Supercommittee Member: We Probably Won't Go Big

A number of economists and politicians have urged the supercommittee on budget deficit cuts to “go big.” They want the committee’s proposals to exceed the $1.5 trillion in deficit reduction over the next decade that the panel is charged with suggesting.

For example, many believe that that the supercommittee should take on the issues of entitlement and tax reform for example. But that’s unlikely to happen, a supercommittee member, who spoke on condition of anonymity, told The Hill.

The legislator said 12 congressmen can’t be expected to come up with a deficit reduction plan as big as $4 trillion. Alan Simpson and Erskine Bowles, the co-chairmen of President Barack Obama’s fiscal commission, were among those recommending that the supercommittee adopt a proposal similar the $4 trillion package it recommended.

But the committee member doesn’t see members ready to agree on slashing programs such as Medicare and defense spending.