Budget

The CBO refused to provide a new estimate, but said scrapping the law's taxes and spending cuts would outweigh the reforms' costs.

The CBO said the deficit will shrink this year to $642 billion — the smallest since before Obama took office.

Officials warned cuts had harmed wildfire management as agencies prepare for a season with "above normal significant fire potential."

Both chambers will dig into the farm bill this week as lawmakers look to strike a deal.

The Senate Agriculture Committee is set to mark up its version of the bill on Tuesday, while its House counterpart will follow suit on Wednesday. 

The biggest difference between the two bills is how they handle food stamps. The House would cut $23 billion from food stamp programs, while the Senate bill would trim just $4 billion.

Leaders in the House and Senate have both committed to floor action in the coming weeks. Farmers are currently operating under an extension of the 2008 farm bill.

A top White House official said Thursday that President Obama won't haggle over a debt ceiling increase later this year and risk a repeat of 2011. 

Gene Sperling, director of the National Economic Council, told reporters that the president "simply is not going to negotiate on the debt limit." 

"It's the responsibility of Congress to authorize payment of debts," he said. 

On the debt limit, the president has been "crystal clear that the era of threatening default has to be over" and that using a potential of default for other gains also has to end, Sperling said.

Republicans once again rejected Democrats’ unanimous consent agreement to form a conference committee on the House and Senate budgets on Thursday.

Senate Budget Committee Chairwoman Patty Murray (D-Wash.) said Republicans are holding the budget process “hostage” after Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) objected for a fifth time to appointing conferees to work out the massive difference between the House and Senate budget resolutions.

House Republicans on Wednesday introduced seven budget reform bills as this year’s budget process has ground to a halt over an inability of the House and Senate to form a budget conference committee.

The reform bills come from members of the House Budget Committee.

“These reforms are an important step toward restoring fiscal discipline in Washington,” said Chairman Paul Ryan (R-Wis.). “But there is no substitute for the political will necessary to pay down the debt and to expand opportunity for all Americans. That’s why the House passed a budget earlier this year that would put in place a plan to balance the budget in ten years to foster a healthier economy and help create jobs.”  

Ranking member Rep. Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) said the GOP should start the reform process by agreeing to follow regular order and appoint conferees to this year’s budget conference, which they have refused to do without a pre-conference framework agreement. 

“While we look forward to a constructive discussion about the merits of reforming the budget process, I suggest that we start by complying with the existing rules,” he said. “April 15 was the statutory deadline to pass a final budget conference report — and yet Speaker [John] Boehner refuses to even appoint conferees to sit down at the table to iron out our differences.”

Van Hollen is the co-sponsor with Ryan of one of the bills. The Expedited Line-Item Veto and Rescissions Act would allow the president to request specific spending be ended from passed appropriations bills and have his request receive fast-track treatment. A true line-item veto has been found unconstitutional. 

Another of the bills would put Congress on a two-year budget process. Van Hollen said Tuesday that he could support such a switch. 

Sen. Mark Warner (D-Va.) tried for the fourth time to get Republicans to agree to go to conference on the House and Senate budgets.

Warner asked for the unanimous consent agreement on Wednesday, but Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) once again objected unless Democrats agreed to prevent the conference committee from raising the debt ceiling or taxes.

Democrats on Wednesday seized on new statements by Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) to argue that the debt ceiling bill coming to the House floor is a part of a “pay China first” strategy that would put the United States into a damaging type of bankruptcy proceeding.

Boehner in an interview said he agreed that the bill would essentially pay bondholders before other creditors, much like in a corporate bankruptcy proceeding.

The Full Faith and Credit act, likely to pass Thursday, would allow Treasury to borrow beyond the debt limit to pay bondholders and the Social Security Trust Fund, in the event the debt ceiling is reached. 

Republicans argue that the debt ceiling should not be raised until President Obama agrees to reign in long-term spending. If an impasse with Congress results, they argue the new bill would reassure bondholders that they will be made whole. 

Boehner was asked by Bloomberg television on Tuesday: "Doesn't it mean, as Democrats have suggested, that you're basically choosing to pay China before you pay U.S. troops?" 

"Listen. Those who have loaned us money, like in any other proceeding, if you will, court proceeding, the bond holders usually get paid first. Same thing here,” Boehner said. 

The speaker went on to say he was not worried about the politics resulting from the legislation being activated. 

“No. Not at all. … if it comes to the point where they don't have enough money to pay all the bills, here is some order that we think is sound,” he said. 

Democratic aides seized on the video in emails to reporters Wednesday morning. 

House Republicans are locked in a debate over what they should demand from President Obama for hiking the debt ceiling.