Updated: 7:34 p.m.

On the eve of the super committee’s first public hearing in more than a month, a three-hour, closed-door meeting Tuesday got especially heated as Democrats presented their suggestions for a deficit reduction agreement.

According to multiple sources, a Democratic Member was presenting a potential plan — which one source indicated would achieve the committee’s desired budget savings by having tax increases nearly equal spending cuts — when Republicans, including Sens. Rob Portman (Ohio) and Jon Kyl (Ariz.), became sharply critical. These sources disputed whether the tough talk from the GOP Members came in the form of questions or statement of opinions, but Members had been asked to pose only clarifying questions in order to avoid partisan displays.

Publicly, Republican leaders have vehemently opposed including any revenue raisers in a deal to reach the committee’s goal of reducing the deficit by at least $1.2 trillion over 10 years, while Democratic leaders have refused to agree to entitlement cuts unless taxes are also on the table. Tuesday’s Democratic proposal represented the position of several committee members but not all Democrats on the panel.

When discussions grew in intensity, Co-Chairman Jeb Hensarling (R-Texas) tried to rein in his colleagues and soften the debate. Shortly after the presentation and pushback from GOP lawmakers, staffers were asked to leave the room. The incident occurred in the first of two closed-door meetings Tuesday.