Senate panel to weigh Obama budget picks January 13

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Senate Budget Committee plans to consider President-elect Barack Obama's picks to oversee his federal budget on January 13, the panel said on Tuesday.

In November, Obama said he would nominate Congressional Budget Office Director Peter Orszag to be the director of the White House Office of Management and Budget and a congressional aide, Rob Nabors, to serve as the deputy director.

If confirmed, the two will manage a $3.1 trillion federal budget for Obama and face what will likely be record budget deficits for years to come.

The CBO plans to release its latest forecast for the fiscal 2009 deficit on Wednesday and private economists have said it could reach $1 trillion. Obama said earlier on Tuesday his administration would face difficult choices on the budget.

The Senate committee did not say when it would vote on the nominations, which must be considered by the full Senate.

(Reporting by Jeremy Pelofsky)