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JEFFREY BROWN:"Let's get to work," that's what President Obama urged Congress to join him in doing to avoid a showdown over taxes, spending and debt, the so-called fiscal cliff. But he and House Speaker John Boehner both insisted they'd hold firm on whether or not to raise taxes on the wealthy.
Here are excerpts from the president's first comments on the subject since his victory Tuesday night. He spoke to a crowd of supporters in the East Room of the White House.
PRESIDENT BARACK OBAMA:As I said on Tuesday night, the American people voted for action, not politics as usual. You elected us to focus on your jobs, not ours.
And in that spirit, I have invited leaders of both parties to the White House next week, so we can start to build consensus around the challenges that we can only solve together.
Last year, I worked with Democrats and Republicans to cut a trillion dollars worth of spending that we just couldn't afford. I intend to work with both parties to do more. And that includes making reforms that will bring down the cost of health care, so we can strengthen programs like Medicaid and Medicare for the long haul.
Now, already, I have put forward a detailed plan that allows us to make these investments while reducing our deficit by $4 trillion over the next decade.
I want to be clear. I'm not wedded to every detail of my plan. I'm open to compromise. I'm open to new ideas. I'm committed to solving our fiscal challenges.
But I refuse to accept any approach that isn't balanced. I am not going to ask students and seniors and middle class families to pay down the entire deficit while people like me making over $250,000 aren't asked to pay a dime more in taxes.
(APPLAUSE)
BARACK OBAMA:I'm not going to do that.
And I just want to point out, this was a central question during the election. It was debated over and over again. And on Tuesday night, we found out that the majority of Americans agree with my approach. And that includes Democrats, independents, and a lot of Republicans across the country, as well as independent economists and budget experts.
That's how you reduce the deficit, with a balanced approach. So, our job now is to get a majority in Congress to reflect the will of the American people. And I believe we can get that majority.
I was encouraged to hear Speaker Boehner agree that tax revenue has to be part of this equation, so I look forward to hearing his ideas when I see him next week.
And let me make one final point that every American needs to hear. Right now, if Congress fails to come to an agreement on an overall deficit reduction package by the end of the year, everybody's taxes will automatically go up on Jan. 1, everybody's, including the 98 percent of Americans who make less than $250,000 a year.
That makes no sense. It would be bad for the economy and would hit families that are already struggling to make ends meet.
Now, fortunately, we shouldn't need long negotiations or drama to solve that part of the problem. While there may be disagreement in Congress over whether or not to raise taxes on folks making over $250,000 a year, nobody, not Republicans, not Democrats, want taxes to go up for folks making under $250,000 a year.
So, let's not wait. Even as we're negotiating a broader deficit reduction package, let's extend the middle class tax cuts right now. Let's do that right now.
(APPLAUSE)
BARACK OBAMA:That one step -- that one step would give millions of families, 98 percent of Americans and 97 percent of small businesses the certainty they need going into the new year.
It would immediately take a huge chunk of the economic uncertainty off the table, and that will lead to new jobs and faster growth. Business will know that consumers, they're not going to see a big tax increase. They'll know that most small businesses won't see a tax increase.
And so a lot of the uncertainty that you are reading about, that will be removed. In fact, the Senate has already passed a bill doing exactly this. So all we need is action from the House.
And I have got the pen ready to sign the bill right away. I'm ready to do it.
(APPLAUSE)
BARACK OBAMA:You know, the American people understand that we're going to have differences and disagreements in the months to come. They get that.
But on Tuesday, they said loud and clear that they won't tolerate dysfunction, they won't tolerate politicians who view compromise as a dirty word, not when so many Americans are still out of work, not when so many families and small business owners are still struggling to pay the bills.
What the American people are looking for is cooperation. They're looking for consensus. They're looking for common sense. Most of all, they want action.
JUDY WOODRUFF:Later, presidential spokesman Jay Carney said Mr. Obama would veto any bill that extended tax cuts for families earning $250,000 a year or more.
Earlier in the day, House Speaker John Boehner staked out his position on the same subject.
REP. JOHN BOEHNER,R-Ohio: You know, on Wednesday, I outlined a responsible path forward to avert the fiscal cliff without raising tax rates.
And about 24 hours after I spoke, the Congressional Budget Office released a report showing that the most harmful consequences of the fiscal cliff come from increasing tax rates.
According to Ernst & Young, raising the top rates would destroy nearly 700,000 jobs in our country.
You know, the members of our majority understand how important it is to avert the fiscal cliff. It's why the House took action earlier this year to replace the sequester with other types of cuts.
And it's also why over the summer, we passed a bill to extend all of the current tax rates for one year so that we had time to overhaul our tax code.
And it's why I outlined a responsible path forward where we can replace the spending cuts and extend the current rates, paving the way for entitlement reform, as well as tax reform, with lower rates.
Now, 2013 should be the year we begin to solve our debt through tax reform and entitlement reform, and I'm proposing that we avert the fiscal cliff together in a manner that ensures that 2013 is finally the year that our government comes to grips with the major problems that are facing us.
This will bring jobs home and result in a stronger, healthier economy. And a stronger, healthier economy means more Americans working and more revenues, which is what the president is seeking.
This framework can lead to common ground, and I hope the president will respond today in that same spirit.
As I said on Wednesday, this is an opportunity for the president to lead. This is his moment to engage the Congress and work towards a solution that can pass both chambers.
JEFFREY BROWN:Two senators join us now to discuss where things stand, Democrat Ben Cardin of Maryland, Republican Bob Corker of Tennessee.
And, Sen. Corker, start with you.
We heard in that first clip the president say that the vote on Tuesday showed that most Americans agree with his approach, which includes raising taxes on the wealthy.
So, is he right? What's your reading of the election results?
SEN. BOB CORKER,R-Tenn.: Well, I don't know. I'm not a good reader of election results.
But I do think there is a lot of common ground in the Senate on solving this problem. And I think that Republicans who want to solve this problem -- and I think that's the majority of those who serve in the Senate -- are more than willing to look at revenues, as long as we have meaningful entitlement reform.
So I'm hopeful. I think we have an opportunity. I don't know how the setting could be better than right now with things looming at year end. An election just occurred. I think now is the time for -- act. And I want to be constructive in that. And I know Ben Cardin wants to be constructive also.
