US President Barack Obama says he believes a framework to cut the country's massive debt can be reached before Christmas. Speaking before a meeting with top business leaders, Obama urged lawmakers in Congress to find common ground and avoid the looming fiscal crisis.

Barack Obama, US President, said, "Our ultimate goal is an agreement that gets our long term deficit under control in a way that is fair and balanced. That kind of agreement would be good for our businesses, it would be good for our economy, it would be good for our children's future and I believe that both parties can agree on a framework that does that in the coming weeks. In fact, my hope is to get this done before Christmas."

The president and Congress are under pressure to strike a deal. If they fail to do so, a package of austerity measures known as the "fiscal cliff" will take effect January 1st. The measures threaten to return the country to recession. Obama will host former political rival Mitt Romney for a private lunch at the White House on Thursday. It's their first meeting since the November 6th election. Discussions will likely cover the impending "fiscal cliff".

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