Day 11--No Deal at White House, but Both Sides Will Keep
Talking
After the House
GOP leadership met with the President yesterday negotiators worked to find a
deal. A few noteworthy quotes sums up the result:
·
“He [President Obama] didn’t say yes, he didn’t
say no. We’re going to continue negotiating this evening,” said House Budget
Chairman Paul D. Ryan, R-Wis., after the Thursday meeting with President Obama.
· The Ryan plan did not include a CR, but House
Armed Services Chairman Howard “Buck” McKeon, R-Calif., said adding one to the
package is “one of the things we’re talking about.”
·
Appropriations Chairman Harold Rogers, R-Ky.,
indicated that the President said he wanted the government reopened. “What
we’re trying to do is find a way to quickly settle the CR crisis so that we can
pass a CR and stop the shutdown,” he said.
·
Speaker John A. Boehner said in a statement, “No
final decisions were made; however, it was a useful and productive
conservation. The president and leaders agreed that communication should
continue throughout the night.”
At the same time GOP Senators, led by Appropriations
member Susan Collins (R-Maine), worked on a package to reopen the federal
government and raise the debt ceiling. Items in the package could
include:
Ø flexibility to deal with the sequestration during the next two years,
Ørepealing or delaying the 2.3 percent medical device tax under the ACA. The pay for would come from “pension smoothing,” a strategy that would allow private businesses to lower their pension contributions in the near future in exchange for higher payments down the line.
Ø Income verification for those receiving benefits under the health care law.
Sens. John McCain and John Cornyn, R-Texas voiced support
that they are hopeful the Collins solution will lead the way out of the fiscal
mess.
Meanwhile, Senate Democrats are sticking to their
position no negotiations until after the government is reopened and the debt
ceiling is raised.
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., filed cloture
on the motion to proceed to a bill (S 1569) that would suspend the debt limit
until Dec. 31, 2014, setting up a Saturday cloture vote.
The House was not originally scheduled to be session next
week. Congressional leaders informed Members last night that they must stay in
DC as the Oct 17th debt ceiling deadline draws closer.
To be continued .....
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