Cut budget vs. increase spending: #tellusatoday

We asked our followers what they thought about President Obama calling for an end to automatic budget cuts — called sequestration — and proposing a 7% increase in spending. Comments from Twitter and Facebook are edited for clarity and grammar:

This is the old mantra: tax cuts, spending cuts and austerity. The economy is in very different shape from where it was eight years ago.

The Great Recession is over, housing has recovered, the stock market is near record territory, gas prices are at lows and unemployment continues to fall.

In fact, the economy of the United States is one of the few bright spots in the global economic picture.

It's time to raise taxes to pay off a lot of old debt and start funding programs for things that matter: education, health care and infrastructure.

— Milo Bendech

Ending sequestration is a terrible idea. The debt is still up. Improved economy shouldn't mean a government spending spree.

— @realdcm

If the increase is spent on infrastructure, for every dollar spent more are created.

— @DuluthLPD6

Taxes are regressive economically, and our economy is nowhere near healthy. Some people advocate higher corporate taxes, but we already have some of the highest in the world.

The way to real economic recovery is to lower taxes and have fewer government regulations that are suffocating corporate America and sending jobs overseas. It is time for government policy to make it attractive for businesses here.

— Robert Johnson Parrott

I guess Obama plans on leaving our debt ($18 trillion) to the next president.

— Dennis Buckley

For more of the conversation, follow @USATOpinion or #tellusatoday on Twitter.