But Senator Lindsey Graham, Republican of South Carolina, said both parties bear responsibility for agreeing to the cuts to force a bipartisan deficit deal that remains out of reach.
He said he strongly disagreed with a compromise made last year by the White House and Congressional Republicans, including Mr. Ryan, that called for automatic cuts to military spending as a way to force a deal on deficit reduction.
He also criticized Mr. Obama and Congressional Republicans for agreeing to automatic cuts in defense spending as a way to force a deal on deficit reduction, in a process called sequestration.
And those fights are just a prelude to the coming debate over the budget and debt limit as the two parties and the White House lock horns again over spending and various proposals to force a reduction in deficit spending.
After the disastrous partisan showdown last summer over raising the nation's borrowing limit, Senator Jon Tester, a Montana Democrat, joined 73 other senators — including the entire Republican leadership — in approving a deal that used automatic across-the-board spending cuts to try to force a "grand bargain" on deficit reduction.
In the other semifinal match, Kim had six match points in the second set, but Hippensteel rallied from a 5-2 deficitoto force a tie breaker.
The Nets forged back from a three-games-to-one series deficit to force a Game 7, the 29th time in N.B.A. history that a team has done so, according to the Elias Sports Bureau.
SLAP SHOTS Carolina became the 10th N.H.L. team to rally from a three-game deficit to force a Game 6 in a four-of-seven-game series, according to Elias Sports Bureau.
The defending champion, A.C. Milan, rallied from a two-goal deficit to force a 2-2 tie with Lecce, thanks to second-half goals from Paolo Maldini and Germany's Oliver Bierhoff.
WASHINGTON – Representative Paul D. Ryan, the Republican nominee for vice president, on Sunday defended his decision to support automatic cuts in defense spending as a way to force a deal on reducing the deficit, an approach that was sharply criticized by his running mate, Mitt Romney.
