Lawmakers snipe, Wall St. frets as debt deadline looms

WASHINGTON (AP) — Testy lawmakers pointed fingers at one another and President Barack Obama today as negotiations over raising the national debt limit entered a perilous endgame.

Wall Street eyed the standoff with growing anxiety, warning of catastrophe if the U.S. defaults on its obligations.

Obama's blunt declaration that "enough is enough" as Wednesday's talks ended did nothing to quell the rancor as a new day of positioning and posturing began.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid rose on the Senate floor early today to snipe that House Minority Leader Eric Cantor shouldn't even be part of the talks anymore, noting that the Virginia Republican has been called "childish." And not long after, Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell stood to serve notice that the debt problem belonged squarely in Obama's lap.

"Republicans will not be reduced to being the tax collectors for the Obama economy," McConnell said. "Don't expect any more cover from Republicans on it than you got on health care. None."