WASHINGTON – The No. 3 Democrat in the House said Tuesday he believes Congress and the White House can find a consensus on tackling the nation’s growing indebtedness as long as “a lot of compassion” is brought to the table.

But Rep. James Clyburn of South Carolina told MSNBC that government safety-net programs like Medicare and Medicaid must not “be shredded.”

Clyburn is the highest-ranking African-American in Congress. Progress can be achieved in deficit negotiations, he said, “if sacrifices are, in fact, shared.” Clyburn also said he thinks Democrats are willing to give some on entitlement program changes so long as Republicans show a willingness to work on closing loopholes in the tax code that benefit the wealthy.