President Obama has emerged from talks with Republicans about cutting the massive federal debt and thrown down the gauntlet, daring the GOP to oppose his plan for additional stimulus measures and tax hikes. A recipe for disaster: With the country still struggling to emerge from the deepest recession since the 1930s, Obama said Congress needs to take steps to bring down the 9.1 percent unemployment rate even as it weighs medium-term austerity measures. "There are more steps that we can take right now that would help businesses create jobs here in America," he said. Those measures likely would add hundreds of billions of dollars to budget deficits at a time when the White House and lawmakers are trying to narrow them by more than $1 trillion. Congressional Republicans, determined to cut spending, say additional stimulus have no place in the debt ceiling talks. "The president's remarks today ignore legislative and economic reality," said Republican House of Representatives leader John...(Read Full Post)