The Hill News

Sen. Tom Coburn (R-Okla.) called the recent downgrade of the nation's debt outlook by credit rating agency Standard & Poor's a wake-up call for lawmakers on the urgent need to reach a compromise that addresses the growing deficit.

"When S&P decides that the trend is negative and in facts sends a warning show across our bow, I think there's not anything more significant we can do than come to an agreement," Coburn said on Meet the Press in refence to the firm's recent decision to lower the outlook on U.S. debt, raising the possibility it will lower the rating on Treasury bonds.

Coburn and Senate Budget Committee chairman Kent Conrad (D-N.D.) both expressed optimism regarding the budget discussions they are currently involved in as me! mbers of the Gang of Six. Conrad noted the share of national income Americans pay in taxes is at a 60-year low while spending has reach unprecedented levels.

"This is a defining moment. And we've got to decide as a nation, are we going to do some things that all of us would prefer not to have to do, or do we wait for the roof to cave in," Conrad said.

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