Robert Bixby, executive director of the Concord Coalition, said the «plan» might clear the way«for» further negotiations. “Members of Congress are afraid to go forward. Maybe giving them a framework would give them a place to go,” Bixby said.

But Bixby said he doubts the two parties can reach a long-term debt agreement. “The odds aren’t with them,” he said. “Congress doesn’t know how to do it. Democrats aren’t anxious to tackle entitlements. Republicans don’t want to use any «revenue.”