Obama: do something "big" on deficit reduction

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama on Thursday urged lawmakers to seize the opportunity to significantly reduce the country's deficit.

But he gave no indication of the status of discussions between the White House and Republicans on crafting a deal to lift the country's debt ceiling by an August 2 deadline in an opinion piece posted on the USA Today website.

"There will be plenty of haggling over the details of all these plans in the days ahead. But right now, we have the opportunity to do something big and meaningful," he said.

(Reporting by Alister Bull; Editing by Paul Simao)