Senator sees fiscal cliff hopes fading

WASHINGTON, Dec. 2 (UPI) -- A senior U.S. senator gave a gloomy prediction Sunday on prospects for a deal that would prevent the economy from plunging over the so-called fiscal cliff.

Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., said on CBS' "Face the Nation" he was pessimistic about the chances for an agreement and blamed the Democrats for believing -- wrongly, he argued -- their victory in the presidential election gave them added clout.

"I think we're going over the cliff," Graham predicted. "It's pretty clear to me they made a political calculation."

The calculation, Graham said, was a failure by Democrats to make meaningful proposals on entitlement reform.

He said spending on social programs had put the United States on a path of no return that could end up with economic turmoil like that seen in Europe.

"A hundred percent of Americans are going to lose everything we know as America if we don't fix entitlements," said Graham. "We're becoming Greece because of out-of-control entitlement spending."