Senate Follows House to Back $3.5T Budget

The Democratic-controlled Senate has passed a budget drafted to President Barack Obama's specifications, voting a few hours after the House approved a similar plan. The budget calls for spending of $3.5 trillion for the year beginning Oct. 1 and has a deficit projected at $1.2 trillion. The Senate vote was 55-43, along party lines.

The budget provides for higher spending on domestic programs and clears the way for action later in the year on Obama's plans for an overhaul of health care, a new energy policy and changes in federal support for education. The votes mark victories for the Obama administration, and clear the way for the Congress to hammer out a final budget compromise in committee.
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