By now, no doubt, you have seen the outlines of the President’s new budget, and, no doubt, are still trying to absorb the enormity of the thing.

Just to recap, he is proposing federal government expenditures of $3.6 trillion dollars for fiscal year 2010. The deficit is projected to be $1.75 trillion this year and over $1.5 trillion in 2010. As previously announced, he plans to reduce the deficit to around $500 billion by 2013.

Aside from the numbers, the budget lays the foundation for a dramatic increase in government’s involvement with the economy and proposes significant tax increases for business and the magic 2% of upper income earners. A cap-and-trade carbon emissions program that will generate significant revenue is planned. Though not billed as a new tax, that is precisely what it is. The government’s reach into health care and education would be greatly expanded.

It would be the height of understatement to say that this is going to set off one of the largest political fights in decades. That is at it should be for there are profound questions of political philosophy as well as economics which are raised by this budget. The President is proposing a radical restructuring of American society that ought not to be adopted lightly.

There should be no further doubt that President Obama intends to govern according to the principals upon which he campaigned. They are definitely left of center and represent by American standards a radical approach to change. Whether the American public is ready for such a makeover remains to be seen.

more: here (this is a link to the WSJ home page which has extensive coverage and graphs)