Boehner sends signals on deficit deal

The speaker of the house said Thursday that there is room for revenue increases in a deficit-reduction deal as long as such proposals are accompanied by major changes in government benefit programs.

The Wall Street Journal: Boehner Presses For Deficit Deal
House Speaker John Boehner gave new urgency to the drive for a deficit-cutting deal by saying he would press lawmakers to approve any agreement a congressional super committee makes, no matter what it contains (Bendavid and Hook, 11/4).

The Associated Press/Washington Post: Boehner: Agreeing To New Revenues Would Depend On Major Changes In Federal Benefit Programs
House Speaker John Boehner said Thursday that "there's room for revenue" as a congressional deficit-reduction super committee seeks $1.2 trillion or more in deficit cuts over the coming decade. But he says it would require a major overhaul of government benefit programs. "Without real reform on the entitlement side, I'm not even going to put any new revenue on the table," Boehner said. Entitlement programs include Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid (11/3).

Reuters: Deficit-Cut Deal Can Include Revenues: Boehner
House Speaker John Boehner on Thursday told reporters that a limited amount of revenues could be included in a deficit-reduction deal. A Boehner aide said those revenues could include ideas such as increasing government fees, selling government assets and raising co-payments in government health care programs (Cowan, 11/3).