Coburn Drops Out of Budget Talks

Politico reports:

The Gang of Six is now the Gang of Five, as Sen. Tom Coburn made a quick departure from Tuesday afternoon’s meeting of the bipartisan Senate budget group struggling for months to reach agreement on a long range deficit reduction plan.

“We’re still talking, still trying. This is not easy stuff,” Senate Budget Committee Chairman Kent Conrad (D-N.D.) told POLITICO after the meeting concluded about 45 minutes later. Asked about Coburn, Conrad had no comment, but the Republican later confirmed to reporters that he is dropping out of the effort.

The talks are at an “impasse” Coburn, but allowed that the remaining senators “may continue to meet without me.”

One of the strongest political partners in the deficit reduction effort, Coburn is often the most mercurial as well, and Tuesday’s departure followed several weeks of mood swings over the prospects for a deal.

Yet for all of that, he avoided any fanfare Tuesday after investing so much time in the effort. Arriving shortly before the 2:30 p.m. meeting was slated to begin, he came without staff and stayed it appeared less than 10 minutes, walking past a single reporter outside without any comment.

Nonetheless, the loss is ominous. Sen. Saxby Chambliss (R-Ga.), who arrived with Conrad to the meeting and stayed on after Coburn left, has been distressed himself by the persistent ups-and-downs in the talks. And if either Chambliss or Sen. Mike Crapo (R-Idaho) were also to pull out, it would make it virtually impossible for the other to remain.