Sen. Kent Conrad, North Dakota Democrat, on Sunday called for a White House summit on reducing the federal deficit.
Mr. Conrad, chairman of the Senate Budget Committee, was a member of the debate commission whose plan to reduce the federal budget failed on Friday to get enough votes to sent it to Congress.
“I think if we’re going to reach a [consensus], we need leaders of the House and Senate,” Mr. Conrad said on “Fox News Sunday.”
He said the secretary of the Treasury and the head of the Office of Management and Budget should be part of the summit.
Mr. Conrad said he has not spoken directly with Mr. Obama but has talked with administration officials, who were noncommittal about the idea.
Rep. Jeb Hensarling, Texas Republican, who was among three GOP House members on the debt commission to vote against the plan, said on Fox that he would support a White House summit.
“We have to have presidential leadership on this, and I hope we get that from President Obama,” he said.
• Joseph Weber can be reached at jweber@washingtontimes.com.old.
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