Budget, Egypt likely topics of Obama news conference

One day after offering a $3.7-trillion budget package, President Obama will hold a morning news conference Tuesday, the White House announced.

The question-and-answer session -- the first since late December -- would also provide the first chance for reporters to more fully probe the president for his handling of the situation in Egypt and other pro-democracy movements throughout the Arab world.

The president will take questions at 11 a.m. (EST) in the South Court Auditorium of the Eisenhower Executive Office Building, adjacent to the White House. On Monday, he went to a Baltimore school specializing in science education to unveil his spending plan, defending what he called investments as Republicans called for major spending cuts.

“We can’t sacrifice our future in the process,” Obama said. “We have a responsibility to invest in those areas that will have a big impact.”

Republicans immediately panned the plan; House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) termed it “debt on arrival.”

“It would be better if we did nothing than actually pass this budget,” he said Monday.

The press conference also comes two days into the tenure of new White House Press Secretary Jay Carney, who replaced Robert Gibbs on Monday in the top administration public-relations job.