Neither Democrats' nor Republicans' plans for extending payroll tax cuts passed the Senate on Thursday. The former proposed to extend tax cuts on federal withholdings like Social Security and unemployment for employers and employees; the latter wanted to freeze federal worker's pay until 2015 and reduce that workforce by ten percent. While the respective failure of both measures is attributable to partisanship, some senator's refusals to vote along party lines reflect fierce internal debates about the best way to proceed.

The Senate voted 51 to 49 to extend payroll tax cuts on Thursday, falling short of the 60 votes required for the measure to pass. Democrats had promoted these cuts as a means of stimulating the economy, easing the deficit, and directly benefiting the middle-class. A competing plan proposed by Republicans was also defeated, so the attempt for compromise now heads to the House.

The Congressional "super committee" failed to reach a consensus about deficit reduction. But given a chance to tinker with the budget, ordinary Americans playing an online computer game called Budget Hero have made some big decisions. Users make decisions about spending in areas like defense, health care, Social Security, education and infrastructure and can see the effects. 

The week starts out on an ominous note as the Congressional "super committee" charged with reducing the national debt announces that they will not reach a deal. What went wrong during their negotiations, and where do we go from here? How will markets react? Also, the Euro crisis rages on as another government falls in Spain with the election of a new Conservative party. Finally, another GOP debate, the start of the holiday shopping season, and Thanksgiving traditions from Takeaway guests.

The Joint Deficit Reduction "Super Committee," put in charge with finding $4 trillion to cut from the deficit, held their fifth public meeting on Tuesday. But the fate of the Super Committee remains unclear as it is unlikely they will come to consensus any time soon. Todd Zwillich, The Takeaway's Washington correspondent, says the hearing was both a pep talk to the committee but also partly a threat. There is a lot riding on them to succeed and a lot of heads could roll if they fail.

Faced with an uphill reelection battle and a disenfranchised base, President Obama indicated on Monday that he plans on taking a harder line against an anti-tax GOP. In a speech introducing his debt reduction plan yesterday, Obama vowed to veto any plan Congress sends him that does not raise taxes on the wealthy and corporations while cutting Medicare benefits. "I will not support any plan that puts all the burden for closing our deficit on ordinary Americans," Obama said. Obama's plan, which will reduce annual deficits up to $4 trillion over 10 years, has been assailed as "class warfare" by Republicans.

Before President Obama had even made his deficit speech, Congressman Paul Ryan spelled out his concerns over its impact. On Sunday, he accused Obama on Fox News of launching "class warfare" by introducing the so-called Buffett Rule. The president rebuffed the remarks saying "This is not class warfare. It's math." 

Open a newspaper, go on the internet, or turn on the TV, and you're likely to hear a diagnosis of what will cure the ailing economy. Revising the tax code, reducing the deficit, super committees — all distractions, according to New York Times op-ed columnist Joe Nocera. He calls the political back-and-forth in Washington "meaningless noise." The real problem, Nocera says, is a lack of available credit.

President Obama will announce a deficit reduction plan that will reduce government spending by $3 trillion through cutting entitlements, tax increases, and war savings. The plan is the White House's opening offer to the Congressional "super committee," which has until Dec. 23 to reach a deal on deficit reduction. GOP lawmakers have already labeled the proposed tax hikes "class warfare," particularly the so-called "Buffet Rule" — a minimum tax rate on those earning more than $1 million per year named for billionaire Warren Buffett.

Six weeks after the Congressional showdown over raising the debt ceiling came to resolution, the 12 member Congressional deficit reduction committee, sometimes referred to as the "super committee" or "super Congress," will have its first meeting today. Federal spending, taxes, and deficit reduction are all on the super committee's agenda as it tries to cut nearly $1.2 trillion from the nation's debt over the next decade. 

The twelve-member joint Congressional "super committee" that has been tasked with creating a deficit reduction plan that both Republicans and Democrats can stomach — by Thanksgiving, no less — has a tough path ahead. It's a goal that seemed impossible for President Obama and Congressional leaders to achieve, just last month. Can the committee succeed where others failed?

President Obama is departing today for his three-day bus tour through the Midwest, where he will stop in Minnesota, Iowa and Illinois. With his poll numbers slipping, Obama will be talking with Americans about ways to improve the economy and job growth. While Obama is on the road, Texas Governor Rick Perry, who announced this weekend that he will seek the 2012 Republican nomination, will begin fundraising for his campaign. As the race to for the presidency kicks up a notch, a Congressional twelve-member 'super committee' will begin work on a debt-reduction strategy, aiming to come up with a plan to reduce the deficit by $1.5 trillion by Thanksgiving of this year.

Despite plenty of drama and public rhetoric in the battle over the U.S. debt ceiling, President Obama and House Speaker John Boehner have not yet reached a compromise. The deadline is looming as is the possibility the country will have to default on its $14.3 trillion of debt. As time marches on, analysts are starting to think seriously about what would happen if no deal can be reached. A vote was expected today in the House on Boehner’s last bid to increase the debt limit and cut spending — but that all fell apart last night when Tea Party Republicans refused to vote for it.

In his speech last night, President Obama urged the House and Senate to reach a compromise on a debt plan by August 2. "We can't allow the American people to become collateral damage to Washington's political warfare," he said. Immediately afterward, House Speaker John Boehner gave a live speech responding to Obama, in which he pushed for Obama to sign the Republican plan to raise the debt limit. The Democratic-led Senate and Republican-led House have proposed two vastly different plans. So, what happens if they can’t agree by the deadline? 

President Obama will meet with Congressional leaders today to try and revive a $4 trillion deal to reduce the deficit and avoid a default on the national debt, a day after Speaker John Boehner rejected any agreement on that scale. Boehner says the parties should aim for a $2 to $3 trillion deal, because a larger deal would require tax increases. But President Obama says a larger deal would be easier to implement. Negotiations continued last night at the White House.

Republican and Democratic Congressional leaders will meet at the White House today in an attempt to reach a deal over deficit reduction and raising the debt ceiling. President Obama says that any agreement must close tax loopholes, while the vast majority of Republicans say that new taxes cannot be a part of the deal. Obama has also signaled he's open to cutting spending on "entitlement programs," something that makes many members of his party nervous. Todd Zwillich, The Takeaway's Washington correspondent, previews the meeting and tells us what each side is bringing to the table.

President Barack Obama outlined a comprehensive plan on Wednesday to reduce the nation's looming deficit by $4 trillion over the next 12 years. His plan, which includes tax increases for the wealthy, changes to social welfare programs and long-term spending cuts, was offered as a Democratic alternative to the proposal put forward by Rep. Paul Ryan (R-Wisc.) which would fundamentally alter Medicare and Medicaid. In the next few weeks, members of Congress will have to decide whether to raise the nation's debt ceiling, and Vice President Joe Biden will lead negotiations to move congressional leaders towards common ground. Will they find it? 

Good afternoon.  It’s great to be back at GW.  I want you to know that one of the reasons I kept the government open was so I could be here today with all of you.  I wanted to make sure you had one more excuse to skip class.  You’re welcome.

Of course, what we’ve been debating here in Washington for the last few weeks will affect your lives in ways that are potentially profound.  This debate over budgets and deficits is about more than just numbers on a page, more than just cutting and spending.  It’s about the kind of future we want.  It’s about the kind of country we believe in.  And that’s what I want to talk about today. 

From our first days as a nation, we have put our faith in free markets and free enterprise as the engine of America’s wealth and prosperity.  More than citizens of any other country, we are rugged individualists, a self-reliant people with a healthy skepticism of too much government.

President Obama is set to deliver a much anticipated speech 1:30 p.m. at George Washington University in Washington. The speech will detail his long-term plans for reducing the nation's deficit. Todd Zwillich, The Takeaway's Washington correspondent says that the president will have to prepare the public for tough decisions as he faces the debt.

In Wisconsin, demonstrators are camped out for a seventh day over a state bill that would cut state workers’ ability to bargain collectively. But Wisconsin isn’t the only state where union battles are blazing. In Ohio, state Republicans are promoting measures to cut collective bargaining as an eventual cost-cutting measure as well. Ohio faces an estimated $8 billion budget deficit. Ohio Public Radio State House Reporter Bill Cohen explains the latest.