The debt ceiling fight begins in earnest this week, as politicians get back to work from their break.

So far, there's really been no positive movement on this front, at least in terms of getting a deal done.

If you want to get a sense of what the hardcore Tea Party wing of the GOP wants from the fight, check out this op-ed from Sen. Jim DeMint in The Greenville News.

What DeMint really wants is a balanced budget amendment. Without that, no deal.

Cutting spending is part of the answer, but isn’t all of it. In addition to finding ways to save money, members of Congress must work together to reform broken federal programs, restructure government and devolve more activity to the states. Instead of inventing new things the federal government should do, Washington must find ways to let go control and let states take over.

Read the whole op-ed here >