re: #48 Dark_Falcon

Eh, eh. Before any tax hikes can be accepted, I’d need to see specific non-defense cuts detailed. Republicans should list some such cuts and then require the Democrats to accept some of them. Privately, of course. This isn’t the sort of situation where either side can publicly agree to preconditions.

If the GOP is not going to accept preconditions, then I see no reason to have negotiations, publicly or privately. If Mr. Boehner cannot control enough votes in the House to ensure such a deal will reach the Senate, as he could not during the debt ceiling debacle, then I see no reason to waste time on a deal that will go nowhere.