Congressional leaders emerged from a White House meeting with President Obama Friday, exuding confidence that they can avert a looming fiscal cliff. But they didn't divulge any details.
Republican House Speaker John Boehner and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell said Republicans -- who have been loathe to raise taxes -- have put revenue on the table as a sign of intent, "as long as it's accompanied by significant spending cuts," Boehner said.
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid said the two sides have the beginning of an agreement to get it resolved.
"We're both going to have to give up some of the things that we know are a problem," Reid said. "There is no more, 'Let's do it some other time', we're going to do it now."
McConnell, however, noted that no one in his caucus thinks the nation's fiscal woes are the result of taxing too little, even though they have agreed to put revenue on the table.
"We are prepared to put revenue on the table provided we fix the real problem," McConnell said, adding that most of his caucus believes "that we're in the dilemma we're in, not because we taxed too little, but because we spent too much."
In the vernacular of our Native American brothers,I would designate our congress and senate as: Haphazard Assemblages of Men and Women with “many wires down". I can only Hope that the New Arrivals” will see to the “Re-stringing” of these Wires!
Posted by: Thomas Nass | November 16, 2012 at 05:31 PM