WASHINGTON -- President Barack Obama rolled out his new budget Monday.
However, it's likely to give more ammunition to those who say the government is just spending too much money.
A whopping $3.8 trillion is how much the White House proposes it'll cost the U.S. government to do business in 2011. That includes a record breaking $1.6 trillion deficit.
The budget sets aside:
- $160 billion for military operations in Afghanistan and Iraq.
- $100 billion to try to bring down double digit unemployment.
- And would provide billions more to lift the country out of the worst recession since the 1930s.
In an effort to ease growing concerns of government spending, Obama has included a three-year spending freeze on non-security related domestic programs.
"Within that cap we're going to have to prioritize just like every business or every family would," Senior White House Advisor David Axelrod explained. "So we're going to have to do away with the things we don't need in order to pay for the things we do."
The budget represents a major dilemma for the Obama administration as it tries to balance between pulling the country out of recession and dealing with a rapidly increasing national debt.
Critics have blasted the White House and congressional Democrats for spending far more than they need to - something that has become a hot political issue.
"There is so much spending going out the door, it's adding to the deficit," Rep. Paul Ryan, R-Wis., told Fox News Sunday. "It's adding to the debt. We're seeing the rhetoric of fiscal discipline, but we're not seeing the follow through in the policy."
However, the new budget is only the beginning. Now that it's in the hands of Congress, it will be the source of debate for months on end.
The proposal is teeing off Republicans to attack Democrats and overspending, as they aim to gain seats on Capitol Hill this election year.