–President Obama: Deal Will ‘End The Crisis Washington Imposed’ On US
–Obama: House, Senate Leaders To Meet With Their Members Monday
–No Hill Votes On Agreement Until Monday At Earliest
–Obama: ‘We’re Not Done Yet'; Must Get Votes To Pass Agreement
–Sens. McConnell, Reid Praise Agreement, Say It Will Avert Crisis
–House Speaker Boehner Briefed House GOP On Positive Features of Plan

By John Shaw

WASHINGTON (MNI) – President Obama said Sunday night that he’s
reached an agreement with the bipartisan leadership in Congress to
increase the statutory debt ceiling and enact a substantial package of
spending cuts.

“The leaders of both parties in both chambers have reached an
agreement that will reduce the deficit and avoid default,” Obama said
in comments in the White House press room.

Obama said the agreement will be reviewed by House and Senate
members Monday, adding that Congress must hold “some very important
votes” to pass the package in the coming days.

“We’re not done yet,” he said, referring to the need for both the
House and Senate to approve the plan.

The president sketched the central elements of the package: about
$1 trillion in spending cuts that will be approved this week and
implemented over a decade and the creation of a special congressional
panel to come up with a large package of spending cuts by the end of the
year.

“At this stage, everything will be on the table,” Obama said in
reference to the work of the congressional panel. Lawmakers have said
this panel will assemble at least $1.5 trillion in deficit reduction,
drawing from both entitlement programs and tax reform.

The debt ceiling will be increased into early 2013.

Obama, in an obvious reference to his failure to reach an even
larger deficit reduction deal with congressional Republicans, said he
would have preferred a more substantial deficit reduction package.

But he added this agreement will make a “serious downpayment” on
cutting deficits.

Obama said the agreement should “end the crisis Washington imposed
on America.” He added that the effort to increase the debt ceiling has
been “messy” and has “taken far too long.”

Moments before Obama spoke, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid and
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell announced their support of the
plan on the floor of the Senate.

Reid said the package should allow both parties to “move forward
together,” adding that both Democrats and Republicans “gave more ground
than they wanted to” during the negotiations.

Earlier in the day, House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi said she
will review the agreement with her caucus Monday afternoon and declined
to make a clear commitment of support.

House Speaker John Boehner briefed his members on the plan and
offered a seven-page PowerPoint deck to highlight its positive features,
congressional staff said.

The debt ceiling agreement will be placed on a bill that is pending
in the Senate and is likely to be voted on by the upper chamber Monday.

Assuming it passes the Senate, it will then be sent to the House
for a final vote, presumably Monday night or Tuesday.

Passing this package through both chambers in a few days will be
difficult, especially since it will require a very unusual coalition of
Democratic and Republican lawmakers to support it.

The agreement seems likely to pass the Senate by a strong vote but
is almost certain to face a close vote in the House.

The U.S. has already reached its $14.29 trillion debt ceiling.
Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner has said that Congress must pass
legislation increasing the debt ceiling by August 2, this coming
Tuesday.

** Market News International Washington Bureau: (202) 371-2121 **

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