The Wall Street Journal reports,"the House on Tuesday approved a bill to extend the federal government's borrowing authority with no strings attached, after Republican leaders dropped all policy demands to avoid a market-rattling confrontation in an election year".
"The measure, which would suspend the debt limit and allow the government to borrow until March 16, 2015, marked a retreat from efforts by House Speaker John Boehner(R., Ohio) to require any debt-ceiling increase to be paired with spending cuts of equal size or with other conservative policy demands—many of which were pushed by the tea party.
"It's a disappointing moment," Mr. Boehner said before the vote, attacking Democrats for refusing to pair spending cuts with the debt-limit increase. "This is a lost opportunity," he said.
But by avoiding a cliff-hanging debt fight, Mr. Boehner's strategy may advance a central Republican political goal ahead of the midterm elections: to keep the public focused on the problems of the 2010 health-care law, which Republican candidates across the country are trying to pin on Democrats".
"Republicans want to avoid giving voters any reason to turn on the party ahead of elections that might give the GOP control of both chambers of Congress. "When this is over, we will focus on our agenda and—if we win six seats in the Senate—what we will do different if we control all of Congress," said Rep. Jim Jordan (R., Ohio)".
"Congress has been aiming to pass a debt-limit increase before Feb. 27, the date the Treasury says it will run out of tools to continue paying the government's bills. Congress is in recess next week, pressuring lawmakers to act quickly to avoid the need for 11th-hour action at the end of the month. The Treasury on Tuesday said the federal government holds $17.212 trillion in public debt".
