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November 30, 2012 CONNECT WITH SMARTBRIEF Share | Sign up | Archive | Advertise National Pulse  Obama makes ambitious opening bid in deficit talks    Boehner/Reuters Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner presented congressional Republicans with ambitious deficit proposals on behalf of President Barack Obama on Thursday, asking for $1.6 trillion in new tax revenues, $50 billion in infrastructure spending in 2013 and the power to raise the debt limit without congressional approval. GOP leaders swiftly rebuffed the offer. Still, the opening gambit offers the first clear insights into the administration's negotiating strategy. Politico (Washington, D.C.) (11/29) , The Wall Street Journal (11/29)      Debt talks are getting nowhere, Boehner says:   No real progress has been made in talks between Republican leaders and the White House, and there is a real danger that scheduled spending cuts and tax increases will go into effect at year-end, House Speaker John Boehner says. Reuters (11/29) , TheFiscalTimes.com (11/30) , Bloomberg (11/30)      Bad deficit deal would be worse than no deal at all, some lawmakers say Bloomberg Businessweek (11/29)      Reader Polls  This week's poll results: Avoiding the cliff On Monday, we asked you for the single most important element Congress and the president should include in their final plan to cut the deficit and avoid the "fiscal cliff." Balancing revenue increases with spending cuts drew the most responses, followed by raising taxes on higher incomes. The full results are below. We also asked those who felt that the best approach was not included on our list to send us their recommendations. Those included passing the Ryan budget, preserving the Bush tax cuts for all taxpayers and freezing all federal spending until revenues catch up. Next week: The tax pledge. Balance revenue increases and spending cuts  28.70% Increase taxes on higher incomes  18.97% Cut spending on non-defense discretionary programs  14.60% Increase revenue by limiting deductions and closing loopholes  14.25% Do nothing; allow the automatic measures to take effect  7.80% Cut entitlements, including Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid and veterans benefits  6.50% Increase taxes on everyone  3.62% Cut defense spending  3.43% None of the above/Other  2.14% Agenda Items  Most Americans' taxes are lower than they were 30 years ago    Reuters The heated U.S. tax debate overlooks the fact that federal, state and local taxes have been declining for most Americans since 1980. The overall tax burden for a majority of families is less than it was 30 years ago, according to an analysis by The New York Times. The biggest declines were among households earning more than $200,000 annually, the newspaper found. The New York Times (tiered subscription model) (11/29)      Democratic "Gang of Six" pushes for sweeping progressive tax reforms The Hill/Blog Briefing Room (11/30)      House Democrats face off for top spot on Appropriations panel Roll Call (free content) (11/29)      Outgoing lawmakers get warm welcome from K Street lobby shops Politico (Washington, D.C.) (11/30)      Data Points  Romney aides reveal campaign's internal polling numbers    Romney/Reuters A former Mitt Romney aide has given the New Republic an exclusive peek at the campaign's internal polling for six key swing states -- and the numbers help to explain why Republicans were so confident they'd win the election, writes Noam Scheiber. The campaign badly overestimated the percentage of the vote that would come from their strongest supporters, in part because it underestimated black, Hispanic and youth turnout, Scheiber explains. The New Republic (free registration) (11/30)      The Conversation  Sen. Rand Paul: Republicans can't walk away from their tax pledges The Wall Street Journal (11/29)      Columnist Charles Krauthammer: Republicans should be ready to jump off the "cliff" National Review (11/29)      Editorial: Any serious deficit deal must rein in Medicaid spending The Washington Post (11/30)      Daily Chuckle  How political consultants spread American democracy worldwide    Yanukovich/Reuters What do U.S. political consultants do between elections? Many are called to help candidates in other countries run American-style campaign. Jason Jones of "The Daily Show" reports on how these heroes are helping spread our democracy to the world. Comedy Central (11/28)      SmartQuote  I think there is one higher office than president and I would call that patriot." --Gary Hart, former U.S. senator        SmartBrief delivers need-to-know news in over 100 targeted email newsletters to over 3 million readers. All our industry briefings are FREE and open to everyone—sign up today! 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