more hostage taking from the GOP. House Majority Leader Eric Cantor told Fox News Sunday host Chris Wallace that they're open to ending the sequester, but only if grandma gets it.

Cantor suggests House GOP open to sequester compromise:

House Majority Leader Eric Cantor suggested Sunday that congressional Republicans are open to a compromise to end the deep, undiscerning cut to the federal budget known as sequester, but said the deal would require Democrats agreeing to entitlement cuts.

The Virginia Republican’s statement on “Fox News Sunday” knocks down criticism that his party wanted the cuts and is determined to keep them when Congress returns next month to negotiate a budget deal before the September 30 deadline.

“It’s a default mechanism,” Cantor said about the sequester cuts, which kicked in this spring after Washington failed to agree on a more measured approach. “It’s not the best solution.”

However, Cantor’s apparent signal that Republicans are open to a deal is not expected to ease fears about a failed compromise and potential October 1 government shutdown, considering President Obama has signaled his unwillingness to further cut entitlements, which include Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security.

“We’ve always said the president can join us,” Cantor said. “We shouldn’t be for a government shutdown. We hope we will find common ground.”

He was a bit more honest about what he thinks should happen to these entitlements earned benefits during a recent interview with the Wall Street Journal: Cantor: Entitlement Promises ‘Frankly, Are Not Going To Be Kept For Many’:

During an interview with the Wall Street Journal, House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-VA) said he is ready and willing to slash entitlements like Medicare, because, in his opinion, Americans have to “come to grips with the fact that promises have been made that frankly are not going to be kept for many“:

What we need to be able to do is to demonstrate that that is the better way for the people of this country. Get the fiscal house in order, come to grips with the fact that promises have been made that, frankly, are not going to be kept for many. [...] The math doesn’t lie.

Republicans have been saying for months that they want to preserve programs like Medicare and Social Security for all people over the age of 55, but that those under 55 will have to shift into a different program. But Cantor’s pronouncement is maybe the most explicit explanation that, under the GOP’s vision, the government would be actively reneging on promises made to those who haven’t yet hit the arbitrary age of 55. Of course, the math would look much better, particularly on Social Security, if the GOP were to back off its insistence that the government not collect a single dime in new revenue.

It would work out a lot better if they'd simply raise the cap as well. And as they also noted, raising the age on Medicare is a really bad idea.