The great debt debate: Point/counterpoint

Anger, frustration and concern continue to mount in Washington as talks on hiking the nation's debt limit drag on - and dire warnings are being sounded from various quarters about the consequences of not reaching a deal by the Aug. 2 deadline.

And if you want to get a feel for the emotions and rhetoric flying back-and-forth, you need go no further than "The Early Show on Saturday Morning," where the co-chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, Rep. Raul Grijalva (D-Ariz.) and conservative Rep. Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.) got into a contentious discussion of the issues, displaying strongly-held (and sharply divergent) beliefs.

Grijalva recently called on House Minority leader Nancy Pelosi to stand firm on Democratic principles and not allow Republicans to push through massive cuts to entitlement programs such as Social Security and Medicare.

Blackburn wants to see massive spending cuts and a complete reform of the tax code. Instead of permitting the government to borrow more, she wants to concentrate on finding ways to lower the deficit.

In a typical exchange, Grijalva told co-anchor Russ Mitchell, "The American public is saying clearly that they want essential programs (such as) Social Security and Medicare protected and enhanced for the future, and I believe firmly that can be done without sacrificing benefits and coverage for the American people who depend on these programs. The American people are also saying you need to roll back those (President George W.) Bush (tax cuts), and cut back those corporate (tax loopholes), by overwhelming numbers.

"So, maybe if the will of the American people would play a role, we could get to a deal," Grijalva said.

Blackburn shot back, "We are not in this situation because the debt limit is too low. We're in this situation because we spend too much. Indeed, since this president took office, he has added $3.7 trillion to the national debt. The American people agree with us that it is time cut federal spending. It is time to cap it, so that we never get into this situation again. And it is time for a balanced budget amendment (to the Constitution). There is overwhelming public support for taking the approach that House conservatives are taking, and that is why we're pushing forward with it."

Then, CBS News political analyst John Dickerson looked at the political implications of the drawn-out debt negotiations, frayed nerves and flared tempers, telling Mitchell, "The anger here is because there is no easy way to make this deal. Often in Washington, two parties get together, they haggle, they negotiate, they call each other names, but in the end they can come up with some kind of a deal, because there's been enough money to kind of grease the deal - each side gets what it wants.

"But in this case, we're talking about distributing pain, and that's a much more difficult kind of deal to get,' Dickerson continued. "And here they've come to a position where the two sides are at total loggerheads."

To see the Grijalva/Blackburn debate, click on the video below:

To see the Dickerson interview, click on the video below: