If there is no deal by midnight Friday, when the current spending authorization measure expires, parts of the government will close down.  Later Tuesday, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid and House Speaker John Boehner met privately to discuss the matter. Statements issued by each of their offices described the talks as "productive" and said they agreed to continue working to find a solution.  The budget brinksmanship showed the political stakes of the situation, with both parties trying to depict the other as unwilling to do what's right for the country.  Republicans, under pressure from the conservative Tea Party movement for deep cuts that will reduce the size of government, blame Democrats for failing to pass a fiscal year 2011 budget last year when they controlled both congressional chambers and say that President Barack Obama and his party are ignoring the peril of the rising federal deficits and national debt.  Democrats contend that spending cuts sought by House Republicans in response to the Tea Party movement pressure will harm economic recovery and slash education and innovation programs essential for continued growth. Obama and Reid, D-Nevada, both insisted Tuesday that Democrats are agreeing to more than 50% of the spending cuts sought by Republicans, which they said should be sufficient for a compromise on an issue that has little overall effect on the deficit and debt issues.  Obama discussed the growing budget crisis behind closed doors at the White House with key House and Senate leaders. The president met with two Republicans, Boehner and House Appropriations Committee Chairman Hal Rogers of Kentucky, and two Democrats, Reid and Senate Appropriations Committee Chairman Daniel Inouye of Hawaii.  The president then made an unannounced appearance in the White House briefing room to tell reporters that Boehner and Reid would meet on their own later in the day.
Top White House and congressional negotiators failed to reach agreement Tuesday on a spending plan for the rest of the current fiscal year, bringing the federal government closer to a shutdown at...