US President Barack Obama meets for budget talks with congressional leaders, including House Speaker John Boehner (L), R-OH, July 10, 2011 in the Cabinet Room of the White House in Washington, DC. President Obama and top Republican foes began crisis talks at the White House aimed at staving off a potentially catastrophic US debt default in early August. Republicans are refusing to raise theUSD 14.29 trillion debt limit unless Obama agrees to curb the ballooning budget deficit by concentrating on trimming costly government-funded social welfare programs rather than raising taxes on the wealthy. AFP PHOTO/Mandel NGAN (Photo credit should read MANDEL NGAN/AFP/Getty Images)