on this debate before it s too late. and a disturbing new study revealing a widening gap between minorities and the wealthiest americans in the wake of a devastating recession. i m wolf blitzer here in the situation room. first to what many say is shaping up to be an economic disaster of nearly unprecedented proportions if congress doesn t break the deadlock and agree on a deal to raise the debt ceiling only six days from now. the white house warning today there s no more wiggle room and beyond that date, quote, we lose our capacity to borrow. if that happens, interest rates could go up, the value of the dollar could go down. individual mortgages, car loans, student loans, and a lot more could likely suffer significantly, becoming more significant. some financial analysts are even warning of a potential stock market crash. all of that could push the united states into another great recession. let s go straight to capitol hill. our congressional correspondent kate baldwin is j
downgrade the nation s credit even if a deal is reached. even if a deal is reached. it s a aaa, nearly as good as cash or gold and has been almost from the begin. losing that status would raise interest rates for all of us, make mortgages cost more, stifle the economy, possibly trigger a run on the dollar. tonight, president obama restated his desire for a deal that includes tax increases on wealthier americans as well as spending cuts. he cited statistics appealing to bipartisanship and invoked the words of ronald reagan and also acknowledged how sharply divided washington is while trying to channel a bipartisan frustration among americans for what goes on in washington. take a look. i realize that a lot of the new members of congress and i don t see eye to eye on many issues. but we were each elected by some of the same americans for some of the we were each elected by some of the same americans for the same reasons. yes, many want government to start living within its
we re just getting the information in. that means that the players vote will happen later today in more of a formal setting. training camp could start as early as wednesday now, we ve been told. david mattingly has been following this for us. he has been live out of atlanta every day, at least he was last week when those negotiations were taking place. david, did you just get word that something came forward just moments ago? reporter: reading and finding out now is that the nfl players and the owners did come to an agreement in the wee hours of the morning. and, bottom line, they re going to play some football. exactly what the owners were asking for last week when they came out of their meeting and had a 31-0 vote in favor of this agreement. and players still have to vote on this. it s largely looked at as a formality, that it is going to go through. and the fans will only miss, so far, one game this season. the first game of the preseason, which was going to be in canton
and travelers squashed by major airlines. but first, to the desperate race against the clock to secure what president obama is calling america s national credit card. the country could face unprecedented default if congress is unable to agree on a deal to raise the nation s debt ceiling. failure to do so could downgrade america s debt rating and could be extremely damaging for global economy purposes. let s get all the angles. we ve just learned the president will be addressing the nation later to. kate baldwin is up on capitol hill. first to you. what s the very latest, the thinking behind the president s decision to address the nation and the world tonight? wolf, the thought was that the president like lly today ha to come out put and exclamation point on a very busy day. fruns and senate democrats, laying out their plans. already today, we saw a statement from the white house press secretary jay carney, endorsing senate majority leader reid s plan. and i ll save the de
expected to roll out a plan to cut spending by $2.7 trillion while raising the debt by 274 trillion. reid s plan would not include tax increases which republicans refuse to consider nor would it touch entitlements. my colleague, dan lothian is watching it all from his post at the white house. dan, what is the president s position first on raising the debt in installments? reporter: he want it is to go through 2012 and there is a sense at the white house and treasury department in particular even if you had some sort of short-term fix that raises the debt ceiling through the rest of this year, that it still may not be enough to cam the jilters of the financial markets, still may not be enough to security aaa credit rating that the u.s. currently has. tt markets, still may not be enough to security aaa credit rating that the u.s. currently has. that is the first concern. secondly, it has been so difficult to get a deal now the white house points out how much more difficult wi