In a Tuesday afternoon press conference, President Barack Obama reiterated his position on the government shutdown and possible default by the U.S. government, saying that the last eight days of the shutdown have hurt U.S. credibility around the world.

"I am happy to talk with [Speaker Boehner] and other Republicans about anything, not just issues that I think are important," Obama said in his remarks to the White House press corps.

"They have decided to run out the clock until there is a government shutdown or the possibility of default to give themselves more leverage."

On the possibility of a government default if the debt ceiling is not raised by Congress in the next week, Obama warned that such a decision would have major economic consequences.

"The economic shutdown caused by America defaulting would be dramatically worse," Obama said. "Some House Republicans believe that default is not a big deal."

"The last time that the Tea Party Republicans flirted with the possibility of default, markets plunged."

President Obama also discussed the economic meetings he missed in Asia due to the government shutdown. He said that while he apologized to the host countries about his absence, it wouldn't be a major, lasting issue.

"We are the one indispensable nation," Obama said. "We end up being engaged much more than China, for example, in setting the agenda" for multilateral economic forums."

Reach Executive Producer Colin Hale here. Follow him on Twitter.