AlHijjah 2, 1434, Oct 7, 2013, SPA -- White House officials reiterated Monday that U.S. President Barack Obama would not negotiate with congressional Republicans under the threat of an unprecedented debt default. "There has never been a period where you have a serious faction or a serious strategy by one political party ... to use the threat of default as the main tactic in extracting policy," National Economic Council Director Gene Sperling told reporters. Sperling's remarks came a day after House of Representatives Speaker John Boehner (Republican from Ohio) said he would not move to increase the debt limit without a concession from Obama. Delaying an increase in the debt ceiling in exchange for political concessions would set a dangerous precedent, Sperling warned. "It will be used [again] and again, and there will be payback if there is a Republican president."
