–House Speaker Toughens Debt Hike Bill To Assure House Passage
–House Republicans Add Balanced Budget Amendment To Debt Hike Package
–Revised Boehner Bill Eases House Passage, Ensures Senate Rejection
–Senate Majority Leader Reid Prepares To Kill Boehner Bill Friday Night

By John Shaw

WASHINGTON (MNI) – The House is moving toward passage Friday
evening of Speaker John Boehner’s modified debt ceiling bill.

The House is expected to vote on the new House GOP bill as early as
6 p.m. ET Friday. It requires 217 votes to pass in the House.

There are 240 Republicans in the House. Boehner can only afford to
lose 23 votes. All Democrats are expected to vote against the bill.

A number of conservative Republicans said an earlier version of the
Boehner bill wasn’t sufficiently tough on cutting spending.

Boehner addressed that concern by including a requirement that a
balanced budget amendment be considered and approved by the House and
Senate before a second installment of the debt ceiling increase goes
forward.

Boehner’s plan would raise the debt ceiling by $900 billion this
year and $1.6 trillion next year. The initial $900 billion debt ceiling
increase would require Congress to pass $917 billion in spending cuts
through the imposition of caps on discretionary spending.

Approval of the second tranche of $1.6 trillion would require
passage of $1.8 trillion in spending cuts in entitlement programs and
passage by the House and Senate of the balanced budget amendment which
requires two-thirds majorities in both chambers.

Adding this provision will help Boehner pass the debt hike bill in
the House this evening but has intensified opposition by Senate
Democrats to the package.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid scorched the House GOP plan as
“bizarre” at a Friday afternoon briefing.

Reid’s own plan would cut spending by $2.4 trillion over ten years
and allow for passage of a $2.4 trillion debt ceiling increase.

Reid has said he will move to table Boehner’s bill when it arrives
in the Senate later in the evening. He then hopes to enter into intense
talks with Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell on a compromise plan.
The final package is likely to blend aspects of the Boehner and Reid
plans.

The U.S. has already reached its $14.29 trillion debt ceiling.
Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner has said that Congress must pass
legislation increasing the debt ceiling by August 2.

** Market News International Washington Bureau: (202) 371-2121 **

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