Cut, Cap, and Balance Act of 2011 Moves On To Senate

[Skilero]

Bill's text here: http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/z?c112:H.R.2560:

Quoted: http://www.npr.org/blogs/thetwo-way/...d-balance-bill

In a 234-190 vote, the U.S. House of Representatives passed the "Cap, Cut and Balance Act of 2011" crafted by House Republicans. The bill, which bars any increase in the debt ceiling unless Congress first sends a balanced budget amendment to the states for ratification, calls for a $1.5 trillion cut in this year's deficit and caps federal spending to 24 percent of the gross domestic product.

The bill is unlikely to become law, because it now moves to the Democratic-controlled Senate. As It's All Politics reported, yesterday, the White House also threatened to veto the bill if it ever made it to the president's desk.

Where it goes from here:

 

Quoted: http://thehill.com/blogs/floor-actio...e-bill-234-190

The House on Tuesday evening approved the Republican's controversial "cut, cap and balance" bill by a 234-190 mostly party-line vote, although the bill was likely made irrelevant even before its passage by signs of progress in the Senate on a debt ceiling agreement.

President Obama himself announced that the bipartisan Gang of Six group of senators reached a broad agreement to cut $3.7 trillion over 10 years. Additionally, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) said he saw a breakthrough on a smaller agreement that would allow Obama to raise the debt ceiling himself in three stages, subject to a procedural vote in Congress.

Pres. Obama indicated that the latter plan may be needed as a backstop plan, as Reid said the Gang of Six plan may not be ready in time to meet the August 2 debt-ceiling deadline.

My worries are that this bill will be passed by the Democrat-controlled Senate under conditions (it will be called an 'bipartisan agreement') that also allow debt ceiling votes and votes for bills that spend money.

An element of the Cut, Cap, and Balance Act caps the annual funds the government may spend each year, which serves as a piece of legislation that may just be rejected to have the bill thrown back into the House missing this piece. Without that section of the bill, however, the entire purpose of its passage would be crippled and the other parts of the bill would have no effectiveness because of missing spending limits.