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Sunday, July 31, 2011

Debt Ceiling Deal Includes Deep Cuts & GOP Triggers (Creates More Poverty)
















McConnell Sees Deal “Very Close”; Focus Is on Triggers for Cuts


Senator Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, the Republican leader, said Sunday morning that he was “very close” to recommending to his members that they sign on to a debt deal with President Obama and the Democrats.

Speaking on the CNN program “State of the Union,” Mr. McConnell said the emerging deal included as much as $3 trillion in cuts over the next 10 years, with much of that decided later this year by a joint congressional committee.

“What conservatives want to do is cut spending,” he said. “We’ve come a long way. This agreement is likely to encompass up to $3 trillion is spending cuts.”

In addition, Mr. McConnell said the agreement would allow votes in Congress on a balanced budget amendment.

Mr. McConnell indicated that proposals to force action by the joint committee had been among the most contentious of the last week. He declined to be specific about so-called “triggers” of across-the-board cuts that would go into effect if the committee could not agree on a plan — a measure meant to put pressure on the committee to finish its work.

But he said the committee — made up of six Democrats and six Republicans — would be under tremendous pressure by the American people and the markets to implement the further spending cuts.

“That’s been an item of outstanding discussion for over a week,” Mr. McConnell said. “We’ll let you know what we’ve done on the trigger issues when we make the announcement.”

Congress and the White House are racing to strike a deal to raise the federal government’s borrowing cap before Tuesday, the day that the Treasury Department has said it would no longer be able to pay for all of its commitments. Congressional Republicans have demanded spending cuts in exchange for approval to raise the federal borrowing limit.

Late on Saturday night, the Senate delayed until 1 p.m. Sunday a crucial vote on a debt ceiling bill put forward by the Democrats, amid growing indications that a compromise was in the works.

Appearing after Mr. McConnell on the same program, Senator Charles E. Schumer of New York, a Democrat, Mr. Schumer agreed that the question of a trigger was “one of the key issues that’s still being debated.”

Mr. Schumer echoed Mr. McConnell’s optimism but had a different assessment of the tone. The debate, he said, has “an enmity that in my 37 years as a legislator I have never seen.’’

But, he said, “I feel a lot better today about the ability to avoid default than I did even yesterday morning.’’

“And default would have such disastrous consequences for our nation for decades to come,’’ he said, adding, “The fact that our leaders are talking, though hardly any one agrees with everything that’s come up, is a good thing,’’ he said.

But Mr. Schumer sketched out a key area of disagreement, the components of a trigger for what would happen if Congress does not follow up with a second round late this year, based on recommendations by the commission. That is still under negotiation, he said.

“The key to the trigger is one word, equality,’’ he said. “It should be equally tough on Democrats and Republicans.’’ He proposed a series of policy defaults that would take effect if Congress could not agree, to encourage such agreement.

For example, he said, it might include steps anathema to Democrats, like cutting college scholarships for middle-class children or prescription drug benefits. And for Republicans, he said, “They would have to do things they hate, like close loopholes for oil companies, and corporate jets.’’

But at the moment, he said, “We don’t even know what all the details are, so we’re not yet ready to urge anybody to be for it.

On the ABC program “This Week,” David Plouffe, senior adviser to Mr. Obama, was asked if there was a deal. “No, there’s not,” he replied. But he laid out the outlines of an emerging agreement: a package that includes $1 trillion in cuts, and a Congressional commission that would report to Congress in the fall with a plan for additional changes amounting to $1 trillion or more.

Mr. Obama and the Democrats are still pushing for revenue increases, he said, though the Republicans remain opposed. “I think the American people have spoken out that they want a balanced approach,’’ he said.

He said twice that it was “inconceivable” that there would not be a deal, and said the American people were “furious” that no agreement had been reached.

Mr. Plouffe was followed by Senator Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, a Republican who has sometimes shown tendencies toward bipartisanship. He said that the emerging deal represented progress.

“It’s a $3 trillion package that will allow $7 trillion to be added to the deficit over the next decade,” he said. Without the agreement, $10 trillion would have been added, he said.

“We’re no longer running toward oblivion, we’re walking toward it,” he said.

But he has not decided whether to vote for it, he said.



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Sources: CNN, NY Times, Google Maps

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