Back to Square One on Fiscal Cliff Talks
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Just a few short days ago it seemed like Republicans and Democrats were going to get their act together to solve the fiscal cliff... Well, today it's back to normal.
Markets were jittery earlier today following comments from House Speaker John Boehner (R) and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R) that talks have taken a step backward.
"No substantive progress has been made in the talks between the White House and the House over the last two weeks," Boehner stated to reporters earlier. In a written statement from McConnell earlier, he stated: "Today they took a step backward, moving away from consensus and significantly closer to the cliff."
After the close, the Wall Street Journal has some details on what the Obama administration was offering.
According to the Journal:
"President Barack Obama made an opening bid in budget talks with Republicans that calls for a $1.6 trillion tax increase, a $50 billion economic-stimulus program and new power to raise the federal debt limit without congressional approval, a broad set of demands Republicans viewed as a step back in talks to avoid looming tax increases and spending cuts.
The proposal, offered by Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner as he made a round of meetings with congressional leaders in the Capitol Thursday, calls for increasing tax rates on incomes over $250,000, a one-year postponement of looming spending cuts in defense and domestic programs, and some $400 billion in savings over 10 years from Medicare and other entitlement programs"
As would be expected, GOP leaders didn't like what they heard.
Back to square one...
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Markets were jittery earlier today following comments from House Speaker John Boehner (R) and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R) that talks have taken a step backward.
"No substantive progress has been made in the talks between the White House and the House over the last two weeks," Boehner stated to reporters earlier. In a written statement from McConnell earlier, he stated: "Today they took a step backward, moving away from consensus and significantly closer to the cliff."
After the close, the Wall Street Journal has some details on what the Obama administration was offering.
According to the Journal:
"President Barack Obama made an opening bid in budget talks with Republicans that calls for a $1.6 trillion tax increase, a $50 billion economic-stimulus program and new power to raise the federal debt limit without congressional approval, a broad set of demands Republicans viewed as a step back in talks to avoid looming tax increases and spending cuts.
The proposal, offered by Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner as he made a round of meetings with congressional leaders in the Capitol Thursday, calls for increasing tax rates on incomes over $250,000, a one-year postponement of looming spending cuts in defense and domestic programs, and some $400 billion in savings over 10 years from Medicare and other entitlement programs"
As would be expected, GOP leaders didn't like what they heard.
Back to square one...
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