Rep. Peter Welch (D., Vt.) said he believes President Obama has more flexibility to extend the bargaining into the new year and called the fiscal cliff "more of a slope," arguing he believes the tax increases set for Jan. 1 will not all be felt by Americans immediately:
PETER WELCH: This is not a debt ceiling situation where we're literally going to default on our debt. We have got this fiscal cliff date, but it is really more of a slope. So I am confident that the president is hanging in there because it makes sense for him to do and I think he's really convinced the American people support him and it is good for the economy.
BROOKE BALDWIN: Okay. Congressman Peter Welch, thank you so much for joining me from the Hill. We'll see 28 days to go whether in fact we go over the slope or not.
Economic experts have warned if the fiscal cliff is not averted, the United States could enter into another economic recession, as the Washington Free Beacon reported earlier this year.
Welch's colleague Sen. Patty Murray (D., Wash.) reiterated her threat to go over the cliff Tuesday if high earners do not see higher tax rates in a meeting with progressives, according to the Huffington Post.
Full interview: