Bush signs law increasing US public debt limit -- $800 Billion Debt Limit Hike
/Congress is ready to send President Bush an $800 billion debt limit
increase, a testament to the massive federal deficits that have marked
his administration. With no alternative but an unprecedented federal
default, the House planned to vote Thursday to boost the debt ceiling
from its current $7.38 trillion level, following Senate passage
Wednesday. The government reached the cap last month, paying its bills
since with cash from a civil service retirement account, which it plans
to repay. "We are nearing the end of our rope, and it is critical that
Congress act,'' said Treasury Department spokesman Rob Nichols. The
vote approached as lawmakers move toward finishing their work for the
year and ending what they hope will be an abbreviated lame-duck
session. Heading the remaining business is a compromise $388 billion
spending package financing most domestic programs. [more] and [more]
