McConnell said today he would not have supported the legislation creating the super committee if he thought it could not succeed.
“I wouldn’t have lightly been a part of crafting a process that reduced the number for success in the Senate to 51 and eliminated the possibility of amendments if I was not interested in getting an outcome,” he told reporters after his Conference’s lunch. “My view is, on really difficult challenges, divided government is actually the best time to do it, not the toughest time, but the best time to do it. ... My view is, why not now?”
The Senate Republican members of the super committee were spotted shuttling between votes and Boehner’s office today. In recent weeks, GOP members of the committee have been meeting more regularly with their leadership.
Correction: Nov. 1, 2011
An earlier version of this story misattributed a quote. It was former White House Chief of Staff Erskine Bowles who told the Joint Committee on Deficit Reduction, “Collectively I’m worried you are going to fail — fail the country.”
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