Bipartisan talks between the Obama administration and congressional leaders of both the Democratic and Republican parties would have a deal “beyond $1 trillion” in budget cuts before the Fourth of July recess, Vice President Joseph Biden said Tuesday, after the first of three scheduled meetings this week.
“I’m convinced that we can come up with an agreement that gets the debt limit passed and makes some real serious down payment on the commitment to 4 trillion bucks over the next 10 to 12 years,” he said, referring to the deficit reduction proposal made by President Obama in April.
The parameters for the talks were determined by the Obama administration’s capitulation to the demand of House Speaker John Boehner, the top congressional Republican, that legislation to raise the federal debt ceiling should include spending cuts of an equal amount.
Since the Treasury has forecast that about $2.4 trillion in new federal borrowing will be needed between now and the end of 2012, that would require $2.4 trillion in spending cuts.
