trillion in cuts over ten years, raises the debt ceiling about about the same amount, sets up a bipartisan committee to find other ways to trim another trillion and change from the deficit. think of it as a deficit posse. it calls for both chamber of commerce eventually to pass a balanced budget amendment to the constitution. they don t actually have to pass it, they just have to vote on it. and the president and house speaker admit that the plan is not perfect, but hey, there s a deadline tomorrow. here s what the president said, then you ll hear from a freshman republican who, by the way, is dressed casually. give him a break, it was late on sunday night. now, is this the deal i would have preferred? no. but this compromise does make a serious downpayment on the deficit reduction we need and gives each party a strong incentive to get a balanced plan done before the end of the year. and to have bold changes to something so systematically broken is going to take time. i u