Axelrod urges cooperation in Washington

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WASHINGTON, Nov. 8 (UPI) -- David Axelrod, one of U.S. President Barack Obama's top political advisers, suggested Thursday the election should be seen as "a vote for cooperation."

In an interview on MSNBC, Axelrod said the president does not have a mandate on how to resolve the deficit debacle with House Republicans, The Hill reported.

"Everyone's going to have to come to the table in the spirit of getting things done, but on this issue of particularly the fiscal cliff -- presidents always say, 'I have a mandate'; that's a foolish word and generally untrue," Axelrod said. "But the president did campaign all over this country ... on the need for balanced deficit reduction that included some new revenues and he was reelected in a significant way, so hopefully people will read those results and read them as a vote for cooperation."

The election did little to change the political balance of power in Washington. Obama won a second term, the Democrats gained a slightly bigger margin in the Senate and the Republicans had a net loss of seats in the House, while remaining in the majority.

Axelrod said Obama is ready to work with the House Republicans and Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio.

"We want the doors to be open and we want people to walk through both ways," Axelrod said. "I don't know anybody who is more willing to work with people from whatever political party ... in order to move things forward, and I know he's going to bring that spirit to this and other issues."