Today was the big day where Republicans were going to come out with the alternative budget proposal, because Obama was all like "Oh, yeah?  You got some better ideas??  Let's see them!" and the Republicans were all like "Okay, We will!"

So the only problem with their budget, released this afternoon to much ballyhoo and hype, is that it isn't a budget.  There is an appalling lack of things that make it resemble a budget — not just things like deficit projections, income projections, etc. – but also things like, uh, numbers.

That's right… it's a "budget" with almost no numbers.  I'm no economist, but one would expect a budget to have lots of those.  Shit, even Bush famously said, when he revealed the first budget of his presidency, "It's clearly a budget.  It's got a lot of numbers in it."

So what does the GOP alternative have?  Well, it's 12 pages of generalities, mostly criticizing the Obama budget (things we've heard), and giving bland statements about what the GOP would do better.

They will "undo" the stimulus bill, they say.  I don't know how you do that.  The stimulus has passed and the money is out the door and on the way to states.  But, whatever.  They will under it.

Oh, and they call it a "stimulus" bill — in air quotes.  I guess they don't want to acknowledge that it will stimulate the economy.

What does it offer?  Oh, here's a surprise.  Tax cuts.  Tax cuts.  Mostly for the wealthy.

Predictable.

But best of all, you get helpful graphics like this, explaining the Republican budget considerations for health care.

That's either a really bad flowchart, or the beginnings of a molecule.

Anyway, it's a bit devoid of specifics.  Kinda like this.

But it ain't no budget.