The top Democrat in the Senate signaled support for a debt ceiling compromise being hammered out by President Barack Obama and Republican leaders.
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid said his final support is contingent on his Democratic caucus. The Hill reports that Reid met with House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi for over an hour and a half Sunday.
“Senator Reid has signed off on the debt-ceiling agreement pending caucus approval,” said Reid spokesman Adam Jentleson.
Reid’s support comes after he abandoned his own debt deal after claiming that Republicans were not willing to negotiate with him. In a Senate vote to end debate and advance his proposal, he voted against his own bill, clearly signaling he was setting his eyes on the bipartisan compromise being worked out between the White House and top Republicans.
Though the details of the bill have not been released in the form of a bill, the plan is widely reported to include raising the debt limit through 2012 in exchange for $3 trillion in spending cuts over ten years. (McConnell: ‘We’re very close’ on debt deal)
The first round of cuts would amount to $1 trillion, and a bipartisan committee would decide on the remainder of the cuts by Thanksgiving.