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Chris Matthews claims he's concerned about the federal debt harming the youth of America. Well then Chris, that conversation ought to involve the rich having their taxes raised. Of course he didn't mention that fact that we've got billionaires out there asking to have their taxes raised.

MATTHEWS: Welcome back. This week President Obama and Republican leaders get together, finally. And the bipartisan debt report comes out this week. Our BIG QUESTION: Tea partiers want real cuts in the debt. Does this bipartisan report coin for real cuts in the debt? And the president wants a big legacy. Is this the perfect storm to actually reduce the federal debt over time, John Heilemann?

HEILEMANN: No, it's not. Because, I mean, I think the president actually is the most willing party here to actually go out and do something bold and relatively courageous on this subject. But look, the only way to deal with the deficit problem in the long term is with both taxes and spending and entitlement reform. Republicans are not, at this point, willing to accept any tax increases. And Democrats are not really willing to touch any entitlement reform or any cuts in things like Medicare and Social Security. It's not doable without those two things.

MATTHEWS: Well, that's pretty baleful… and Norah.

O'DONNELL: I hope, yes, that it's the perfect storm. But whether--if liberals won't get on board with cutting some spending, then it's not going to happen.

KORNBLUT: And it's incumbent on the president to really pressure them to not just because he wants to actually reduce the deficit, but because heading into re-election that's important to independents.

O'DONNELL: Mm-hmm.

SALAM: I think it is a great opportunity because I think that folks on the right embrace the Bowles-Simpson report, which surprised everyone. And they've actually outflanked people on the left who said, “Hey, we're the more sensible ones.” And I think that's a big development.

MATTHEWS: Right. With all this talk about youth in this country, I wish people would think about the youth are going to be saddled with this debt down the road if we don't do something about it.

Thanks to a great roundtable: John Heilemann, Norah O'Donnell--and thanks for sitting in for this week, everybody loved you last week--and, anyway, Anne Kornblut, thank you. Reihan Salam, thank you for joining us again.