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Call it the partial fix to the partial fix to the partial fix. National Journal's Dan Friedman and Billy House report that leading lawmakers are discussing a plan to make a "down payment" of cuts that would amount to half of the $110 billion in sequestration, which is set to go into effect in January. For practical purposes, this would potentially delay sequestration for a matter of months. If you consider that sequestration itself was a partial fix to a previous partial fix, it's quite the dispiriting solution.
According to House and Friedman, the plan was concocted by Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid and the White House Office of Management and Budget. The deal relies on President Obama winning the election and Congress striking a deal during the lame-duck session, which is the last opportunity to delay the automatic January cuts. House and Friedman say the partial cuts would be targeted and a "framework would task committees of jurisdiction with finding additional cuts that would be imposed later next year." Keep in mind, the looming fiscal cliff, which the Congressional Budget Office says will plunge the U.S. into another recession if enacted, is also a problem Republicans will have to address regardless of a Romney or Obama victory. In terms of the deal succeeding, Democratic aides say an Obama victory could win Democrats enough leverage to bring Republicans on board.