Reid and McConnell put together a backup plan.
What is emerging as the most likely outcome is a plan based on Messrs. McConnell and Reid’s work, a Democratic official familiar with negotiations said. It would include roughly $1 trillion in deficit reduction, but would not come with tax increases or Medicare savings, the official said. It could include an extension of unemployment insurance, the official said, which costs $40 billion and would be offset by spending cuts.
Mr. Obama suggested in Thursday’s meeting that leaders end tax breaks for ethanol producers, oil and gas companies and corporate jet owners, and offset those tax increases with an extension of the payroll tax credit for employees, a Democratic official familiar with the meeting said, but Republicans said they would not support it.
Mr. Obama said he still prefers a larger plan, but the only way to get even to a $2 trillion deal is to include tax increases, which Republicans flatly oppose, or Medicare cuts, which Democrats oppose without concessions from Republicans on taxes. Mr. Obama will hold a news conference Friday morning.
In other words, if Boehner can browbeat the House Republicans in to budging on tax increases, the Dems are going to cut Medicare. Oh, yay!
This is not a game. Real Democrats oppose Medicare cuts.
they keep referring to this as a “backup plan” but my impression is that plan A has effectively fallen apart and they’re not really talking much about it anymore. the entire discussion seems to be about the backup. so why is it still a backup? isn’t it just the plan?
Doesn’t this tax increase/Medicare Cut deal suggest that both of them are in on the same strategy? In these room where they are supposed to be “negotiating” they are really just drinking coffee and working out the script that they are going to play when they go outside.