THE WHITE HOUSE

Office of the Press Secretary

Statement by the Press Secretary

The President, the Speaker, the Senate Majority Leader, and the House and Senate Minority Leaders have agreed to have their respective budget advisors resume the advisors' budget discussions, which last took place on December 15.

The budget advisors will meet today during the afternoon and evening.

A separate staff group will work on a variety of issues, and a bipartisan group of Governors has agreed to meet today to prepare recommendations on the Medicaid issue.

On Friday morning, the President and the five Congressional leaders will meet at the White House in order to be briefed by the budget advisors on today's discussions.

Today's schedule is as follows:

     11:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m.        Staff meets and 
                                   prepares 
                                   recommendations on a 
                                   variety of issues

     12:00 noon - 6:00 p.m.        Governors meet at 
                                   the headquarters of 
                                   the National 
                                   Governors 
                                   Association at the 
                                   Hall of the States 
                                   and prepare 
                                   recommendations on 
                                   Medicaid

     1:00 p.m. - 4:00 p.m.         Budget advisors meet 
                                   in S. 207 in the 
                                   Capitol and receive 
                                   presentations on 
                                   three alternative 
                                   proposals to balance 
                                   the budget 
                                   (Coalition, 
                                   Daschle-Exon, 
                                   Chafee-Breaux)

     4:00 p.m. - 9:00 p.m.         Budget advisors 
                                   receive 
                                   recommendations from 
                                   staff on a variety 
                                   of issues, and 
                                   Governors present 
                                   Medicaid 
                                   recommendations.

     The budget advisors are White House Chief of Staff Leon Panetta,

Office of Management and Budget Director Alice Rivlin, Treasury Secretary Robert Rubin, Senate Budget Committee Chairman Pete Domenici, House Budget Committee Chairman John Kasich, Senate Budget Committee Ranking Democrat James Exon, and House Budget Committee Ranking Democrat Martin Sabo.

Governors expected to participate include Lawton Chiles of Florida, John Engler of Michigan, Mike Leavitt of Utah, Bob Miller of Nevada, Roy Romer of Colorado, and Tommy Thompson of Wisconsin.

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