Budget update Thursday: No sign of compromise in sight

The two parties on Thursday morning did not appear any closer to even having the right frame of mind for negotiations on a budget deal, and instead continued to pick apart each other's positions.

As our colleague Vicki Needham writes, House Republicans are now planning a two-week budget extension that would cut $4 billion from current spending levels. The House is expected to hold a vote on that bill early next week.

But Senate Democrats are already calling the House plans "extreme," and say the pace set by cutting $4 billion over two weeks is similar to cutting $61 billion over the rest of this year. A spokesman for Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) said both ideas are "non-starters."

On Thursday morning, House Speaker John Boehner accused Democrats of rejecting a bill they haven't seen yet, and said the Senate is not considering the full FY 2011 spending bill the House approved last week.

"Ironically, Democrats rammed the failed 'stimulus' spending bill into law two years ago without giving lawmakers or the public any time to read it," a statement from Boehner's office said. "Now they’re rejecting a proposal that would keep the government running while cutting spending — without bothering to read it themselves?"

In a statement earlier Thursday from House Minority Whip Steny Hoyer (D-Md.), Democrats gave Republicans failing grades on fiscal responsibility. He said Republicans "have not offered a serious plan to address the deficit."