important ceilings

With Debt Talks Stalled, What Happens Now?

According to various reports, both President Obama and Speaker of the House John Boehner were willing to go bold. A $4 trillion debt-reduction package, one that would include about $1 trillion in new revenue (tax increases) over ten years, was being discussed by the end of last week. But the House GOP revolted over the taxes, and Boehner, a reasonable person made powerless in the face of his no-compromise caucus, backed away from a grand bargain. So where does that leave us?

July 22 has been previously identified as the latest a deal can be reached in order to give Congress enough time to write the law, vet it, and pass it, so time is of the essence. Obama will hold another press conference today to make his case to the media and the public as a way to pressure the GOP, after which another meeting will be held with congressional leaders of both parties. Republicans want a deal based on the $2 trillion to $2.4 trillion in spending cuts previously identified by the talks overseen by Joe Biden. But Chris Van Hollen, a top House Democrat, said only $1 trillion in cuts had been identified, and Republicans were “dreaming” if they thought the number was $2.4 trillion.

Either way, the most salient roadblock is that Republicans are adamant that an agreement not include a single tax increase on anyone, and Democrats are adamant that revenue raisers are essential. Either the two sides need to come up with some kind of gimmick that allows the Democrats to claim taxes were raised and Republicans to claim they weren’t, or someone has to blink. And the GOP seems about as incapable of blinking right now as Alex DeLarge in A Clockwork Orange.

For Boehner, Lofty Budget Goals Checked by Reality [NYT]
John Boehner’s ‘grand bargain’ - with House GOP [Politico]

With Debt Talks Stalled, What Happens Now?