Sen. Kent Conrad , D-North Dakota , the chairman of the Budget Committee and a leader of the Gang of Six , is pushing a plan that would have Congress agree in a lame duck session to `` hundreds of billions of dollars '' in spending cuts and new taxes as a `` down payment '' on the work congressional committees would do next year to lower the deficit by $ 4 trillion over the next 10 years . Critics fear the fiscal situation will push the country back into a recession . Fear of the fiscal cliff is worsened by partisan gridlock that led to it . Whether Congress can cut a deal after the election and before the end of the year is uncertain . Officials are skeptical that a lame duck Congress will do anything .
Critics fear the fiscal situation will push the country back into a recession . Fear of the fiscal cliff is worsened by partisan gridlock that led to it . Whether Congress can cut a deal after the election and before the end of the year is uncertain . Officials are skeptical that a lame duck Congress will do anything .