  She points out, correctly, that the cuts in spending are minimal, and far from enough to make a big difference.  From The Politico:

“The deal that was reached tonight is a disappointment for me and for millions of Americans who expected $100 billion in cuts, who wanted to make sure their tax dollars stopped flowing to the nation’s largest abortion provider, and who wanted us to defund ObamaCare," Bachmann said in a release. "Instead, we’ve been asked to settle for $39 billion in cuts, even as we continue to fund Planned Parenthood and the implementation of ObamaCare. Sadly, we’re missing the mandate given us by voters last November, and for that reason I voted against the Continuing Resolution.”

COMMENT:  There obviously will be disagreement on where cuts should be made, but Bachmann is fundamentally correct.  The real hero of the week was Representative Paul Ryan of Wisconsin, who unveiled a Republican budget that would dramatically reduce government spending over ten years, and, yes, would inflict some pain.  Naturally, the budget is already under attack as anti-people, anti-children and anti-pet dogs. 

The budget deal reached last night is, to quote Churchill, not the end, not the beginning of the end, but it is the end of the beginning.  We are just getting started in putting our fiscal house back in order, and success, given the special interest involved, is far from assured.

April 9, 2011