Budget Talks

WASHINGTON -- Long-running budget talks between key members of Congress and top Bush administration officials hit another roadblock last night as negotiations stumbled over a dispute between Republicans and Democrats about which taxes to raise on the wealthiest Americans.The latest obstacle in the tortuous budget discussions arose after both parties had agreed in principle to increase the income taxes levied on top earners. That consensus led participants and observers yesterday to predict agreement on a comprehensive deficit-reduction agreement within hours, five months after the first budget talks got under way.But as the day progressed, talks became entangled in a disagreement over the kind of tax increase to be imposed on individuals with taxable annual incomes above $1 million.

One of the more amusing subplots of Washington's latest (if not most pitiful) fiscal standoff is the greater investment in finger-pointing and history rewriting than in actually negotiating a compromise. House Speaker John A. Boehner is particularly fond of referring to the "Obama sequester," as if the president of the United States had authority over the budget - or there was even much hope that he could force Congress to take action on one. But at least Mr. Boehner is willing to concede that the automatic spending cuts due on March 1 are "bad policy," whereas many others in his party seemed to have recently adopted the stance that they are not. In one week, about $85 billion in across-the-board cuts go through - cuts in national defense and other vital programs originally designed to maximize Washington's discomfort and force negotiations.

WASHINGTON -- White House and congressional negotiators opened talks last night on balancing the budget amid signs that President Clinton may be less committed than the Republicans to striking a bargain.At a Capitol Hill meeting yesterday, Mr. Clinton promised Senate Democrats that he would resist Republican efforts to make savings in the social, environmental and education programs he has described as essential to the nation's well-being."We'd like to get a deal and are negotiating in good faith, but more important is the president's priorities and principles," George Stephanopoulos, a senior Clinton adviser, said in an interview.

As this page has devoted much ink to criticizing Republicans in Congress for hardening their positions on matters of federal tax and budget policy to the point where compromise is impossible, it is beyond disappointing to see a leading Senate Democrat engaging in similar behavior. Whether it's equivalent or not, Sen. Charles E. Schumer went too far this week when he rejected any possibility of lower tax rates for the wealthy. Mind you, we understand where Senator Schumer is coming from.

WASHINGTON -- The partial shutdown of the federal government moves into a record-breaking seventh day today as President Clinton and Republican lawmakers regroup for new balanced-budget negotiations."

It has come to this: Election-year tension over Maryland's budget predicament has grown so intense that Republicans and Democrats can't even agree on how to talk about the problem. The General Assembly's top fiscal leaders want Republican lawmakers to gather for an unusual meeting next week to discuss programs that could be reduced or eliminated. Weary of being criticized for irresponsible spending, House and Senate leaders want Republicans to outline exactly where to trim the state's $13 billion general fund budget.

WASHINGTON -- With a second government shutdown looming by Friday, White House and congressional negotiators got a boost in their budget talks yesterday from more optimistic revenue estimates that give them about $135 billion extra to work with.But a speedy deal still seems unlikely.Revised predictions of economic conditions by the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office -- especially lower inflation and interest rates -- brought the two sides closer in their estimates of how tightly federal spending must be squeezed to eliminate the deficit by the target year of 2002.

WASHINGTON -- President Clinton and congressional Republicans adjourned their marathon budget talks for a week yesterday without an agreement, but without a breakdown either.In separate news conferences that were uncharacteristically civil, each side said that though it needed more concessions from the other side, they were far from giving up. In fact, they tentatively agreed to resume their negotiations next Wednesday morning."A final agreement is clearly within reach," Mr. Clinton told reporters.

WASHINGTON -- Frustrated by the pace of budget talks and unhappy at being blamed for a 3-week-old partial government shutdown, House Speaker Newt Gingrich canceled a White House meeting yesterday and tried -- but did not immediately succeed -- to persuade fellow GOP House members to get the government running again.The proposal would bring the 280,000 furloughed federal employees back to work, pay the estimated 480,000 who've been working without pay and fund some of the more popular -- and politically sensitive -- federal programs that have been strained since the shutdown began Dec. 16.Mr.

Senate President Thomas V. Mike Miller said as of 1 p.m. Saturday there are no signs of a breakthrough that would allow Senate and House negotiators to get together again to hammer out final detail of a budget for next  year. A holdup in the budget talks -- apparently related to the issue of casino gambling -- has raised the possibility that the General Assembly will not complete a budget by its deadline Monday at midnight and that it could be forced into an extended session. A scheduled meeting of the conference committees on budget-related bills Saturday morning was canceled.

To be Mike Miller, it seems, is to be misunderstood. The Senate president and Annapolis institution has been getting most of the blame (including from this editorial page) for the failure of key budget and tax bills at the end of the General Assembly session last week. The general impression had been that he was holding up consideration of the budget as leverage to get what he really wanted: a referendum to allow a casino inPrince George's County, and, as part of the bargain, table games at all of Maryland's slots parlors.

A lengthy roster of high-profile bills remains unresolved as the General Assembly begins what is supposed to be the final day of its 2012 session: Offshore wind power. A doubling of the so-called "flush tax. " The future of gambling in Maryland. But really, it's all about the budget. First and foremost, Maryland lawmakers are coming in Monday hoping they can break a stalemate between the Senate and House and pass a budget in the roughly 16 hours of legislating that remain in their regular 90-day session.

Senate President Thomas V. Mike Miller said as of 1 p.m. Saturday there are no signs of a breakthrough that would allow Senate and House negotiators to get together again to hammer out final detail of a budget for next  year. A holdup in the budget talks -- apparently related to the issue of casino gambling -- has raised the possibility that the General Assembly will not complete a budget by its deadline Monday at midnight and that it could be forced into an extended session. A scheduled meeting of the conference committees on budget-related bills Saturday morning was canceled.

The last time a budget crisis forced the federal government to close its doors, Social Security Administration paralegal Elaine Mitchell relied on a credit card for some expenses, made partial payments on monthly bills and burned through savings to keep her family afloat while she was out of work. With the prospect of another government shutdown looming this week, the 59-year-old Clinton woman isn't sure she'll be able to count on the same backstops this time. For starters, she said, the interest rate on her credit card is higher than it was during the shutdown in 1995.

It has come to this: Election-year tension over Maryland's budget predicament has grown so intense that Republicans and Democrats can't even agree on how to talk about the problem. The General Assembly's top fiscal leaders want Republican lawmakers to gather for an unusual meeting next week to discuss programs that could be reduced or eliminated. Weary of being criticized for irresponsible spending, House and Senate leaders want Republicans to outline exactly where to trim the state's $13 billion general fund budget.

It has come to this: Election-year tension over Maryland's budget predicament has grown so intense that Republicans and Democrats can't even agree on how to talk about the problem. The General Assembly's top fiscal leaders want Republican lawmakers to gather for an unusual meeting next week to discuss programs that could be reduced or eliminated. Weary of being criticized for irresponsible spending, House and Senate leaders want Republicans to outline exactly where to trim from the state's $13 billion general fund budget.

HILTON HEAD, S.C. -- With the budget breakdown unfixed and federal workers still uneasy, President Clinton opened the new year by tackling nothing more difficult than driving golf balls through the rain after staying up until 2 a.m. yesterday talking with friends.In a somewhat frantic one-day sojourn, Mr. Clinton flew with his family to this coastal playland to take part in the high-achievers retreat called Renaissance Weekend and indulge his love of golf.Some 280,000 federal workers remained on furlough, and the budget talks, stalled for months, were poised at what could be a climactic stage, but Mr. Clinton had agreed with House Speaker Newt Gingrich and Senate Majority Leader Bob Dole on a 48-hour break until today, and that opened up just enough time for the Clintons to make their 12th consecutive appearance at the retreat.

WASHINGTON -- With balanced budget talks again on the verge of collapse, President Clinton and key Republican lawmakers agreed to resume discussions today, in hopes of reaching a deal that would end a six-day partial government shutdown.House Republicans, increasingly angry at the lack of progress toward reaching a balanced budget, had nearly derailed the talks yesterday when they refused to provide temporary spending for the shuttered agencies."We are tired of talking about talking and negotiating about negotiating," said Rep. Christopher Shays, a Connecticut Republican.

What a difference a year makes. Schools Superintendent Kevin M. Maxwell, who proposed a $977 million operating budget for the school system last week, said he and County Executive John R. Leopold have been meeting monthly since August. He described those interactions as "collegial." And Leopold called the proposed budget "consistent with my own budget priorities." "I believe those conversations have led us to a place of greater understanding on all sides, and I certainly respect the job Mr.

As they debate a spending plan for the fiscal year that starts July 1, some Howard County Council members are more worried about potential red ink in the county's future. That concern could set the stage for attempts to cut County Executive Ken Ulman's pending $1.4 billion proposal, as the council closes in on final budget votes scheduled for May 22. If members want to make changes, they must be submitted by late this week. Cuts made now to the fiscal 2009 budget could lessen spending increases required for fiscal 2010.