Washington ( CNN ) -- If you 're expecting last minute action from Congress to avoid the March 1 spending cut deadline , think again . Congress is n't even in session this week , and lawmakers and aides from both parties say they do n't expect anything to pass anytime soon . Why the lack of urgency ? The cuts can be phased in over time , and leaders on both sides of the aisle know they can act after March 1 to undo any reductions in the months to come . Also , some Democrats and Republicans are n't totally unhappy with many of the cuts , $ 85 billion of which will be split between Pentagon and non-defense programs this year . Many of the most popular domestic programs , including Medicare and Medicaid benefits , are off the table . Obama , GOP clash on forced spending cuts . With no sharp , irreversible deadline in the offing , all you 're likely to get over the next 10 days is an extended version of the partisan blame game . True to form , President Barack Obama and GOP leaders ratcheted up their rhetoric on Tuesday . `` Republicans in Congress face a simple choice , '' Obama said at a White House event with first responders . `` Are they willing to compromise , to protect vital investments in education and healthcare and national security and all the jobs that depend on them ? Or would they rather put hundreds of thousands of jobs and our entire economy at risk just to protect a few special interest tax loopholes that benefit only the wealthiest Americans and biggest corporations ? '' Obama more emotional on spending cuts . Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid , D-Nevada , urged Republicans to `` listen to the overwhelming majority of Americans and work with Democrats to forge a balanced approach '' to deficit reduction that includes new tax hikes on the wealthy . House Speaker John Boehner , R-Ohio , responded to barbs from Democrats with a written statement placing the blame squarely on the president . Blind budget cuts , explained . `` The House has twice passed legislation to replace it with commonsense cuts and reforms that wo n't threaten public safety , national security , or our economy , '' the speaker said , referring to measures passed by the GOP-controlled chamber last year . `` But once again , the president ( has ) offered no credible plan that can pass Congress -- only more calls for higher taxes , '' Boehner said . Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell , R-Kentucky , said Obama `` prefers campaign events to common sense , bipartisan action . '' By the Numbers : Automatic spending cuts . Republicans argue they 've already ceded on higher taxes by allowing Bush-era tax cuts to expire on the wealthiest Americans as part of the New Year 's Eve `` fiscal cliff '' deal . GOP leaders insist that any package replacing this year 's planned $ 85 billion in cuts -- part of $ 1.2 trillion in savings over 10 years -- must be comprised entirely of alternative spending reductions , including entitlement reform . Republicans are particularly concerned about the looming defense cuts . `` Even though defense accounts for 17 ( or ) 18 % of our spending , they 've taken half of the savings out of the military , '' House Armed Services Committee Chairman Buck McKeon , R-California , told CNN . `` The troops that are over there fighting to protect our freedoms around the world are being cut . The things that they need are being cut . '' Senate Democrats and Republicans are expected to propose alternative bills next week to replace the automatic cuts . Neither plan is likely to get the 60 votes necessary for approval in the 100-member chamber -- thereby setting the stage for more serious talks after March 1 . The real impact of automatic spending cuts . `` There wo n't be any easy off-ramps on this one , '' McConnell said last week . `` The days of 11th hour negotiations are over . '' Brown University political scientist Wendy Schiller , who studies presidential and congressional politics , noted that March 27 -- the date when the current government funding authority expires -- is an ideal point for Congress to alter its current spending plans . `` The upside to the ( current package of planned cuts ) is that it gives both parties political cover to make a dent in federal spending , '' Schiller told CNN . `` The downside is that the cuts themselves are not directly targeted at inefficiency , fraud or waste , and will ultimately affect voters ' daily lives in some way . '' Ultimately , she predicted , Congress will be `` the big loser . ... If history tells us anything about showdowns between Congress and the president , it tells us the president wins . And only one branch will face the voters again -- Congress . '' Borger : Obama ca n't kick his legacy down the road .
Congress is unlikely to act before automatic spending cuts begin in January 1 . The cuts will be phased in over time and will be changed later on . Democrats and Republicans are fighting each other instead of agreeing on alternatives .