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There may have been a few hours of respite and bipartisan bonhomie following Friday鈥檚 late-night temporary resolution to the FY 2011 budget crisis. But by Sunday morning, the principals were back at it 鈥� staking out partisan positions in a way that promises even bigger fights over federal debt and government spending.

Making the rounds of TV news shows, White House senior adviser David Plouffe said President Obama will detail his position on deficit reduction in a speech Wednesday. Plouffe was a key figure in Obama鈥檚 2008 presidential campaign, and he took up his White House post in January.

鈥淭he president clearly believes that we can still grow economically with smart deficit reduction,鈥� Plouffe said on CNN鈥檚 State of the Union. 鈥淏ut it鈥檚 got to be smart. If we鈥檙e just going to cut student loans, cut Head Start, cut medical research, we鈥檙e not going to be the country in terms of the economy that we need to be.鈥�

For Obama, cutting the deficit means still pushing for an end to the Bush-era tax cuts for the wealthiest Americans 鈥� a fight Obama has yet to win. 鈥淧eople like him, as he鈥檒l say, who鈥檝e been very fortunate in life, have the ability to pay a little bit more,鈥� Plouffe said on NBC鈥檚 Meet the Press, emphasizing that this does not mean the middle class.

Obama鈥檚 speech is expected to cover domestic and defense spending as well as Medicare and Medicaid, the federal deficit, and the long-term $14 trillion debt.

The bipartisan agreement reached Friday just before the midnight deadline for a government shutdown knocked $78.5 billion off President Obama鈥檚 FY 2011 budget request and cut spending levels for the rest of the fiscal year (through September) by $37.7 billion. That鈥檚 scheduled to become law this week.

The GOP position all along has been that 鈥渨e鈥檝e had to bring this president kicking and screaming to the table to cut spending,鈥� as House Majority Leader Eric Cantor, (R) of Virginia, said on Fox News Sunday. 鈥淚t鈥檚 really hard to believe what this White House and what this president is saying.鈥�

鈥淚 hear they鈥檙e going to present a plan 鈥� to address the fiscal situation. And right away, they鈥檙e insisting that we have to go about looking at raising taxes again,鈥� Cantor said.

The Republican budget blueprint, as laid out last week by Budget Committee Chairman Rep. Paul Ryan of Wisconsin, would cut federal spending by some $6 trillion over the next 10 years while overhauling Medicare and Medicaid, repealing the health care reform law passed last year, and changing the tax code to benefit businesses and wealthy individuals.

Under the Ryan plan, Plouffe claims, 鈥淭he average millionaire in this country would get at least a $200,000 tax cut while the average senior down the road is going to pay $6,000 more in health costs, the middle-class is going to pay more, you鈥檝e got a 70 percent cut in energy investment at a time of record gas prices.鈥�

Asked on 鈥淢eet the Press鈥� about the chances that Ryan鈥檚 plan would pass, Plouffe said, 鈥淚t may pass the House, but it鈥檚 not going to become the law.鈥�

As for Obama鈥檚 upcoming speech, Republicans 鈥� always wary of his skills as a communicator 鈥� are skeptical.

鈥淚 think he needs to do more than just give a speech,鈥� Sen. Jeff Sessions, (R) of Alabama, senior Republican on the Senate Budget Committee, told Fox News. 鈥淚 think he needs to submit a new budget.鈥�

Both Sessions and Cantor suggested there would be no increase in the debt limit without deeper spending cuts.

鈥淭here is no way that we Republicans are going to support increasing the debt limit without guaranteed steps being put in place to ensure that the spending doesn鈥檛 get out of control again,鈥� Cantor said.

To many Democrats, that sounds a lot like a threat that could lead to another government shutdown, not to mention damage to global credit markets.

Or as Plouffe put it on Meet the Press: 鈥淲e should not be playing brinksmanship with the full faith and credit of the United States of America.鈥�

All parties can agree on at least one thing David Plouffe said Sunday: 鈥淲e鈥檙e going to have a big debate.鈥�