House speaker John Boehner has left open the door for a quick bill that would halt tax increases for the vast majority of Americans on January 1.

Boehner twice ducked questions from reporters during a press conference on Capitol Hill on Thursday about whether he was prepared to allow a vote on a bill that would see the top 2% of the country’s richest face tax rises but exempt the remaining 98%.

With just over two weeks left until the country goes over the so-called fiscal cliff, the House or Representatives broke up until next week with no deal in place. The Democratic leader in the House, Nancy Pelosi, said if a deal is not reached this week or early next week at the latest, there will be no chance of securing the necessary legislation in time.

One emergency compromise being discussed in Congress is for a short bill to deal with taxes, and leaving spending cuts until next year.

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