WASHINGTON D.C.- The Blue Dog Coalition believes the American people deserve an honest budget - the Coalition urged Congress and the Administration today to present the American people with a budget that reflects both the true size of the deficit and the cost of White House proposals for the upcoming year.

"No businessman in America should tolerate Washington-style budgeting," said Rep. Jim Cooper (TN), Blue Dog Co-Chair for Policy. "This Administration is refusing to budget for either the war on terrorism or Social Security reform, its two top priorities. We deserve better."

The non-partisan Congressional Budget Office today released its Budget and Economic Outlook for 2006-2015. The new report gave a relatively rosy forecast of the budget deficit, including a projection that the deficit would gradually turn to a surplus by 2012.

"The CBO's numbers do not take into account some pretty important items that have a direct effect on the bottom line. This includes not only the cost of Social Security reform, but the continuing war in Iraq," said Rep. Dennis Cardoza (CA), Blue Dog Co-Chair for Communications. "There's no question that Americans are more than willing to stand behind our troops. But they deserve to see the full bill."

If the current rate of spending on Iraq and Afghanistan continues, the CBO estimates that the 2005 deficit may total around $400 billion and the 2006 deficit well over $300 billion. Moreover, the total deficit projected for the 2005-2014 period would grow from $861 billion to $1.3 trillion. The CBO outlook also does not address the cost of proposed Social Security reforms.

"Americans deserve a responsible government that lives within its allotted resources," stated Rep. Jim Matheson (UT), Blue Dog Co-Chair for Administration. "As a businessman, I understand how crucial it is to balance the books and make sure you are financially stable. Elected officials should learn from this and do the same."

President Bush's budget for 2006 is due out February 7, 2005.