European leaders, led largely by German Chancellor Angela Merkel, have pushed back on increased spending as deficits rage out of control.

By Sam Youngman at The Hill

President Barack Obama’s push for continued global stimulus in light of a tenuous economic recovery was largely pushed back at the G-20 as world leaders agreed to focus on deficit reduction.

Obama and his team have repeatedly warned that while the worst of the crisis has passed, the recovery is still “uneven and fragile” and ongoing stimulus efforts are needed.

But European leaders, led largely by German Chancellor Angela Merkel, have pushed back on increased spending as deficits rage out of control.

Those European leaders appeared to win out over the weekend at the G-20 summit in Toronto as the world’s leaders agreed to cut deficits in half by 2013.

But Obama lauded what he saw as a spirit of cooperation at the summit, saying that he was aware that “the focus coming into these meetings was on whether our nations would be divided by different approaches.”

“But as we have proven repeatedly over the last 18 months, our nations can come together through the G-20, and build on the foundation of our shared interests,” Obama said in his closing press conference.

Obama bristled at suggestions that he is not as concerned about deficits as other countries, saying that Germany’s plans “are no more front-loaded than ours.”

FULL STORY

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