Reid: "Significant Distance" in Fiscal Cliff Negotiations

Democrats want new taxes to fund new spending

Capitol Hill negotiations to avert a fiscal crisis before the New Year's deadline appeared to falter Sunday in the Senate, as lawmakers struggled to find common ground while bringing the country ever-closer to a 2013 shockwave of tax hikes and spending cuts.

Senators spent the weekend trying to craft a new proposal that they originally claimed could be ready as early as Sunday. But Senate Democratic Leader Harry Reid reported late in the day that there was significant distance between the two sides, following a tense afternoon during which Vice President Biden was brought in to referee.