With ten days until the automatic spending cuts kick in, President Obama and Republicans still aren’t talking. Senate Republicans told Politico they haven’t been contacted by the White House, while the President said Tuesday morning “My door is open.” It’s like a bad teenage romance, when neither side wants to pick up the phone first.
Erskine Bowles, a former chief of staff to Bill Clinton, released a new deficit reduction proposal with Alan Simpson Tuesday, but the duo doesn’t paint a hopeful picture. Bowles told reporters this morning, “The idea of a grand bargain is at best on life support.”
Congress is in recess this week so negotiations are not expected to begin until next Monday—five days before the sequester deadline. Will lawmakers buck the recent trend of brinkmanship and reach a deal before midnight Friday? Don’t hold the line.
Alex Wagner and the NOW panel discuss the likelihood Democrats and Republicans will find common ground on deficit reduction before time runs out.
Joshua Chaffee