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Posted: 5/7/2013 4:16:55 PM EST
Senate Budget Commitee chairwoman Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., listens to questions from Chuck Todd of NBC News at the 2013 Fiscal Summit in Washington, Tuesday, May 7, 2013. (AP Photo/Charles Dharapak)
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Posted: 5/7/2013 4:16:55 PM EST
Senate Budget Commitee chairwoman Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., listens to questions from Chuck Todd of NBC News at the 2013 Fiscal Summit in Washington, Tuesday, May 7, 2013. (AP Photo/Charles Dharapak)
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Posted: 5/7/2013 4:16:55 PM EST
Sen. Rob Portman, R-Ohio, speaks about the budget at the 2013 Fiscal Summit in Washington, Tuesday, May 7, 2013. (AP Photo/Charles Dharapak)
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Posted: 5/7/2013 4:16:55 PM EST
Sen. Rob Portman, R-Ohio, speaks about the budget at the 2013 Fiscal Summit in Washington, Tuesday, May 7, 2013. (AP Photo/Charles Dharapak)
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Posted: 5/7/2013 11:03:26 AM EST
International Monetary Fund head Christine Lagarde speaks to students at the University of Amsterdam, Netherlands, Tuesday, May 7, 2013. Lagarde criticized the U.S. government's budget policies as too tight on Tuesday, in an appearance in Amsterdam that was interrupted by student protestors. Security guards dragged students away until there were none left shouting, and eventually the interview resumed. (AP Photo/Toby Sterling)
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Posted: 5/7/2013 11:03:26 AM EST
International Monetary Fund head Christine Lagarde speaks to students at the University of Amsterdam, Netherlands, Tuesday, May 7, 2013. Lagarde criticized the U.S. government's budget policies as too tight on Tuesday, in an appearance in Amsterdam that was interrupted by student protestors. Security guards dragged students away until there were none left shouting, and eventually the interview resumed. (AP Photo/Toby Sterling)
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Posted: 5/7/2013 11:03:26 AM EST
International Monetary Fund head Christine Lagarde speaks to students at the University of Amsterdam, Netherlands, Tuesday, May 7, 2013. Lagarde criticized the U.S. government's budget policies as too tight on Tuesday, in an appearance in Amsterdam that was interrupted by student protestors. Security guards dragged students away until there were none left shouting, and eventually the interview resumed. (AP Photo/Toby Sterling)
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Posted: 5/7/2013 11:03:26 AM EST
International Monetary Fund head Christine Lagarde speaks to students at the University of Amsterdam, Netherlands, Tuesday, May 7, 2013. Lagarde criticized the U.S. government's budget policies as too tight on Tuesday, in an appearance in Amsterdam that was interrupted by student protestors. Security guards dragged students away until there were none left shouting, and eventually the interview resumed. (AP Photo/Toby Sterling)
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Posted: 5/5/2013 9:03:38 AM EST
FILE - In this Oct. 6, 2011, file photo, Carol Gay, of Brick, N.J., holds a sign saying "Tax the Rich," as several groups including the Peoples Uprisings, October 2011 Coalition, and Occupy DC, "occupy" Freedom Plaza in Washington. Absent a magic potion or explosive economic growth, it was all but inevitable President Barack Obama would have to break some of his campaign promises to keep others, distinguished both by their ambition and incompatibility. Taxes are at the center of every major budget fight gripping Washington. Democrats and Republicans simply do not agree on whether taxpayers should be asked to shell out more in order to reduce government borrowing. That’s why Congress and the White House couldn’t agree on a plan to avoid automatic spending cuts. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin, File)
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Posted: 5/5/2013 9:03:38 AM EST
FILE - In this Oct. 6, 2011, file photo, Carol Gay, of Brick, N.J., holds a sign saying "Tax the Rich," as several groups including the Peoples Uprisings, October 2011 Coalition, and Occupy DC, "occupy" Freedom Plaza in Washington. Absent a magic potion or explosive economic growth, it was all but inevitable President Barack Obama would have to break some of his campaign promises to keep others, distinguished both by their ambition and incompatibility. Taxes are at the center of every major budget fight gripping Washington. Democrats and Republicans simply do not agree on whether taxpayers should be asked to shell out more in order to reduce government borrowing. That’s why Congress and the White House couldn’t agree on a plan to avoid automatic spending cuts. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin, File)
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Posted: 5/5/2013 9:03:38 AM EST
FILE - In this July 15, 2011, file photo, members of Progressive Change Campaign Committee upset over potential cuts to Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security walk to President Barack Obama's campaign headquarters in Chicago, to deliver 200,000 signatures from people who are refusing to donate or volunteer for his re-election campaign if Obama cuts entitlement programs. Absent a magic potion or explosive economic growth, it was all but inevitable President Barack Obama would have to break some of his campaign promises to keep others, because of their incompatibility. As the population gets older, Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid are eating up more and more of the federal budget, squeezing the ability of the government to pay for other programs. Today, the three massive benefit programs account for 44 percent of federal spending. Left unchanged, they will account for more than 60 percent in 25 years, according to the Congressional Budget Office. (AP Photo/David Banks, File)
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Posted: 5/5/2013 9:03:38 AM EST
FILE - In this July 15, 2011, file photo, members of Progressive Change Campaign Committee upset over potential cuts to Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security walk to President Barack Obama's campaign headquarters in Chicago, to deliver 200,000 signatures from people who are refusing to donate or volunteer for his re-election campaign if Obama cuts entitlement programs. Absent a magic potion or explosive economic growth, it was all but inevitable President Barack Obama would have to break some of his campaign promises to keep others, because of their incompatibility. As the population gets older, Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid are eating up more and more of the federal budget, squeezing the ability of the government to pay for other programs. Today, the three massive benefit programs account for 44 percent of federal spending. Left unchanged, they will account for more than 60 percent in 25 years, according to the Congressional Budget Office. (AP Photo/David Banks, File)
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Posted: 5/5/2013 9:03:38 AM EST
FILE - In this Feb. 5, 2013, file photo, Congressional Budget Office Director Douglas Elmendorf is reflected on a table as he speaks about the office's annual Budget and Economic Outlook during a news conference at the Ford House Office Building in Washington. Absent a magic potion or explosive economic growth, it was all but inevitable President Barack Obama would have to break some of his campaign promises to keep others, because of their incompatibility. The U.S. economy is recovering from the Great Recession but at a modest, uneven pace. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)
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Posted: 5/5/2013 9:03:38 AM EST
FILE - In this Feb. 5, 2013, file photo, Congressional Budget Office Director Douglas Elmendorf is reflected on a table as he speaks about the office's annual Budget and Economic Outlook during a news conference at the Ford House Office Building in Washington. Absent a magic potion or explosive economic growth, it was all but inevitable President Barack Obama would have to break some of his campaign promises to keep others, because of their incompatibility. The U.S. economy is recovering from the Great Recession but at a modest, uneven pace. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)
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Posted: 5/5/2013 9:03:38 AM EST
FILE - In this Aug. 8, 2011, file photo, a statue of former Treasury Secretary Albert Gallatin stands outside the Treasury Building in Washington. Absent a magic potion or explosive economic growth, it was all but inevitable President Barack Obama would have to break some of his campaign promises to keep others. If there's one thing that distinguished them besides their ambition, it was their incompatibility. Even after a hard-fought deficit-cutting deal in 2011 and a tax-increase measure in January, Washington still has a considerable way to go to wrestle intractable budget deficits under control. The Congressional Budget Office estimates cumulative deficits of roughly $7 trillion over the coming decade and warns "such high and rising debt would have serious consequences," including higher interest costs for the government, reduced national savings and investment and a potential fiscal crisis. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin, File)
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Posted: 5/5/2013 9:03:38 AM EST
FILE - In this Aug. 8, 2011, file photo, a statue of former Treasury Secretary Albert Gallatin stands outside the Treasury Building in Washington. Absent a magic potion or explosive economic growth, it was all but inevitable President Barack Obama would have to break some of his campaign promises to keep others. If there's one thing that distinguished them besides their ambition, it was their incompatibility. Even after a hard-fought deficit-cutting deal in 2011 and a tax-increase measure in January, Washington still has a considerable way to go to wrestle intractable budget deficits under control. The Congressional Budget Office estimates cumulative deficits of roughly $7 trillion over the coming decade and warns "such high and rising debt would have serious consequences," including higher interest costs for the government, reduced national savings and investment and a potential fiscal crisis. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin, File)
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Posted: 5/4/2013 11:33:43 AM EST
FILE - In this April 25, 2013 file photo, a woman is reflected in a retail store's window display in Baltimore. The American economy and job market are moving in the right direction, just not very quickly. The news Friday, May 3, 2013, that U.S. employers added a solid 165,000 jobs in April and unemployment fell to a four-year low 7.5 percent came as a relief. Consumers have shrugged off an increase in their Social Security taxes this year and the budget shenanigans in Washington: From January through March, they spent at the strongest pace in two years. That's good news because consumers account for 70 percent of U.S. economic activity. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky, File)
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Posted: 5/4/2013 11:33:43 AM EST
FILE - In this April 25, 2013 file photo, a woman is reflected in a retail store's window display in Baltimore. The American economy and job market are moving in the right direction, just not very quickly. The news Friday, May 3, 2013, that U.S. employers added a solid 165,000 jobs in April and unemployment fell to a four-year low 7.5 percent came as a relief. Consumers have shrugged off an increase in their Social Security taxes this year and the budget shenanigans in Washington: From January through March, they spent at the strongest pace in two years. That's good news because consumers account for 70 percent of U.S. economic activity. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky, File)
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Posted: 5/3/2013 3:38:22 AM EST
FILE - In this April 26, 2013, file photo, Forest Service Chief Tom Tidwell testifies on Capitol Hill in Washington, before the House Appropriations Committee, subcommittee on Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies budget hearing on forest service. The U.S. Forest Service is in the business of preventing fires, not starting them. Yet the agency set off alarms in Congress and state capitols across the West by citing the automatic spending cuts as the basis for demanding that dozens of states return $17.9 million in federal subsidies. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta, File)
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Posted: 5/3/2013 3:38:22 AM EST
FILE - In this April 26, 2013, file photo, Forest Service Chief Tom Tidwell testifies on Capitol Hill in Washington, before the House Appropriations Committee, subcommittee on Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies budget hearing on forest service. The U.S. Forest Service is in the business of preventing fires, not starting them. Yet the agency set off alarms in Congress and state capitols across the West by citing the automatic spending cuts as the basis for demanding that dozens of states return $17.9 million in federal subsidies. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta, File)
