WASHINGTON - House Speaker John Boehner has informed president Barack Obama that he wants to pursue a smaller $2 trillion deficit reduction deal, not the larger effort sought by the White House.

Boehner said the White House wanted tax increases in a deficit reduction deal of as much as $4 trillion over 10 years.

Republicans have been adamant that they would not support higher taxes. Instead, Boehner said negotiators should focus on deficit reductions identified by a bipartisan group led by Vice President Joe Biden.