captioning made possible by the national captioning institute, inc., in cooperation with the united states house of representatives. any use of the closed-captioned coverage of the house proceedings for political or commercial purposes is expressly prohibited by the u.s. house of representatives.] the chair: on this vote the yeas are 249, the nays are 169, the amendment is adopted. the unfinished business is the request for a recorded vote on the amendment offered by the gentleman from tennessee, mr. cohen, on which further proceedings were postponed, on which the noes prevailed by voice vote. the clerk will redesignate the amendment. the clerk: amendment offered by mr. cohen of tennessee. the chair: a recorded vote has been requested. those in support of the request for a recorded vote will rise and be counted. a sufficient number having arisen, a recorded vote is ordered. members will record their votes by electronic device. this is a two-minute vote. two-minute vote. [captioning made possible by the national captioning institute, inc., in cooperation with the united states house of representa

captioning made possible by the national captioning institute, inc., in cooperation with the united states house of representatives. any use of the closed-captioned coverage of the house proceedings for political or commercial purposes is expressly prohibited by the u.s. house of representatives.] the chair: on this vote the yeas are 160 and the amendment is not agreed to -- the noes are the chair: the house will come to order, please. the house will be in order. members will please take their conversations off the floor and take their seats. the house will be in order. the chair would ask all present to rise for the purpose of a moment of silence. the chair asks that the house now observe a moment of silence in remembrance of our brave men and women in uniform who have given their lives in the service of our nation in iraq and afghanistan and their families and of all who serve in our armed forces and their families. the chair: without objection, two-minute voting will continue. the unfinished business is the request for a railroaded -- vord -- recorded vote on amendment number 2 by the gentlem

the clerk: house resolution 268, resolution reaffirming the united states commitment to a negotiated settlement of the mr. israel: conflict -- of the israeli-palestinian conflict and for other purposes. the speaker pro tempore: the question is will the house suspend the rules and agree to the resolution. members will record their votes by electronic device. this is a 15-minute vote. [captioning made possible by the national captioning institute, inc., in cooperation with the united states house of representatives. any use of the closed-captioned coverage of the house proceedings for political or commercial purposes is expressly prohibited by the u.s. house of representatives.] the speaker pro tempore: on this bill, there is 407 yeas, 6 nays, 13 present. 2/3 being in the affirmative, the rules are suspended, the resolution is agreed to and without objection, the motion to reconsider is laid on the table. for what purpose does the gentlewoman from texas rise? >> mr. speaker, i ask unanimous consent to have my name removed as co-sponsor for h.r. 2417. the speaker pro tempore: without obj

captioning made possible by the national captioning institute, inc., in cooperation with the united states house of representatives. any use of the closed-captioned coverage of the house proceedings for political or commercial purposes is expressly prohibited by the u.s. house of representatives.] the chair: on this vote, the yeas are 170, the nays are 252. the amendment is not adopted. the committee will be in order. members, please take their seats. the committee of the whole will be in order. for what purpose does the gentlelady from missouri rise? ms. emerson: mr. chairman, i ask unanimous consent to speak for a minute out of order. the chair: without objection. the gentlelady is recognized. ms. emerson: on behalf of congressman wasserman schultz and myself, we are proud to announce that the women's bipartisan congressional softball team beat the washington female press corps in our recent softball game by a score of 5 to 4. in the spirit of our u.s. women's soccer team won and on their way to the final world cup, we probably aren't in that category, but perhaps this was the world cup. and w

captioning made possible by the national captioning institute, inc., in cooperation with the united states house of representatives. any use of the closed-captioned coverage of the house proceedings for political or commercial purposes is expressly prohibited by the u.s. house of representatives.]

section 8125, none of the funds may be used to modify any facility of the united states to house any individual for the purposes of detention or i am prisonment and the custody or under control of the department. the prohibition shall not apply to any modification of facilities at the united states naval station, guantanamo bay, cuba. section 8126, in general, funds made available to the department under operation and maintenance defense-wide in title 2, $1 million shall be available to conduct a forward-looking independent assessment of the current and perspective situation on the ground in afghanistan and pakistan. not later than 120 days after enactment of this act, the entity described in subsection 8, shall submit to the president and the congress, a report. sense of congress, it is the sense of congress that the entity should be modeled on the iraq study group. section 8127, not more than $200 million may be expended -- the chair: for what purpose does the gentleman from texas rise. mr. carter: i have an amendment at the desk. the chair: the clerk will report the amendment. the

speaker, i think that the reputation of this united states house of representatives in congress is at a low ebb. because of the fact that we have en-- haven't acted prior to this date, the fact that the reputation of the united states of america is on the line and we're being talked about in the same level as the economies of spain and greece and ireland and portugal. this should never have happened. and i'm embarrassed as i see the greatest power on earth and the country that has been the greatest power on earth through my entire life possibly diminish because of the actions of the other side in not getting this debt ceiling resolved. the rate of the united states will go down, that will cost interest rates to go up, that will cause us to lose jobs. and to extend this for just six months which is what is happening means the same theater will take place again in six months. the american public doesn't want to see it, moody's doesn't want to see it, standard & poor's doesn't want to see it, the markets don't want to see it, the world doesn't want to see it. when i was in europe in germ

captioning made possible by the national captioning institute, inc., in cooperation with the united states house of representatives. big 80%, the lowest level of funding for the program in 45 years. it threatens completion of the accusation of the rocky ford track in east tennessee and several treasures in north carolina that need protection. every member of this body should ask, how many accusation projects would this halt in my state? there is no reassuring answer. secondly, the environmental protection agency. the bill continues the republican majority's assault on the e.p.a. after imposing a 16% cut in the current fiscal year, the majority is now proposing a further 18% reduction in the agency's budget. that would push agency staffing to 1991 levels. the goal of the cut so massive is plain and simple to ensure that e.p.a. doesn't have the resources it needs to fulfill its core mission, including life-saving and life enhancing research based in my district at research triangle park. third, the clean water and drinking water state revolving fund, the s.r.f.'s, provide funding to states to fund

captioning made possible by the national captioning institute, inc., in cooperation with the united states house of representatives. any use of the closed-captioned coverage of the house proceedings for political or commercial purposes is expressly prohibited by the u.s. house of representatives.] the speaker pro tempore: on this vote the yeas are 237 and the nays are 185 and the previous question is ordered. the question is on the adoption of the resolution. all those in favor say aye. and those opposed say no. the yice have it. the yice have it. the resolution a-- the ayes have it. the resolution is adopted. mr. polis: i ask the yeas and nays. the speaker pro tempore: the yeas and nays are requested. those in support of a -- taking this vote by the yeas and nays will rise. a sufficient number having arisen, andrew. -- the yeas and nays are ordered. this is a five-minute vote. [captioning made possible by the national captioning institute, inc., in cooperation with the united states house of representatives. any use of the closed-captioned coverage of the house proceedings for political or comm

medicare cuts objected to the clinton medicare cuts, which were supported by every liberal in the united states house of representatives and the united states senate. now i don't know where the newly-appointed protectors of medicare were at the time. it was the middle of the summer. they might have all been at baseball games. but the president didn't hear from one of them. not from one of them. what barack obama has heard from so many about betraying their trust by discussing medicare cuts. you know the rest of this story. this bill passed. medicare continued to be the best government-run health insurance program in the world. the biggest tax increase in history did not cripple the economy, as every republican insisted that it would. bill clinton took ownership of the economy with this bill. and the economy soared to new heights, especially for the rich, the very rich, the super rich, the ultra rich. they all got richer and richer and richer. living under that horrible clinton 39% top income tax bracket. but i digress. the debt ceiling in this bill, which we slipped in here on page 254, where we want

right now harry reid is waiting in the united states senate holding back, seeing what boehner can do. if boehner cannot deliver the united states house of representatives squarely from mainly his own party, he loses a lot of leverage and because then reid knows any plan that goes to the house with boehner to raise the debt ceiling is moeft likely not to have democratic votes. that's where we're at. reid's plan to cut trillions of the deficit getting the debt limit through the next election year, all the way to 2013, that's a non-starter right now in the united states house of representatives. most likely could not even garner cloture in the united states senate. so all eyes are on the boehner plan tomorrow night. after that one, we'll know a lot more. but it looks like the boehner plan in some capacity, if it is to get through the house, will be the ultimate vehicle that does raise the debt limit, probably a tweak in there with harry reid saying, hey, if you change a few of these things we'll get through the senate and pick up democratic support in the house. ultimately to the president's desk. big news from the other side of pennsyl

captioning made possible by the national captioning institute, inc., in cooperation with the united states house of representatives. any use of the closed-captioned coverage of the house proceedings for political or commercial purposes is expressly prohibited by the u.s. house of representatives.] the speaker pro tempore: on this vote the yeas are 242. the nays are 178. a majority voting in the affirmative, the resolution is adopted, without objection, the motion to reconsider is laid on the table. the house will be in order. members, please remove your conversations from the floor. plose clear the well -- please clear the well and the aisles. the house will be in order. the majority side, please remove your conversations from the nor. -- floor. the house will be in order. the gentleman from wisconsin. mr. petri: mr. speaker, i ask fleak that -- unanimous consent that all members may have five legislative days to revise and extend their remarks on h.r. 2018 and include extraneous material in the congressional record. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. for what purpose does the gentleman

can it get through the united states house of representatives? we don't like to get too far afterward ourselves. there is no ink that's dry on paper. but under this type of deal it seems that the group i was talking to last night who is very fearful when house republicans and senate republicans talking one-on-one to the white house, liberal democrats thought they would be sold short, i'm hearing they are worried about the deal on its face, $3 trillion in cuts, $4.2 trillion increase in the debt ceiling, a lot of folks on the democratic side feel that could be too much given away from the obama white house, and it's going to be interesting to see whether or not they have the votes shored up in the united states house of representatives or any debt limit extension deal, can they get to the magic 2 216? that looks like why the discussion is going. >> when you say no revenue, that's political speak for no tax increase, right? >> republicans won't take a deal with a tax increase. there is not enough time for comprehensive tax reform, because there is

house today. the bill will have a balanced budget amendment, it makes it even more inclined to go nowhere in the united statesbecomes does mitch mcconnell double down on the boehner bill which is problematic for the white house and the senate democrats, or do hear reid strong-arm and mitch mcconnell and him put pressure on the boehner bill. it has to be ratified by state constitutions around the country, does it completely water down the boehner bill to the sense that it's not even a vehicle anymore to try and raise the debt limit, because it's not amendable enough. it's impossible to do. so, we are now i think, chris, in an area of where there are a lot more questions than answers. this new news coming out today from the house gop conference makes the boehner bill plan, the idea they were going to try to jam the president, to be the last one standing, well democrats are not going to allow a balanced budget amendment be on the last bill standing. >> they've made it clear, the president has made it clear. kristen welker at the house, as this moves forward over the weekend, there has been criticism over the las

captioning made possible by the national captioning institute, inc., in cooperation with the united states house of representatives. any use of the closed-captioned coverage of the house proceedings for political or commercial purposes is expressly prohibited by the u.s. house of representatives.] the speaker pro tempore: on this vote the yeas are 239. the nays are 187. the resolution is adopted and without objection the motion to reconsider is laid on the table. the house will be in order. members, please take your seats. the house will be in order. pursuant to clause 1-c, proceedings will now resume on s. 627 which the clerk will report by title. the clerk: an act to establish the commission on freedom of information act processing delays. the speaker pro tempore: when proceed prgs postponed on thursday, july 28, 2011, the gentleman from wisconsin, mr. ryan, had one minute of debate remaining on the bill. pursuant to house resolution 383, the further amendment printed in house report 112-187 is adopted. the chair recognizes the gentleman from wisconsin. mr. ryan: mr. speaker, the house is not

house correspondent. what are they saying over there, dan? the president of the united states, is he getting ready to go into the east room of the white house and deliver a speech to the nation? will he have harry reid and mitch mcconnell and john boehner and nancy pelosi standing up on a stage with him? are we anywhere close to that kind of image? >> reporter: well, look, i think that is the issue that a lot of people not only here in washington but across the country and certainly overseas as well, as we have been talking to our cnn international audience, they would love to be able to see something like that. i tell you what, though, the white house is trying to manage the level of optimism. you're hearing them say there's still no deal yet but there is still work to be done. i can tell you from a democratic source familiar with the talks that the vice president is involved in deep negotiations not only internally at the white house but also with lawmakers on the hill. as you know, wolf, the vice president has been quietly working behind the scenes, back-channel talks now f

, recognizing that republicans, those who won this majority last november, only control the united states house of representatives. speaker boehner does not look at the world through rose-colored glasses. he knows that the republicans don't control the united states senate and he knows that he has to work with president obama. but he does know that the last statement that was made by the american people in november of last year was, we've got to have dramatic change in the course that we have been on. so he began negotiating. he began discussions. he ban working over the past several weeks and months to try to put together a bipartisan effort so that democrats and republicans alike could come together and ensure that tho social security checks get out and the other obligations we have are met and that we do increase our debt ceiling. we've all folled and the american people are following very closely the global markets, -- closely, the global markets are following very closely the debates that are taking place here. it came to a head last weekend when we know the president of the united states

, recognizing that republicans, those who won this majority last november, only control the united states house of representatives. speaker boehner does not look at the world through rose-colored glasses. he knows that the republicans don't control the united states senate and he knows that he has to work with president obama. but he does know that the last statement that was made by the american people in november of last year was, we've got to have a dramatic change in the course that we have been on. so he began negotiating. he began discussions. he began working over the past several weeks and months to try to put together a bipartisan effort so that democrats and republicans alike could come together and ensure that those social security checks get out and the other obligations we have are met and that we do increase our debt ceiling. we've all followed and the american people are following very closely the global markets, -- closely, the global markets are following very closely the debates that are taking place here. it came to a head last weekend when we know the president of the united

but it is built on the principles of cut, cap and balance that can pass the united states senate as well as the united states house. time's running short. i'm urging my house colleagues to support it. i'm urging my senate colleagues to support it as well. i think it would be irresponsible for the president to veto such legislation. >> one of the things that has been rumored and the white house has sort of put it out there, is that president obama will make an argument that he can do this constitutionally through the 14th amendment on his own. a lot of back and forth on this. judge, what say you? >> i think he's on very shaky ground if he does that tonight, without getting too much into the weeds. 14th amendment is one of the amendments written after the civil war. the southern states were returning to the united states of america. there was a huge detect, a federal debt. what did that debt consist of? loans that had been made to the lincoln administration to fight the civil war. so the government was concerned the southern states would say, that was not our debt. that was money used to shoot at our soldiers. so th

seem uncertain exactly how they move forward to get a deal that will pass both the united states senate and the house of representatives.

the problem in the united states senate we haven't been able to debate a plan. the housets, keep working on plans, going through the tough slog to get something over to the snaflt. and the senate majority leader harry reid simply says we're not even going to allow debate. here again the house is now enhancing that are -- their bill. looks like a better than that they had before. it is coming over here. harry reid called it dead on arrival and will not allow us to debate it. if democrats don't like it debate it add an amendment, do something with it. all we here is carping what is wrong but not what is right. jon: congressman hensarling was saying very same thing to jenna earlier on our program. look we sent them something to the senate. at least we passed something and they put it on the table. >> this putting on the table procedural thing is simply a bill-killer. and it delays us getting to any kind of agreement. again if the democrats, president obama, doesn't like what we have, then let's debate it. let them offer their amendment and approve it the way they wait to app

it is built on the principles of cut, cap and balance, that can pass the united states senate, as well as the united states house. time is running short. i'm urging my house colleagues to support and my senate colleagues as well. i think it would be irresponsible for the president to veto such legislation, because it is a common sense plan. and will help us avoid default. it is time to get serious about solving america's blowns. i brief our plan is a good cash america's problems. and i believe our plan is a good step in the right direction. >> plan we just introduced is a well thought out and reasoned plan in which no side gets all they want. we put out our plan as to what it is we want. the cut, cap and balance plan last week. this plan is not that. the president said that he wants higher taxes and he wants a vote through the election. this plan doesn't have that in it. so, it is a situation where no side gets all they want this is a responsible plan that addresses the urgency of trying to make sure we avoid default, which i knee we will. but then, it sets -- i know we will. but then, it sets in motion a proces

but any type of compromise right now, despite the procedure of the united states senate, would most likely get to the united states house on tuesday. we saw how difficult it was for speaker boehner to get a republican bill out of his house. it took him three times. so any compromise bill that comes out of the senate will most likely lose a ton of republicans in the house and will be all democrats and a handful of republicans to get across the finish line in a very late hour. that is something that has a lot of financial markets worried and a lot of people here in washington worried that it might just not be able to be completed in such a short time window. >> luke russert, busy bunch of hours ahead of us. appreciate it so much. take care. >>> the debt debate in washington is having ripple effects across the globe, including fears from men and women in our armed forces over their paychecks. admiral mike mullen discussed the issue with our troops. you know, mike mullen, this is what he said, "i don't know the answer to the question of whether or not they will continue to get paid." the soldiers that is. he want on to say,

but it is built on the principles of cut, cap and balance that can pass the united states senate as well as the united states house. >> the democrats' $2.7 trillion plan calls for dollar oophor-dollar savings and debt ceiling increase, no revenue, and would include cuts which democrats say are already recognize a good deal when they see one. >> they have moved in their direction so many different times, and they don't budge. no revenues, no revenues, no revenues. that's why you can't get a grand deal. you can't get a grand deal without revenues. >> mitch mcconnell expressed frustration that the plan was rejected by president obama. >> it was literally within our reach this weekend. the president has to know this approach is a responsible path forward. we ought to put it back on the table. >> at this hour, senate republicans and senate democrats are holding separate meetings to discuss the impasse on the debt talks and how best to move forward. bret? >> michael emanuel on the hill, mike, thank you. let's find out how this is all playing on the other end of pennsylvania avenue. ed henry joins our fox news team today

united states federal government. neither mr. obama, nor congressional democrats can repeal the laws of mathematics. the federal budget of the united states government will eventually balance, madam speaker. the question is whether the house of representatives, the united states senate, and the white house will work together to balance this budget ourselves by wise policy, or national bankruptcy and financial ruin will do it for us. from the day barack obama walked into the white house, he has with breathtaking arrogance absolutely ignored economic and financial reality. it took america the first 216 years of its exist tones accumulate the debt that brauk bach -- barack obama has a cumulated in the short two and a half year -- has accumulated in the short two and a half year span of his presidency. he's increased the federal debt by nearly $4 trillion. just to put that nearly $4 trillion in new debt into perspective, let me put it this way. if all of a sudden a wave of responsibility swept through this chamber and we stopped all deficit spending and began to pay instaalments of $1 million every day to pay down the nearly $4 trillion debt that barack obama has created in just two and a half years, it would take us more tha

it is built on the principles of cut, cap, and balance that can pass the united states senate as well as the united states houseouse democrats are strongly opposed to the boehner plan. it's not immediately clear if it will have the votes to get out of the house there are also some tea party members of boehner's own caucus who do not like this plan. >> tea party members and some conservatives as well a coalition came together with a statement this afternoon and rejected the boehner plan. senate democrats have their own plan and it sounds like they claim they are being more reasonable. >> that's right the president and senate democrats are sean off the table the idea of raising taxes as part of this debt ceiling plan. the president's aids are telling us tonight that they will talk tonight about the impact that this is having on the economy and on job creation. we understand he will also use the words of former president ronald reagan and talk about the incalculable damage a failure to raise the debt ceiling would do. senate democrats at a press conference earlier today. they feel like they're the ones doing all t

balance but it is built on the principles of cut, cap and balance to pass the united states senate as well as the united states house. time's running short. i'm urging my house colleagues toupport it and my senate colleagues to support it as well. >> charlie: then the president went on the air this evening to address the nation and talk about the incalculatable dama if an agreement isn't reached. >> basally the debate has centered around two different approaches. the first approach says let's live within our means by making serious historic cuts in government spending. let's cut domestic spending to the lowest level it's been since dwight eisenhower was president. let's cut defense spending at the pentagon by hundreds of billions of dollars. let's cut out waste and fraud in health care programs like medicare and make adjustments so medicare is still there for future generations. finally, let's ask the wealthiest americans and biggest corporations to give up some of their breaks in the tax code and special deductions. this balanced approach asks everyone to give a little without requiring anyone to sacrifice too much

captioning made possible by the national captioning institute, inc., in cooperation with the united states house of representatives. any use of the closed-captioned coverage of the house proceedings for political or commercial purposes is expressly prohibited by the u.s. house of representatives.] the speaker pro tempore: on this vote the yeas are 416, the nays are zero. 2/3 of those voting having responded in the affirmative, the rules are suspended, the bill is passed and without objection the motion to reconsider is laid on the table. the unfinished business is the question on suspending the rules and passing h.r. 1843 which the clerk will report by title. the clerk: h.r. 1843, a bill to designate the facility of the united states postal service located at 489 army drive in guam as the john penk -- pangelinan gerber post office building. the speaker pro tempore: the question is will the house suspend the rules and pass the bill. those in favor say aye. those opposed, no. in the opinion of the chair, 2/3 of those voting having responded in the affirmative, -- >> mr. speaker. the speaker pro te

united states constitution. in 1995, we came within one vote in the united states senate after the house of representatives cast 300 bipartisan votes for a balanced budget amendment of the united states constitution. and now we have the opportunity to lay the groundwork, to do it again but this time to succeed. and we have much, much greater reason to do that because of the fact that we are faced with this mountain of ready ink that we can turn into a bright future for america. i urge my colleagues to support this legislation. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. the gentleman from maryland. mr. van hollen: thank you, madam speaker. we've been making the point that this is not your garden variety constitutional amendment. this -- mr. goodlatte: will the gentleman yield? mr. van hollen: mr. goodlatte was asked at the hearing on his proposal for a constitutional amendment which was voted out of the committee to identify one budget that would meet the requirements of their version, this version of the constitutional amendment. and it was pointed out that even the draconian -- mr. goodlatte: wi

. >> you are the most vile, unprofessional and despicable member of the united states house of representatives. you have proven repeatedly that you are not a lady, therefore, shall not be afforded due respect from me. west even sent out a fund-raising letter with similar language. debbie wasserman-schultz did absolutely nothing to deserve that. here's what she did. she was simply standing up against the draconian cut and cap balance plan supported by congressman west on the floor. >> inkretd u housely the gentleman from florida who represents thousands of beneficiaries is supportive of this plan that would increase costs for medicare beneficiaries, unbelievable from a member from south florida. >> wasserman-schultz makes a policy point. west attacks her personally. as you might expect, is some lawmakers took issue with that. >> just once again we have been told that in order to be a ladying that we need to just stay in our places. speaking out on the floor of congress, getting elected to office is very lady like, mr. west. but they resort to that type of language because they cannot win on the

republicans say we cannot pass a tax increase through the united states house of representatives. where are they going to fall? maybe somewhere in the middle or maybe this goes to august 2nd. great to see you back. >> i appreciate that. nice to be back. it's interesting here that harry reid has said if you have this commission, it should be a binding congressional commission. in other words, they're talking about binding arbitration for these lawmakers. meantime, there's this new quinnipiac poll coming out asking who do you trust more to fix the economy. 45% said they trust president obama more. 38% say congressional republicans. when asked which president is to blame for the recession, 54% are still blaming george w. bush. only 27% blame president obama. you have to wonder if this is what's leading mitch mcconnell to say look, republicans are really positioning themselves in a weak, undesirable way ahead of this election. that will be the question today. are lawmakers really focused on what's best for america, or is this all about winning elections? i want to hear from you. reach

the challenge will be for speaker john boehner to get to 218 votes, the united states house of presentatives on some variation of this mcconnell/reid plan. this plan does not sell well with house republicans. a lot saying it's an abdication of responsibility, quote/unquote and even members of the united states senate including tom coburn which said it's a typical washington response that kicks the can downeolving the nation' fiscal problems. that's what's going on here in washington, d.c. as far as timing, dylan, the weekend of july 30th i'm told, that might be a weekend which you should cancel out your calendar and get ready to look at the fireworks near washington. that's the weekend the final deal would most likely go through the house of representatives. anything could happen until then. july 30th weekend could be it. final passage. thank you, luke. >>> away from the congressional two-step and to a real debt debate. the one has goes to the core of our functionality, our macrkets and political system. our next guest not only has a plan, you may not agree with everything he has to say, but

at this hour, the united states house of representatives stands in recess as it prepares to vote on house speaker john boehner's plan to raise the debt ceiling. now, this is a bill that called for about $1 trillion in spending cuts only. and it raises the debt ceiling for only six months, at which point we could have another breaking news night, because this could happen all over again. now, this was a vote that was supposed to happen about three hours ago, when we were working on a different kind of show. but at 6:00 tonight, about 15 minutes before the vote was scheduled to happen, it was abruptly postponed. word came down that speaker boehner and house republican leaders didn't have the votes they needed. remember, the votes they needed to pass their own bill. so after about two hours of debate on the debt ceiling, members of the house suddenly began debating the naming of a post office in peoria, illinois, instead. now, while that was happening, speaker john boehner was locked behind closed doors trying to quell the rebellion brewing in his own caucus. now, we knew last night -- we he

so the speaker said that he wanted to work with the bipartisan leadership of the united states congress, both houses of congress. and so last weekend we know that speaker boehner and majority leader, the democratic majority leader of the united states senate, harry reid, came together and fashioned by and large the measure that is before us today. i'm the first to say that harry reid no longer supports this measure. harry reid has indicated that he does not support it. we have this letter from the 53 senators, we have word that they're going to table this measure when it passes the house of representatives. but it's important, mr. speaker, for everyone to recognize that what is before us today is by and large a measure that is not what speaker boehner would write if he were doing it on his own, it's a measure that is the byproduct of bipartisan discussion and, as the speaker likes to say, the ability to find common ground. and we are today in a position where we face in just a few days the prospect of those social security checks not going out. and, mr. speaker, that's why i don't like this measure

between these negotiations yesterday between eric cantor and john boehner, what will pass the united states house of representatives? there is a possible grand bargain between cantor, boehner and president obama, this reed-mcconnell compromise we heard about as well as this new thing getting a lot of steam, called the gang of six. an important development from steny hoyer when he said grover norquist essentially said extending the bush tax cuts, if there was a freeze on that wouldn't violate the pledge. grover norquist responded this morning to steny hoyer on our air. take a listen. >> hoyer is wrong. the answer is the people who made this commitment not to raise taxes made it clear they're not raising taxes and boehner and the other republicans have said that independent of the pledge. there's certain things you could do techniqcally and not violate the pledge but the americans would understand is a tax release. americans for tax reform reject any effort to reduce or not continue the 2001-2003 bush tax cuts. >> the question now becomes did grover norquist say unequivocally did any non-extension

captioning made possible by the national captioning institute, inc., in cooperation with the united states house of representatives. any use of the closed-captioned coverage of the house proceedings for political or commercial purposes is expressly prohibited by the u.s. house of representatives.] the speaker pro tempore: the speaker pro tempore: on this vote the yeas are 234 and the nays are 190. the bill is passed. without objection, the motion to reconsider is laid on the table. pursuant to clause 8 of rule 20, the unfinished business is the request on agreeing to the speaker's motion on approval of the journal on which the yeas and nays were ordered. the question is on agreeing to the speaker's approval of the journal. members will record their votes by electronic device. this will be a five-minute vote. [captioning made possible by the national captioning institute, inc., in cooperation with the united states house of representatives. any use of the closed-captioned coverage of the house proceedings for political or commercial purposes is expressly prohibited by the u.s. house of representa