[h=3]By COREY BOLES[/h]WASHINGTON—House Speaker John Boehner (R., Ohio) said Thursday he was "disappointed" at the lack of progress made in talks with the White House on averting the so-called fiscal cliff, casting a negative tone on the prospects for an agreement as talks continued.
APHouse Speaker John Boehner of Ohio spoke to reporters Thursday.
A short time later, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D., Nev.) said Republicans know where the Democrats stand, and he is still waiting for a "serious offer" from the GOP.
Stocks reversed course after Mr. Boehner spoke. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose as much as 77 points in early trading, but shed its gains after Mr. Boehner's comments before recently trading up about 22 points in the early afternoon.
The comments from Messrs. Boehner and Reid were the first in what are likely to be a series of reactions Thursday from leaders of both parties as they try to shape public opinion in the debate over what to do about tax rates that are due to snap higher at the start of the new year at the same time deep cuts in federal spending are scheduled to take effect.
Mr. Boehner said no "substantive progress" had been made in the talks so far. He said that his downbeat assessment was based both on a phone conversation he had Wednesday night with President Barack Obama and his meeting Tuesday morning with Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner. Mr. Geithner is also meeting on Capitol Hill Thursday with other congressional leaders.
Mr. Boehner said that the White House needs to get serious about offering specific spending cuts it would put on the table toward a potential deal. "All eyes are on the White House," he said. "The country doesn't need a victory lap, it needs leadership."
On Wednesday, the White House signaled it wouldn't insist tax rates on upper-income Americans rise to Clinton-era peaks as part of a deficit-reduction deal, showing new flexibility as President Obama tries to accelerate talks with congressional Republicans.
Some Republicans saw the flexibility on tax rates as a hopeful sign that could lead to a compromise. Though GOP leaders remain opposed to raising top rates and want more details on potential entitlement cuts, the White House move opened a range of possibilities for negotiators.
Democratic and Republican aides have a good sense of what concessions they are willing to offer, but neither wants to go first for fear of losing leverage. Republicans have said they won't negotiate on taxes until the White House steps forward with concrete ideas for addressing entitlement spending.
—Damian Paletta and Carol E. Lee contributed to this article.
APHouse Speaker John Boehner of Ohio spoke to reporters Thursday.
A short time later, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D., Nev.) said Republicans know where the Democrats stand, and he is still waiting for a "serious offer" from the GOP.
Stocks reversed course after Mr. Boehner spoke. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose as much as 77 points in early trading, but shed its gains after Mr. Boehner's comments before recently trading up about 22 points in the early afternoon.
The comments from Messrs. Boehner and Reid were the first in what are likely to be a series of reactions Thursday from leaders of both parties as they try to shape public opinion in the debate over what to do about tax rates that are due to snap higher at the start of the new year at the same time deep cuts in federal spending are scheduled to take effect.
Mr. Boehner said no "substantive progress" had been made in the talks so far. He said that his downbeat assessment was based both on a phone conversation he had Wednesday night with President Barack Obama and his meeting Tuesday morning with Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner. Mr. Geithner is also meeting on Capitol Hill Thursday with other congressional leaders.
Mr. Boehner said that the White House needs to get serious about offering specific spending cuts it would put on the table toward a potential deal. "All eyes are on the White House," he said. "The country doesn't need a victory lap, it needs leadership."
On Wednesday, the White House signaled it wouldn't insist tax rates on upper-income Americans rise to Clinton-era peaks as part of a deficit-reduction deal, showing new flexibility as President Obama tries to accelerate talks with congressional Republicans.
Some Republicans saw the flexibility on tax rates as a hopeful sign that could lead to a compromise. Though GOP leaders remain opposed to raising top rates and want more details on potential entitlement cuts, the White House move opened a range of possibilities for negotiators.
Democratic and Republican aides have a good sense of what concessions they are willing to offer, but neither wants to go first for fear of losing leverage. Republicans have said they won't negotiate on taxes until the White House steps forward with concrete ideas for addressing entitlement spending.
—Damian Paletta and Carol E. Lee contributed to this article.