Durbin: Spending cuts were threat, not strategy

WASHINGTON (AP) — A top Democrat says the automatic spending cuts set to take effect were meant as a threat, not a strategy.

Sen. Dick Durbin, the assistant majority leader and a close White House ally, said Sunday that the deep spending cuts were never meant to take effect and were designed to prod both parties to reach a bipartisan agreement to reduce the nation's deficit. That deal hasn't happened, but Durbin says taxes have to be part of the mix to put the country on solid financial footing.