For instance, Senator John Kyl of Arizona, a Republican member of the special committee set up by the deficit legislation, threatened last week to quit the panel if it attempted to cut military spending any further.
Last month, The Takeover Panel--the U.K.'s takeover regulator--set a put up or shut up deadline of 5 p.m. on December 15 for Macquarie Bank, Australia's biggest investment bank, to come forward with a bid for the LSE.