Not nearly as partisan as you might have imagined. The debt ceiling suspension through May 18 passed Wednesday afternoon 285 to 144, with 86 of the ayes coming from Democrats. That takes some of the wind out of the sails of Speaker John Boehner, whose floor speech focused on the requirement in the bill that the Democratic majority Senate pass a budget by April 15 or the lawmakers in that chamber will have their salaries held in escrow. - See the vote here
SENATE WILL ACCEPT SHORT-TERM DEBT PLAN An hour before the House passed the short-term debt ceiling fix, Senate Democrats said they would approve the bill. “We will not hold the full faith and credit of the United States hostage,” Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev. told reporters, adding that the bill was “clean” as it doesn’t include any spending cuts, which the GOP had previously demanded in any debt ceiling deal.
The president is also on board. White House Press Secretary Jay Carney told reporters Tuesday that President Obama would not hesitate to sign the bill into law, which means the debt ceiling debacle will likely be tabled until May. - Read more at The Washington Post
