USA TODAY International Edition
White House eyes next fiscal cliffs, reaches out to GOP
Government faces shutdown if there is no deal after 9/ 30
WASHINGTON The White House conferred with Republican senators last Thursday as part of a quiet campaign aimed at assessing the lay of the land for autumn’s fiscal battles.
Democrats are looking for a longterm resolution to funding the government past the Sept. 30 end of the fiscal year and replacing unpopular across- the- board cuts — known as the sequester — with a more targeted deficit reduction package.
Republicans are focusing on a mid- October battle to seek concessions from the administration on a range of fiscal issues in exchange for raising the $ 16.7 trillion debt limit, the nation’s borrowing authority.
The battles hold sweeping consequences for the U. S. if they fail to reach an agreement. The sequester cuts — broadly viewed as bad policy — will continue; the federal government faces a shutdown after Sept. 30 if there is no deal; and the U. S. also could be at risk of defaulting on debts, roiling financial markets.
Still, August has been a quiet month. Thursday’s White House meeting was the first of its kind since Congress adjourned for the summer.
Michael Steel, a spokesman for House Speaker John Boehner, ROhio, said the speaker and President Obama have not had any recent talks about the fiscal fights ahead, and there are no meetings yet scheduled. Congress returns Sept. 9.
White House chief of staff Denis McDonough conferred Thursday with a group of GOP senators, among them Sens. Kelly Ayotte of New Hampshire, Bob Corker of Tennessee, Lindsey Graham of South Carolina and John McCain of Arizona.
The White House views these lawmakers as the most likely allies for replacing the sequester with targeted spending cuts in part because they share concerns about what the cuts are doing to national defense.
The White House did not respond to requests for comment on the meeting, and congressional aides who confirmed it was taking place declined to be identified because the group pledged to keep their discussions private.
A senior Senate Democratic aide said the White House talks are focused on how to mitigate the sequester cuts in the upcoming debate over funding the government.
House Speaker John Boehner, ROhio, told the rank- and- file last week that he wants to pass a bill to keep the government funded until Dec. 15 in order to prevent House Republicans from being accused of threatening a shutdown. Boehner wants to focus instead on the debt ceiling.
However, he faces divisions within his party over the way forward. At least 80 House Republicans have signed a letter saying they will not vote for any funding bill unless it defunds the president’s health care law.
Democrats are also going to continue to seek additional revenues in any fiscal deals, despite unanimous opposition from the GOP on any new taxes. Senate Budget Committee Chairwoman Patty Murray, D- Wash., said Democrats want a “fair budget deal” that “calls on the wealthiest Americans and biggest corporations to pay their fair share.”
GOP efforts are focused on reducing mandatory spending for entitlement programs such as Social Security and Medicare, dismantling the president’s health care law and overhauling the tax code.