I am sure that they were discussing spending cuts, because a casual look at IRS statistics on their website would show that you could tax the top 2 % of wage earners at 100 % - that's right, take ALL of it, and it would take decades to pay off the existing debt at current spending levels and assuming the debt will stabilize.
No one believes that alone will bring down the deficit. And it's about reducing the debt, not paying it off.