(WASHINGTON, D.C.) -- With time running out, senior Democrats and Republicans remain unclear about the prospects of success for the so-called congressional "super committee" that is supposed to find trillions of dollars in deficit reductions. North Carolina Democratic Sen. Kay Hagan said the deadline is just a week away.

"If they don't meet the deadline, then the sequestration will go into effect and that means that this $1.2 trillion in cuts that they are supposed to come up with would be evenly divided beginning in January on 2013 between defense and discretionary spending," said Hagan.

Defense Secretary Leon Panetta warned members of Congress this week that cuts to defense spending that would result from the automatic sequestration could cripple the American military establishment.

"I've said all along that this sequestration in the defense area is the poison pill, which means they really, really do need to work together in order to come up with a framework that can achieve these cuts and move our country forward," added Hagan.