Gridlock turns to failure as the bipartisan committee charged with cutting more than a trillion dollars from the nation's budget over the next decade says an agreement won't be reached.

The collapse means automatic, across-the-board cuts to military and domestic programs are supposed to take place, beginning in 2013 (Social Security, Medicaid, food stamps, and veterans benefits are exempt).

But the supercommittee's failure Monday triggers a renewed presidential debate and leaves many lawmakers shaking their heads.

We have all heard the talking points from both sides blaming each other -- Democrats point to Republicans' insistence to make Bush-era tax cuts permanent; Republicans point the finger at Democrats' emphasis on tax revenue and resisting reforms to entitlement programs.

What it comes down to is $1.2 trillion in spending cuts over the next ten years. And President Obama is threatening to veto any attempt to block the automatic cuts without a debt plan in its place.

After intense public scrutiny, late Monday members of the 12-member, bipartisan supercommittee said in a statement that compromise won't happen.

The panel, created in this summer's 11th hour debt ceiling agreement, faced a Wednesday deadline to present a plan to Congress or automatic cuts will begin in 2013, about $55 billion a year from the military and another $55 million from nearly all domestic spending programs. 

While most supercommittee members are staying quiet, Democratic Senator John Kerry of Massachusetts isn't.

"This was not a tax cutting committee, this was a deficit reduction committee, and we refused in the end to bow to the insistence that in this moment in America's history where we have a record low level of revenues that we were going to give, yet again, a huge multi-billion dollar tax cut to the wealthiest people in the country."

Some Republicans plan to introduce legislation to prevent the automatic cuts. Senators John McCain and Lindsay Graham say they'll pursue all options to avoid slashing defense.

But President Obama says he'll veto any legislation to derail the cuts without a debt reduction plan.

"There will be no easy off-ramps on this one," President Obama said.

In a written statement, Republican U.S. Representative Reid Ribble of Wisconsin's 8th Congressional District said, "While Republicans offered a balanced approach including a combination of cuts and increased revenue, the Democrats rejected these efforts and the president refused to engage in the process. I'm very frustrated that the supercommittee failed to come up with a proposal to drive down this massive debt."

Wisconsin's senior U.S. Senator Herb Kohl, a Democrat, said, "It's most unfortunate that the joint committee couldn't reach an agreement. Our country has serious issues with long-term debt, and everybody understands that we need to make difficult choices to address them."

Republican Senator Ron Johnson released a statement, "We need economic growth and real leadership -- something that has been absent from Washington for far too long."

Since the cuts won't begin until 2013, there is plenty of time for Congress to repeal this legislation or a new president to take office working to do the same.