this pros he united in our belief the nation's fiscal crisis must be addressed and that we cannot leave it for the next generation to solve. that statement, issued in congress. the super committee must not end. the president said if congress tries to get around the automatic cuts, called for in the law that created the super committee, he will veto it. >> my message to them is simple. no. i will veto any effort to get rid of those automatic spending cuts to domestic and defense spending. there will be no easy off ramps on this one. we need to keep the pressure up to compromise. not turn off the pressure. >> the super committee's failure has important consequences. stocks fell sharply as investors added washington's gridlock over america's debt to an already long list of worries about economic growth at home and europe's financial crisis. plus, there are worries of a possible additional downgrade for the u.s. and the legislation that created that super committee calls for across the board spending cuts in the event of failure including deep pentagon saving that's military commanders say would dangerously undermine national security. one thing washington excels at is partisan finger pointing and sniping and there is a surplus of that. democrat blame republicans accusing they will of sabotaging the process by refusing to keep an open mind about new tax revenues. republicans say democrats are too timid about cutting spending. especially medicare and social security. >> the republicans have been insisting that we make permanent and extend the tax cut to the wealthiest americans. >> if you look at the democrats' position, it was we have to raise taxes. we have to pass this jobs bill which is another almost half a trillion dollars. and we're not excited about entitlement reform. >> so how did this happen in how did the committee established with such great urgency in the end produce nothing? in a word. politics. get this. the president had a big event at the white house earlier today hours before the committee deadline. a great chance for one last nudge except he said nothing. not a word about the super committee despite his can-do push back when the committee was given its mission in august. >> voters may have chosen divided government but they sure didn't vote for dysfunctional government. they want us to solve problems. >> now republicans control the house and so they too have an obligation to help govern. yet their speaker today like the president, silent all guy no last-minute nudge from him though he did issue a paper statement expressing disappointment. to be fair to speaker boehner, he was skeptical of the super committee from the outset but not too long ago was emfat bigg the need to confront the problem. >> it is time for america to deal with its spending problem. and deal with the fact we made promises to the american people that our kids and grand kids just can't afford. >> now though with no prayer, no sign of compromise in sight, it is clear both the president and the speaker prefer to fight this one out in the 2012 campaign. our chief white house correspondent is with us. we just heard from the president. he said we need to get this done. eptd for the first time he would veto any effort to get an end around the automatic cuts unless they column with a big dee deficit plan. he has to know one of the criticisms that he has been largely silent. >> reporter: he lay the blame at the republicans' feet. as you point out, the president himself was not working the phones during this process. his most senior aides were talking to democrats. there is a question, how effective could he have been working the phones with republicans after the debacle of the debt talks earlier this summer. but there are down sides, political downsides to getting involved with this one. this deal did not look like it was necessarily going to succeed. lots of us in washington expected a failure or thought a failure was leakly so getting the president involved wasn't necessarily politically wise. and the more distance the president gets from congress, john, the higher his poll numbers go. so keeping him at a din from congress is not a bad thing for the political minds on his team as 2012 approaches. >> and does that mean no specific proposal from the president now? no bold move to say you have failed. here's my plan. or does he fight it out in. >> his argument is that they've given him one. he put a proposal and they could continue to push that. so i think you'll hear them push that. but mostly continue on the jobs they'll and pushing his american jobs action which you heard hill do today just now. and again, tomorrow when he goes to new hampshire to push the american jobs act. maybe not a coincidence that it's an early voting state. >> it could be a swing state come next november. our chief white house correspondent for us. let's head to capitol hill. kate, if you read all the statements from the democrats and all the statements from republicans, they agree we have to get something done. the failure of this committee, congress has single digit approval ratings. they have topping they might go into the negative. >> reporter: that's a good point. that's one of the first questions as senators and members of this committee after issuing their paper statements came out. one of the first questions they're being presented with. is this another example of how dysfunctional government is? specifically congress is. i believe we have a sound bite from senator that ay murray, a democratic co-chair of the committee where she is addressing this very question. >> we have two tasks. we have to find $1.2 trillion in deficit reduction. but we also have to show the country that we can work. we didn't reach the first goal and that's disappointing. i am concerned about the second one. but i know in my heart having done this that i respect people from both sides. >> reporter: john, it's very interesting. there is kind of an acknowledge many that this has completely broken down and was absolutely a failure on the part of the committee. both sides continue to say that they want to find bigger deficit reduction measures. they want to push for a bigger deal. the question is how will that be at all possible? when this committee was set up to if any committee, if any group would be able to pull this off. it was supposed to be this super committee. they were given an amazing amount of power to bypass all the procedural hurdles that slow down legislation up here on capitol hill all the time. no filibusters, no amendments and even this committee could not pull it off. i begs the question, will they be able to pull it off at all. >> a stacked deck, as kate notes. they could not pull it off on capitol hill. if this failure maximum you mad, don't just blame washington. the divide in this town reflects the divide in the country. on the tax question, two-thirds of americans do support raising taxes on the wealthy as part of a deficit deal. but look more closely. 88% of democrats are for that and floorly 70% of independents but only 4 in 10 that you wills back higher taxes. and with washington so dysfunctional, what now? my colleague erin burnett is here. she knows the risks of doing nothing. as does a man who once kruged the country's number. the markets were down today on the expectations this would fate. if you're a ceo looking for some certainty from washington before you started hiring people or built a new factory or expanded a fact rirk you got nothing today. >> you said it best at the tot. top of the show. people were hoping something would happen. the market cropped in part because there was hope they would come forth and deliver. we're talking about 2.6% of the anticipated spending. a really, really small amount. the fact that they failed at that really sends a message around the world to the people that set our interest rates and to companies. this will impact hiring now. >> and joining the conversation, erin makes the big point. less than 3 cents on the dollar. if you go back, i cannot imagine one family watching tonight, in 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, has had to sit around the table. whether their home lost all or half of its value. somebody was laid off. the investments tanked, everybody in america has had to deal with more than 3 cents on the dollar and washington can't. why? >> it's politics over progress. the great ideological divide. everybody trying to position themselves for the next election. frankly, this committee was a total failure of and it shows what a huge leadership deficit we have. the co-chairs failed. the leaders of congress who appointed the peel to this committee failed. and frankly, the president failed. that's the biggest deficit we have. it is time for ross perot type, he had gaugement effort to tell the truth to the american people. both political parties are to blame. the future of this country is at rick. and the first three words of the constitution have to come alive. we the people. >> we the people. we the people are pretty disgusted and lagging trust in the institution. the government can't do anything. we see people occupying. what now after this? if you cannot do big, can you do small and get to the same goal? or are we going off the to have a presidential election and try again? >> it seem we'll have the unemployment benefits coming up as well as the pay roll tax cuts. both very popular. the pay roll tax cuts, something both big business likes as well as employees. those will have to come back up by the end of the year. that means you'll have to have spending cuts on the other side. i think one of the great travesties is how they have pushed it off when the bush tax cuts are slated to go away. note, there is no automatic cuts before the election. so no one will feel the pain. >> i'm going to ask david walker to stay with us. erin burnett needs to prepare four her show. when we come back, mayor michael bloomberg will join us. he will tell us who he thinks should be blamed for the failure. and the man singularly responsible for the republican refusal to put tax hikes on the table. ok look, when gas prices jump... you still gotta work. so suddenly you're cutting back on everything from family vacations to cell phone minutes. well here's a thought - how bout cuttin' back on gas? here's how: the ford f-150. it gets 23 highway miles per gallon. that's the best. so you can get the job done and get a break at the pump. yeah, can you hear me now? this is the future. this is the ford f-150. breaking news, the collapse of that super committee. design with coming up with reduction plans. the president after it collapsed is prolsing there will be no easy off-ramp when it comes to deficit reduction. moments ago at the white house, he said he would veto any effort to get around the automatic spending cuts. defense or domestic program that are now call for in the wake of the congressional super committee's failure to make a deal. let's consider more on this breaking news with our political analyst david gergen. gloria borger still with us. and david walker, david gergen, as someone who has served four u.s. presidents and watchedle more. when you watch this process set up with such fanfare torborg get the united states debt limit raised over the summer time. the total collapse, the message that sends a washington gridlock and dysfunction, is there anyway out now or do we go through a presidential campaign? >> we're mostly going to go through a presidential campaign. i don't see anyway out in the next 12 months. david walker points out that there is a sequestration trigger that the president says he'll veto any attempt and get around it. i think most people will be so angry about this. it appear that washington has gone nuts. and the country is going to be angry. the markets are going to be volatile. this is going to strike most people as a reckless gamble with our economy. we don't know where the markets are going. especially in the context of europe also having serious political leadership problems. serious failures of leadership. and i don't see a quick way out of this at all. we've been here for months. i thought david walker was right. the blame is evenly divided here between the congress and the white house, between republicans and democrats. >> you know, that's the problem -- >> to the president -- hold on one second, gloria. david walker, to david gergen's point about the president's veto threat. you view that as potentially a good thing. every one expects the congress, even though the law says do your job on this super committee or else cuts kick in. never mine, we won't touch that. you view the veto cut as the one good thing to happen? >> i agree. the president said he will make sure that $1.2 trillion in spending reductions happens. the congress may want to he said up deciding how to allocate that defensely but he is saying there has to be at least $1.2 trillion in spending reductions over ten years. and i think that's a good sign. lots of people want to do things that will increase the deficit. notal people want to do things that will bring it down. >> and yet gloria, when the $1.2, that was the floor. a lot of people wanted a ceiling of $4 trillion over ten years. saying that's the signal the markets wanted. a lot of people will ask, was this a waste of time? should they have let this go through the regular process and be create a super committee? >> right. i think you would have to say it was a waste of time. they did not mac any progress. i think the political problem here baltimore neither side fell it would lose by having a failure. because the republicans are playing to their base and republicans don't want to raise taxes. democrats don't want to cut entitlements. they're playing to their base. the question i have is in our poll today, we talked about independent voters. 6 out of 10 independent voters favored increasing taxes on hire income americans. seven out of ten want to cut spending. how do independent voters react to this when it comes time to a presidential campaign? that's where the blame game starts. people will try to convince indiana voters that the other side is to blame and they're undecided on that right now. >> and david gergen, theett voers have a responsible here, too. in the sense that they have their divided government. when you get divide government. >> is one lesson here that the only way is to do it incrementally one step at a time? the president could not get a big jobs bill through. they wouldn't pass it. is the only way to do anything in washington is take it one bite at a time? >> yes. you can make more progress sometimes incrementbly. what's so starting about we've had contentious politics. we've always had disagreements between factions, between parties. but in the past -- >> thank you very much. >> we've had the capacity. our leaders have had the capacity to see if they cannot forge a compromise and go forward. that's what the founders did repeatedly. this group of people who have thrown out all that wisdom. i'll tell you where i think we are. i don't think this was a waste of time. i think it revealed once and for all how broken the system is. and i do think you'll get a voter response. it is worth remembering in europe, three governments have fallen in recent weeks over this question of deficits. we've had the government fall in greece and italy and spain. and there's going to be a big effort now by a lot of voters to throw bums out. let's get some new peel out there. people who can work together on both sides. >> david gergen, gloria borger, a man who very much agrees with what david gergen just said. if they won't act responsibly, it is time to throw they will all out. mayor bloomberg will join us. all because so many people came to louisiana... they came to see us in florida... make that alabama... make that mississippi. the best part of the gulf is wherever you choose... and now is a great time to discover it. this year millions of people did. we set all kinds of records. next year we're out to do even better. so come on down to louisiana... florida... alabama... mississippi. we can't wait to see you. brought to you by bp and all of us who call the gulf home. where together, we're transforming tomorrow. ♪ here's where we deliver steady income - month after month. what's it going to be this month, mr. z? i'm gonna renovate my son's house. baby room. congratulations! [ male announcer ] no matter what the future holds, we're making tomorrows people can count on. what can we make with you? transamerica. transform tomorrow. ♪ ♪ ♪ when the things that you need ♪ ♪ come at just the right speed, that's logistics. ♪ ♪ medicine that can't wait legal briefs there by eight, ♪ ♪ that's logistics. ♪ ♪ freight for you, box for me box that keeps you healthy, ♪ ♪ that's logistics. ♪ ♪ saving time, cutting stress, when you use ups ♪ ♪ that's logistics. ♪ important news in washington tonight. the collapse of the so-called super committee. the charge, cut $1.2 trillion over ten years. democrats blame republicans for the democrats. the republicans, of course, blame the democrats. new york city mayor michael bloomberg blames them all. let's get some perspective from a former corporate ceo who is now the mayor of the largest city, new york. the super committee has become a super failure. mayors, governors and average americans are asking why. why this collapse? >> i don't know why it collapsed but let me say it is not the instability in europe. it is not the monetary policy of china that is the big problem for america. it is this cowardness and this partisanship in washington that is really hurting our country. if you take a look at whether it was the deficit ceiling fight or this fight, the number of jobs that were destroyed, the wealth that was ruined and taken away. it's just mind-boggling. really, nobody could write a novel where this scenario took place and sell a book. people would say impossible. yet we've just seen it. both sides of the aisle. both ends of pennsylvania avenue. they cannot even come up with something that would not have even solved the problem. you think about it. the $1.2 trillion odd that they were trying to save will only cut about 13% of our deficit. and today, we have the public debt of $10 trillion. in ten years it will be $20 trillion. $20 trillion is something like $70,000 for every man, woman and child in this country. and even then we would be doing what we're doing today. today, the government is borrowing one out of every $3 that it spends. you could not do that personally because nobody would loan you the money. >> let's try to go through the issues. you are an independent. you've been both a democrat and republican. many republicans said they were not even open to tax reform that lowered rates if in the end it brought washington more money. could you solve this problem without raising some taxes? >> you cannot solve the deficit problem without both increasing government revenues and decreasing government expenses. right now, the difference is so large, you couldn't possibly do it with either one. you have to do both. and i don't care what you promise your constituents. i don't care what your constituents want. those are the facts. so every elected official has to make the decision. am i going to do what's right politically or am i going to do what's right for the country? because there's no economists in the whole world that would tell you what i just said isn't true. you have to have revenue and you have to cut expenses. and so when you take one off the table, you just can't have a deal. and now the question is, what do we do next? >> part of the question is what do we do next? what did we do over the next three months? one of the questions is where was the leadership? you stay republicans should have come to the table on re