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Debt Deal Reached

Posted by: Linda Carbonell on July 31, 2011.

07-31-2011 by Linda S. Carbonell

With less than 52 hours to go, the President announced Sunday night that an agreement had been reached on the debt ceiling and budget crisis.

In brief, the deal involves raising the debt ceiling through the end of 2012, there will be $1 trillion in spending cuts over the next 10 years ($100 billion per year), a bi-partisan “super-committee” comprised of one member of each party from each chamber of Congress will be set up to determine how to best reduce spending and stimulate our economy to report back before November for a vote. Everything will be on the table in this committee. The vote in the Senate, which will go first, is tentatively set for 1 p.m. Eastern time on Monday. Sen. Mike Lee has said he will filibuster the bill. That means that the bill will need a bi-partisan total of 60 votes. Currently, the Senate contains 51 Democrats, 47 Republicans and 2 Independents who caucus with the Democrats. After passage in the Senate, the bill will go to the House, where it will only need a straight majority of 217 votes. There are currently 240 Republicans and 193 Democrats, with one seat vacant and Gabrielle Giffords on leave of absence.

President Obama said in his statement announcing the deal, “This process has been messy. It has taken far too long.” The man is certainly a master of understatement.