Govs. Jindal, Walker offer views on averting sequester, reducing deficit

Politico: Jindal Pitches Obamacare Delay
Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal has one idea to help avoid the looming sequester: Use Obamacare. The Republican governor said delaying the expansion of Medicaid and delaying the health care exchanges created under the Affordable Care Act would help find the funds to offset the coming automatic budget cuts (Kim, 2/24).

The Hill: Jindal: Delaying Obama Health Care Law Could Help Offset Sequester
Republican Gov. Bobby Jindal (La.) on Sunday proposed delay the implementation of President Obama's healthcare reform law to help offset the looming sequester cuts. … Jindal has been a strong critic of the president's signature health care reform bill, and has said his state will not participate in the law's Medicaid expansion. The Louisiana governor's comments come ahead of the $85 billion in across-the-board sequester cuts set to take effect on Friday (Mali, 2/24).

Bloomberg: Walker Says Entitlements Should Be Cut To Reduce Deficit
Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker said Congress should reduce the budget deficit by paring back spending on Social Security and Medicare instead of relying on across-the-board spending cuts scheduled to begin on March 1. … The federal government shouldn't raise taxes again because that could exert a drag on the still-recovering U.S. economy, said Walker, who won election in 2010, when his party gained the majority in the U.S. House (Selway, 2/23).