NCR Today
In the summer of 2011, President Barack Obama and House Speaker John Boehner almost reached a $4 trillion deal that fell apart at the last minute. All the king's horses and all the king's men were unable to put the deal back together again.
A decision was made to create a terrible scenario that would force politicians to agree to a deal because the alternative was unthinkable and would occur on Jan. 1. It was called the "fiscal cliff."