-Incoming Chairman of Senate Budget Panel Says Dems Waiting For GOP
-Sen. Murray: Dems Willing To Support Serious Entitlement Reforms

By John Shaw

WASHINGTON (MNI) – Democratic senator Patty Murray, the incoming chairman
of the Senate Budget Committee, said Wednesday that Democrats will be willing to
make concessions on entitlement reforms after Republicans outline revenue
increases in a “real way.”

In an interview on MSNBC, Murray said Democrats prefer a broad budget
agreement in the coming weeks, adding “it’s not a good idea to go over the
fiscal cliff.”

But she said it would be a “worse idea” to renew Bush-era tax cuts for
those families making more than $250,000. She repeated the Democratic line,
advanced again by President Obama Wednesday, that Congress should pass an
extension of the middle class portion of the Bush tax cuts now. This would be a
“practical response” to the fiscal cliff impasse, she said.

Murray said that Democrats offered “serious, considerable” entitlement
reforms during the deliberations last year by the Super Committee–and are
prepared to do so again once Republicans offer a specific proposal to generate
substantial revenues

In a briefing earlier in the day, House Speaker John Boehner said he’s
“optimistic” an agreement can be reached with President Obama, but added the
administration must offer a proposal that has spending controls and entitlement
reforms.

“The goal here is to grow the economy and control spending,” Boehner said.

Boehner dismissed the Democratic call for the House to pass a Senate
approved bill that would extend Bush era tax cuts for those families making
$250,000 or less.

This approach would “hurt our economy,” he said.

Boehner said there is a “spending crisis coming at us like a freight
train.”

House Majority Leader Eric Cantor said the administration must embrace
entitlement reforms to jump-start the fiscal cliff talks.

“This has to be part of the agreement,” Cantor said.

–MNI Washington Bureau; tel: +1 202-371-2121; email: jshaw@mni-news.com

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