Obama says he 'won't compromise' on taxes

REDFORD, Mich. (AP) — President Barack Obama warned Monday that he "won't compromise" on his demands that the wealthiest Americans pay more in taxes, digging in on the chief sticking point between the White House and Republicans as they seek a way to avert the "fiscal cliff."

Obama brought his pressure-Congress campaign to the heart of industrial America, ripping lines from his own re-election bid as the nation inched closer to a perilous economic cliff. He said the country couldn't afford a "manufactured" crisis and pledged to cheering auto workers that he would fight to extend tax cuts for the middle class before they expire at year's end.

"That's a hit you can't afford to take," Obama declared.

Obama's campaign-style trip to Michigan came one day after he and House Speaker John Boehner met privately at the White House. While neither side would characterize the meeting, the mere fact that the two leaders talked face-to-face was seen as progress in negotiations to avoid a series of year-end tax hikes and spending cuts.

Republicans have long opposed Obama's call for higher tax rates on the wealthy, but some GOP lawmakers are suggesting the party relent on taxes in order to win concessions from the president on changes to benefit programs such as Medicare. Still, Boehner's office indicated Monday that the speaker wasn't ready to take that step.

"The Republican offer made last week remains the Republican offer," said Brendan Buck, a Boehner spokesman. He was referring to a GOP plan that offered $800 billion in new revenue over the next decade through reducing or eliminating unspecified tax breaks on upper-income earners, but not by raising tax rates.