Bishop, King to deficit panel: Go big

WASHINGTON -- Rep. Tim Bishop opposes changing Medicare and Rep. Peter King rejects raising taxes, but last week each of them put those issues on the table to urge the congressional "super committee" to "go big" and cut $4 trillion from the deficit.

Bishop, a Southampton Democrat, and King, a Seaford Republican, were among the 100 House members from both parties to sign a letter of support sent Wednesday to the bipartisan 12-member super committee that must agree by Nov. 23 on ways to reduce at least $1.2 trillion in the federal deficit over 10 years.

That's a goal some experts said they doubted the super committee could accomplish with less than three weeks to go.

But the letter urges the super committee on, adding, "To succeed, all options for mandatory and discretionary spending and revenues must be on the table."

Bishop said, "It's 100 members of the House saying to the 12 members of the super committee, 'We've got your back. If you go big we'll support you.' "

King said, "The main reason I signed it was to tell the [GOP] leadership that I was willing to give them flexibility."

Both sides will have to show more flexibility than they've shown so far if the super committee is to meet its deadline.

The super committee's six GOP members have refused to put new revenue in their proposals, and its six Democrats haven't offered big changes to Medicare in theirs.

The super committee was created in the agreement that ended the standoff over raising the debt ceiling during the summer.

If it fails to meet its deadline, and Congress doesn't enact the deficit cuts by Jan. 15, automatic cuts totaling $492 billion to military spending and $492 billion of domestic spending would begin in 2013 and go through 2021, a Congressional Budget Office report said.

Experts said they expected House and Senate party leaders to seal any final deal. But Rep. Steve Israel (D-Dix Hills), a leader of his party, said he didn't know what the super committee was doing.

Bishop and King said they were open to negotiations on sacred cows, such as new revenue and Medicare, but reserved judgment on a final deal.

"We need a big solution -- $4 trillion over 10 years is what most economists are saying is needed to stabilize the economy," Bishop said.

Both said they worried about the effect of automatic cuts if the super committee failed.

Bishop said he was concerned about cuts to grants for Brookhaven National Laboratory or funds for Gabreski Airport in Westhampton Beach. "Air National Guard bases like Gabreski would certainly be on the table for cuts," Bishop said.

King said homeland security funding was tied into the military spending eligible for automatic cuts, making money for New York City and Long Island vulnerable. "That is my overriding concern," he said.