Sen. Coats among select group invited to dinner by President Obama

WASHINGTON - Indiana Senator Dan Coats was among a select group of Republicans President Obama invited to a special dinner Wednesday night.  The goal was to see if they could find middle ground on how to deal with the federal budget.

Senator Coats said  the invitation to dinner by the President was not a political ploy.  He felt the President Obama was serious about tackling the nation's debt problem.

"We had some good discussions about how potentially we could go forward.  My message to him was 'Mr. President, I came back for one reason and that's because I'm concerned about the future of our country and our children and grandchildren inheriting a debt that they'll never get out of,'" Coats explained.

Senator Coats said he's a harsh critic of the President.  He thinks that may have something to do with why he was invited.

"I know he doesn't tune in every time I speak on the Senate floor but maybe he heard Coats is somebody that we need to talk to."

Coats said the group of Republicans told Obama that what the GOP calls 'two month cliff-to-cliff governing' puts a strain on Americans and the economy.

"It's not words that count or what's said it's ultimately what's done.  And we have a hard and challenging task ahead of us."

Although the dinner didn't result in any major agreements, Coats felt Obama was sincere about working on the debt issue and tightening the federal budget.

"We're ready to sit down and have a serious discussion.  The President said the right things last night.  We'll see if he follows up on it."

President Obama held another face-to-face budget conversation over lunch Thursday with Congressmen Paul Ryan and Chris Van Hollen