In his speech, Romney faulted Obama for failing to pass a budget. He was correct that the two times Congress voted on the presidents budget requests, both times they were voted down. But the job of passing a budget resolution is not the presidents. That responsibility falls to Congress, and even then the president doesnt sign it. As Ellis, our expert, put it: "The president has no role in passing a budget. The president can cajole Congress about passing a budget and advocate for positions and funding levels, but in the end, Congress approves the budget resolution for their own purposes." Thats the difference between this and other claims weve rated which blamed Congress for inaction on the budget.
Romneys statement contains a grain of truth, in that two of Obamas budget requests failed to pass. But citing those votes leaves a wrong impression -- namely that the votes were anything more than political theater. Romney omitted the more critical information that passing a federal budget is the job of Congress. Given all that, we rate his statement Mostly False.
