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Social security. doesn't he need to show leadership on that issue? i mean, isn't he the one to lead the conversation there, and should that be done now? >> well, look, i think the president has shown leadership, because i mean, all of these issues are getting conflated between, we've got the cr, we've got the budget and then obviously the entitlement issues. i think the president rightly said let's put the entitlement issues -- we have to deal with them, but let's put that aside, let's focus on the budget and not let that become a distraction from some of the other things that we know we can d...

Entitle mtss? granted you'd have to raise the retirement age and increase the amount of tax and change the payroll wloelding. the critics are saying the president is just dealing with the small stuff. if you're not doing it now, when is the president going to make his first move on this and will he? >> the president said it during the state of the union. he said, there's a piece of the budget about 10%, 12% of the budget. it's important we rein things in and make cuts there. that's what's in this budget. but he's also said we've got to address the entitlement issues. >> but when is he going to...

And president obama, i wanted to ask about the meeting that took place today. you had labor leaders there. they have said in an interview if medicare and social security are part of any deal that president obama strikes with republicans, labor will be against it. and i look at that and i say, how can that not be part of any deal that obama strikes with republicans? how much trouble will he have on the left selling any deal he reaches? >> it's going to be hard to sell. any deal that deals with those entitlement issues. harry reid said clearly here, social security, we will not touch social secu...

>> are you going to put the medicare reform plan, the same one you passed last year. many privately, i don't want to make that again. you are going to put it in again? >> yes, we are not backing off on any of our policy reforms. if you are not serious about taking on these entitlement issues, but b dealing with the unfunded promises you are not serious about fixing our fiscal situation. we need half of our republican side being serious about fiscal situation, if we duck this we'll have a debt crisis and we can't let that happen. >> if republicans do pass a budget and senate doesn't, where does...

And the ongoing saga we had a couple weeks ago with these continuing resolutions to keep the government going. if you think about it, all this was done in the open light of an open government day. imagine what would have happened if we had pushed that to either a shutdown government or a debt ceiling brink issue. none of that occurred. that might be part of the equation s&p is looking at what it is saying is, forget about what might happen if your government ever closes. look at the havoc it has created while it has been open for business. that we spend too much and we don't address these enti...