Tagged: debt ceiling

With a deal to avoid drastic spending cuts behind them, members of Congress are gearing up for what could be another grueling round of negotiations over the federal debt-ceiling.

U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) says members need to get to the bargaining table early this time.

The number two Democrat in the Senate told CNN’s Candy Crowley Sunday that he really doesn’t want to see a sequel to the so called “fiscal cliff” negotiations.

Missouri Senator Roy Blunt says the failure of two balanced-budget amendments today shows Senate Democrats aren’t serious about dealing with the deficit.

The defeat of both bills – one from Democrats, one from Republicans – ends the current push to force a yearly balanced budget from Congress.  Blunt, who voted for the Republican-backed bill, says the fact that neither party could pass their amendment speaks to the heart of the Senate’s disfunction.