Behind U.S. budget cease-fire, the same festering problems

By Andy Sullivan WASHINGTON (Reuters) – When he releases his budget proposal on Tuesday, President Barack Obama will be able to celebrate the smallest deficit since he took office in 2009. He also will be able to enjoy a cease-fire in the fiscal battles that have paralyzed Washington for the past three years. Though tight spending caps have already shrunk spending by the Pentagon and other government agencies to their lowest levels in 50 years, they will do nothing to slow the steady growth of government health and retirement costs as the nation's millions of Baby Boomers age. Absent dramatic tax increases, spending on the elderly — Social Security retirement benefits and Medicare health insurance — will crowd out education, scientific research, transportation and other programs that boost economic competitiveness, experts say.