The US budget: riddled with unreal assumptions and wishful thinking

US President Donald Trump's first budget, which was released on Tuesday, appears to be a politically unrealistic combination of severe cuts in social programmes as well as wildly optimistic projections for both economic growth and the US economy's future fiscal position.

Presented in a document titled A new foundation for American greatness, the budget spares the two most popular social programmes - Medicare and Social Security, which benefit mostly older Americans - but axes several others, including Medicaid (a healthcare programme for low-income groups), student loan subsidies, food stamps for the poor, disability benefits, family planning and foreign aid programmes, among others.

Cuts are also proposed in the funding for some key branches of government, including the State Department which directs US foreign policy, the Environmental Protection Agency and the Department of Agriculture. In all, spending cuts total US$3.6 trillion. The only significant increase is for defence, by 10 per cent. There is also a US$1.6 billion proposed outlay for Mr Trump's pet project - the border wall with Mexico. The only progressive measure of note is a plan for paid parental leave - an idea long championed by Mr Trump's daughter Ivanka.