Efforts are still on in Washington to hammer out a political deal that will not only avert a US debt default, but also reopen the Government after 11 days of partial shutdown.
A 90-minute meeting between President Barack Obama and the Republican leadership on Thursday evening remained inconclusive. Although senior aides continued to work late into the night, there was no word as of Friday morning on whether the two sides were any closer to sealing the deal.
The Republican offer of a six-week extension of the debt ceiling in return for negotiations on spending cuts has broken the political gridlock and provided relief to all those fearing a debt default, but Obama is reported to be keen on a simultaneous end to the Government shutdown.
A White House statement spoke of “a good meeting” between the President and the House Republican leaders, noting that the discussion covered “potential paths forward”, but adding that “no specific determination was made”.
“The President looks forward to making continued progress with members on both sides of the aisle,” the statement said, adding: “The President’s goal remains to ensure we pay the bills we’ve incurred, reopen the government and get back to the business of growing the economy, creating jobs and strengthening the middle class.”
A spokesman for Repu blican Speaker John Boehner said in a statement: “House Republicans remain committed to good faith negotiations with the president, and we are pleased there was an opportunity to sit down and begin a constructive dialogue tonight.”
House Majority leader Eric Cantor said it was “a very useful meeting”, adding: “The takeaway from the meeting was, our teams are going to be talking further tonight….The President said that he would go and consult with the administration folks, and hopefully we can see a way forward after that.”
Apart from the consultations with the House Republican leadership, Obama was set to have a meeting the Senate Republicans. Republican Congressman Paul Ryan, who heads the House Budget Committee, said the President “didn’t say yes, didn’t say no” to the Republican offer.