Sen. Baucus says ‘no choice’ but to avoid the fiscal cliff
Sen. Max Baucus chairs the Senate Finance Committee, and he says Congress will come to some kind of deal on the fiscal cliff — though more negotiations could happen after the end of the year.
No deal yet from Washington D.C. on the fiscal cliff. Republicans continue to resist calls for higher tax rates on the wealthy. But what about Democrats? Some have already signaled what they won’t change much when it comes to entitlement spending.
We decided to ask Sen. Baucus, the chairman of the Finance Committee.
“There’s a lot of talk around here on both sides,” Baucus says. “My view is there’s no choice but to do the best we can, we’ve got to go forward because things have to change.”
Baucus says tax rates have to be higher and if Republicans agree to compromise on that issue, he’s sure Democrats and the president will compromise on entitlements.
Baucus adds, “I think we’ll do it and if we don’t, by the end of this year, we’re going to have to regroup very aggressively the first of next year because next year, we will have then gone off the cliff.”