Obama unveils $1.1 trillion budget cuts

PRESIDENT Barack Obama proposed a budget yesterday that would cut the US deficit by $1.1 trillion over 10 years, setting the stage for a bitter fight with Republicans who vow even tougher spending controls.

Conservatives say Obama is a tax-and-spend liberal, and they aim to make the 2012 presidential election a referendum on his fiscal track record.

Details of the budget proposal provided by the White House before its official release showed the deficit rising to $1.645tn in fiscal 2011, then falling sharply to $1.101tn in 2012.