U.S. President Barack Obama called for more budget talks Monday at the White House after having failed to reach a deal with Republicans.President Obama also will hold a news conference Monday focusing on the status of the deficit and debt negotiations.
Mr. Obama met briefly Sunday with top congressional leaders at the White House about what so far has been an elusive deal with Republicans on raising the nation's debt ceiling.
The talks lasted less than 90 minutes - much shorter than expected. No progress was reported, but all sides agreed to meet again Monday. When a reporter asked Mr. Obama if it is possible to reach a deal within the next 10 days, he said, "We have to."The United States faces an August 2 deadline before the current ceiling is reached and the country faces default on its debt for the first time in its history.