House Speaker John Boehner Breaks Off Deficit Reduction Talks With President Obama

Angry Obama Demands Tax Increases or No Deal



House Speaker John Boehner broke off talks with President Obama yesterday afternoon due to not reaching a deal on a deficit reduction deal.  President Obama wants to strike a deal that would include tax increases.  Speaker Boehner said that he would hammer out the details with the U.S. Senate.  Boehner said in a letter to fellow lawmakers that he and President Obama failed to reach an agreement on a broad deficit reduction package they had been negotiating and that the two had different visions for the country.  Today, President Obama had an emergency meeting with Congressional leaders this morning.  They still haven't come up with a plan as of yet. 

Standard & Poors, a leader of financial ratings, has repeatedly warned that it will downgrade the U.S.'s AAA-1+ credit score pending the outcome of the debt ceiling and deficit reduction talks.  The Law.com website said that a downgrade could have a domino effect on lenders (U.S. Treasury bond buyers), it could require a higher interest rate on American debt, which in turn could trigger higher interest rates on "business loans, mortgages, credit cards, and student loans.  There has been mounting pressure on the House Republicans to cave in and raise the debt ceiling, which is something President Obama and the Democrats desire.  If the Republicans cave in to raise the debt ceiling, it will enable President Obama to continue the usual runaway spending.  They desire to raise the debt ceiling, but they don't want to eliminate wasteful spending.