Dead End

Budget Talks Going Nowhere

Odds of shutdown soar.

Washington is living up to its reputation today, with frantic meetings and a presidential speech failing to break partisan stalemate on a budget deal. With a shutdown looming overhead, President Obama announced that House Speaker John Boehner and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid were meeting on Capitol Hill later in the day to continue negotiations. "The speaker apparently didn't want our team involved in that discussion," Obama said in the press briefing. "That's fine. If they can sort it out, then we've got more than enough to do." However, he added that if they do not reach an agreement, he will summon them to convene at the White House again on Wednesday. "Myself, Joe Biden, my team—we are prepared to meet for as long as possible to get this resolved," said the president. Boehner responded to Obama's hardball speech by emphasizing that the GOP was not in favor of a government shutdown, but that they want to the largest possible spending cuts for the budget. Earlier that day, Boehner declared that House Republicans would "not be put in a box" when it comes to settling the budget deal.