state of the union address. advocated for raising the minimum wage, infrastructure, all things i think to help the middle class and working class. what sort of middle class proposals are you looking for from this president? well, i do think the problem with the sequester to bring it not just back to that, it cuts a lot of discretionary pieces of the fwhaugt are in good investments, provide equal opportunity and so cutting those and being unwilling, completely unwilling to reform entitlements and taken that off the table he also talked, though, in the state of the union specifically about reforming entitlements and offered several proposals and said anything that he s offered is still on the table. but he wants in exchange for that some willingness to close the loophole that is you yourself have said should be closed. well, so the question would be, do you call his bluff and then say, where are the reforms? our budget and debt and deficit fall on the backs of middle class.
approach. the only republicans in the country who disagree with this proposal are the republicans who serve in congress. republicans have voted twice to replace the president s sequester with smarter spending cuts and reforms. american people deserve better than what the republicans in this building believe is a right thing. the president and democrat leaders failed to pass a solution of their own. it s a shame the colleagues decided that protecting special interests is more important to them. we have the sequester battle or what s.e. calls the big ax of 2013. that s right. covered from both sides of washington. nbc s peter alexander at the white house and luke russert on the hill. peter, what is the mood? reporter: appreciate the final countdown music, krystal. any point tomorrow the president can sign the order and goes in to effect. press secretary jay carney indicated at the briefing that
part of the issue with the sequester fight is that there is a single moment of drama. the fiscal cliff fight had all of that. you had a moment in time when taxes were going to go up. this is much more of a fiscal slope if you will. that term that democrats started pushing the last time around. i believe steve kornacki started to push that term on this program. that s right. you heard it here first. right? so now finally maybe it will get the day in the sun. you should try again and see if that sticks this time. i was chatting with a colleague of mine about how sequester, that s not a catchy word. you know a democrat came up with sequester. republicans would have come up with something way better than that. the big ax. democrats might have gone for the meat ax or cleaver that president obama that s what republicans would come up with. absolutely. well, i do want to go on record. i came up with the big ax of 2013. which is a great title. this republican. i take
representatives is so worried, guys, that they have recessed until monday so they will not be here in session when the sequester goes in to effect. john boehner very adamant today regarding the house gop position that they have done their work and waiting for the senate to do something. right about now, two proposals, one to give the president an authority to do the cuts or democratic one to replace the sequester. both going down to the senate floor and we ll go in to a sequester. the next fight is march 27th government shutdown fear. the house gop next week will move on a budget and something to replace the sequester, maybe not completely but to fix it in their minds in regards to dod but the big story and what kornacki would love to talk about, the house gop budget next week written to what s the baseline? $974 billion writing it to the idea that sequester has gone in to effect making tea party republicans very happy and makes