WASHINGTON (AP) — Despite all the hot fiscal cliff rhetoric, the differences between President Barack Obama and House Speaker John Boehner seem relatively narrow. So why haven’t they shaken hands already? One answer: Both sides need to keep — or get — their own troops behind them.

In their cliff standoff, Obama wants to raise taxes by about $20 billion a year more than Boehner. The two men differ over spending cuts by roughly the same amount.