NBC/WSJ poll: Two-thirds support balanced deficit deal As the Obama White House and Congress negotiate to avoid the so-called fiscal cliff, nearly two-thirds of Americans say they favor a balanced deal to reduce the deficit -- consisting of both higher tax rates and cuts to key entitlement programs. According to the latest national NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll, 65 percent say congressional leaders should make compromises to deal with the budget deficit, even if that means Democrats would need to accept targeted spending cuts to Social Security and Medicare, and that Republicans would need to accept targeted increases in tax rates. Speaker of the House John Boehner, R-Ohio, walks to the House chamber to speak on the pending fiscal cliff negotiations Dec. 11, 2012 in Washington. That includes 68 percent of Democrats, 66 percent of Republicans and 56 percent of political independents who support this position. By comparison, just 28 percent believe leaders should stick to their traditional positions on the budget deficit, even if that means Congress goes over the fiscal cliff, triggering the automatic spending cuts and tax increases that are set to take place at the beginning of the year if Congress is unable to reach an agreement. The full NBC/WSJ poll -- which was conducted of 1,000 adults from Dec. 6-9 and has a margin of error of plus-minus 3.1 percentage points -- will be released at 6:30 pm ET. This particular question has margin of error of plus-minus 4.4 percentage points.