President Obama rejects stopgap solution as debt-ceiling talks go nowhere

President Barack Obama sits with House Speaker John Boehner of Ohio, as he meets with Republican and Democratic leaders regarding the debt ceiling, Monday, July 11, 2011, in the Cabinet Room of the White House in Washington.

 WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama and congressional leaders on Monday emerged still deeply divided over how to slash the nation’s debt, with reality sinking in that even a middle-ground proposal was not big enough to succeed and would not get through Congress anyway.

Obama Grasping Centrist Banner in Debt Impasse - (NY Times)

WASHINGTON — President Obama made no apparent headway on Monday in his attempt to forge a crisis-averting budget deal, but he put on full display his effort to position himself as a pragmatic centrist willing to confront both parties and address intractable problems.