Obama touts U.S. budget priorities

WASHINGTON, March 21 (UPI) -- U.S. President Barack Obama says that while the numbers may change during negotiations, the key priorities in his budget proposals will not.

Speaking Saturday during his weekly radio and Internet address, Obama said upcoming political battles in Congress over his proposed budget won't alter his priorities of reducing U.S. dependence on foreign oil, education, healthcare reform and deficit reduction.

"These investments are not a wish list of priorities that I picked out of thin air -- they are a central part of a comprehensive strategy to grow this economy by attacking the very problems that have dragged it down for too long: the high cost of healthcare and our dependence on foreign oil; our education deficit and our fiscal deficit," Obama said.

The president said his trip this week to California reinforced his belief that the four areas are the most pressing concerns of most Americans, saying, "Those are the concerns I heard about in California. They are the concerns I've heard about in letters from people throughout this country for the last two years. And they are the concerns addressed in the budget I sent to Congress last month."