Boehner: The Dog Days of the Fiscal Cliff Are Here

“No substantive progress have been made in the talks between the White House and the House over the last two weeks,” Boehner told reporters. “There’s been no serious discussion of spending cuts so far, and unless there is, there’s a real danger of going off the fiscal cliff.”

Democrats counter that they have already proposed legislation consisting of $1 trillion in spending cuts and that they are waiting to see a clear proposal from Republicans on what they want cut. Republicans, as Boehner notes, view the current Democratic offer as a joke highlighted by the massive $1.6 trillion revenue figure in the recent proposal. It’s a far cry from the $800 billion or so that was being tossed around before the election. Republicans are likely looking to settle for a figure closer to $1 trillion.

“I’m disappointed in where we are and disappointed in what’s happened over the last couple of weeks,” Boehner said after meeting with Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner on Thursday. If the cliff does trigger, the past few weeks will indeed be tremendously disappointing as the reason why America slammed the brakes on its own economy.

In Boehner’s weekly press conference, Boehner said that “the President has warned us about the dangers of going over the fiscal cliff, but his actions have not matched his public statements.” Boehner criticized the President’s decision to go on a road trip and try to rally the public instead of remaining in Washington to continue discussions.

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