Default Deadline in Hands of McConnell, Reid Now

With all eyes on the Senate this weekend, one name keeps cropping up as pivotal deal-maker: Mitch McConnell. Politico and the Wall Street Journal see the Senate minority leader as key to any potential compromise that could be struck as Harry Reid's bill winds through the Senate. As Democratic Sen. Dick Durbin puts it, “What these senators on the Republican side are waiting for is a permission slip from Sen. McConnell.” The Washington Post says McConnell is ticked because President Obama rejected a potential compromise last week and is insisting that the White House be at the table in weekend talks.

As for what a final deal could look like, the Los Angeles Times sees the "rough outlines of compromise emerging." It would be similar in framework to John Boehner's failed bill, with a big difference being that it would not require a second vote on raising the debt ceiling in a matter of months. It would also have some kind of "trigger" to mandate further cuts if Congress doesn't meet deficit-reduction goals. The trigger is vital to getting GOP support, explains Sam Stein at the Huffington Post. (More Mitch McConnell stories.)