The budget proposal that the White House released Monday should immediately be sent to the Smithsonian Institution and put on display as the quintessential Donald Trump document.
And what is that quintessence? Let's start with dishonesty. His proposal, titled "An American Budget," undoes his campaign promises not to cut Medicare, Medicaid and other social programs. In fact, it would cut at least $1.8-trillion (yes, trillion) from those critical safety nets and others.
Coming on the heels of his income-tax reform, which permanently cut the taxes of the wealthiest Americans while giving the middle and lower classes relatively smaller and only temporary breaks, his budget proposal is the completion of his betrayal of the people who believed his campaign pitch about helping the "forgotten" American.
Then there's debt. As a businessman, Mr. Trump built his real-estate empire on borrowed money and junk bonds. In 2016, Fortune magazine estimated the debts of the companies he owns at $1.1-billion; he himself admitted to as much as $650-million in his 2016 filing with the U.S. Federal Election Commission. "I've done great with debt," he once said.
Now he wants to make America great with debt, too. His budget would add $984-billion to the deficit next year, and a total of at least $7-trillion over 10 years, depending on the performance of the U.S. economy.
Mr. Trump did keep his word on a few pet promises. His proposal would pump billions into military and border-protection spending, while slashing the budget of the Environmental Protection Agency.
Then again, he knows as well as anyone that his proposals have no chance of being adopted by Congress. It's just another sales pitch, designed solely for his benefit. Classic.