What now? ‘God only knows,’ Boehner says

Source: El Paso Inc. (New York Times)


House Speaker John A. Boehner, in the wake of the embarrassing defeat of his backup plan to avert a fiscal crisis in two short weeks, on Friday called on the Senate and President Barack Obama to find a way out, but added that "God only knows" how Washington is going to get control of its finances.

With the House headed home for the holidays and the Senate soon to depart, Boehner gave no hints of a path to avoid the so-called "fiscal cliff," when more than a half trillion dollars in automatic spending cuts and tax increases kick in beginning next month.

He said that on Monday, he had delivered his demands to the president for a broad deficit-reduction deal to avoid the crisis. The president delivered his "bottom lines" and told him "he couldn't go any further."

"Because of the political divide in this country, because of the divide here in Washington, trying to bridge these differences has been difficult," the speaker said.


Read more: http://www.elpasoinc.com/news/wire/article_c94984ee-4d20-11e2-92a5-0019bb30f31a.html