Image from The Washington Post

Until a few weeks ago, you probably had never heard of the “debt ceiling,” let alone understood its dire implications for the U.S. economy.

Well, this “Debt Ceiling” debate might be better called “Clash of the Titans”.

As liberals push for one plan and conservatives push for another, President Obama and Congress have found themselves locked in a back-and-forth battle. Hopes for either to ultimately prevail in raising the debt ceiling ( and thus avoid potential economic chaos) seem dim.

On Tuesday evening, the Republican-controlled House passed a “cut, cap, and balance” plan championed by Tea Party supporters.

Earlier in the day, Obama praised an opposing bipartisan deal proposed in the Senate. The problem is: neither plan is expected to make it any further in time for the impending August 2 deadline.

Obama called the plan by the Gang of Six senators “broadly consistent” with his own approach to the current debt ceiling crisis because it mixes tax changes, entitlement reforms and spending reductions.

However, the top two Democrats in the Senate said they don’t think there is enough time before the government needs to borrow more money on August 2nd to pass the comprehensive Gang of Six plan.

A majority of Americans are hoping politics is pushed to the side in order for the two parties to compromise.

Strong majorities of Democrats and independents prefer that Democratic congressional leaders make compromises in this budget debate, while almost 70 percent of independents want Republican leaders to do the same.

Majorities, too embrace a large comprehensive solution to the crisis rather than a temporary band-aid fix:

…nearly six in 10 favor President Barack Obama’s proposal to lower the federal deficit by $4 trillion over 10 years by cutting federal spending, raising tax revenue from the wealthy and reducing some Medicare spending.