A Democratic senator called Saturday for President-elect George Bush to meet with congressional leaders prior to his inauguration to find ``common ground'' for fighting the deficit. Sen. Jim Sasser of Tennessee noted the declining dollar and the drop in the stock market since Bush's election, and said the world is waiting to see if the incoming president has a plan for reducing the country's massive federal deficit. ``Congress, like the financial markets and the Federal Reserve, is anxiously seeking a sign from the incoming administration that the era of ideological stalemate is over, and the era of realistic deficit reduction has begun,'' said Sasser, in the Democrats' response to President Reagan's weekly radio address. Reagan, in his broadcast, said the nation's factories are booming and farmers harvested more than the country could consume. He urged Americans on Thanksgiving to thank the Lord for ``peace, prosperity and freedom.'' Sasser said Democrats in Congress want to work with the new president for positive results ``but we can't wait for the next financial disaster before we again take the budget deficit seriously.'' ``And let me say to President-elect Bush: many of us in the Congress are experienced lip readers. We don't want new taxes any more than you do,'' said Sasser, addressing Bush's promise not to raise taxes. ``We stand ready to follow the new president's lead, so long as that leadership aims honestly and forthrightly at solving this country's number one economic problem,'' he said. Sasser proposed that a meeting of Bush with congressional leaders ``should aim specifically at getting to the common ground _ the objectives we all share _ with regard to fiscal policy.'' He said Bush also should give a fair hearing to the National Economic Commission set up to deal with the deficit and should get the Reagan administration to submit a realistic budget to Congress. ``Those are the kinds of meaningful actions that will command the confidence of the international financial community,'' Sasser said. ``They will help put to rest the rumors of early conflict between the Congress and the next president.''
