WASHINGTON — Congressional Republicans are rallying behind a long-shot bid for a constitutional amendment requiring a balanced budget. But they're divided over conservatives' efforts to demand its passage as their price for backing any increase in the government's borrowing limit.Right in the middle of their brawl with President Barack Obama over extending the debt ceiling and hacking trillions from projected deficits, GOP leaders are forcing House and Senate debates next week over similar amendments requiring the budget to be balanced, starting no sooner than five years from now. Reflecting tea party clout, both measures would also sharply curb Congress' ability to raise taxes and spending.
Constitutional amendments require two-thirds majorities to clear each chamber of Congress, meaning it will be difficult for the GOP to prevail. Republicans hope the debate will highlight their commitment to smaller government and – with polls showing public backing for a budget-balancing amendment – provide fodder to embarrass opponents in next year's elections.
"It certainly will show who's really serious about trying to get spending under control and who isn't," said Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, a leading sponsor of the Senate amendment, which is backed by all 47 Republican senators. "If that's all it accomplishes, it will be a good thing."
Some GOP lawmakers want to go further, saying that unless Congress first approves a balanced budget amendment, they won't vote to increase the $14.3 trillion ceiling on federal borrowing. The Obama administration says that must happen by Aug. 2 to avoid a catastrophic first-ever federal default.
Supporters of that linkage rank among Congress' most conservative lawmakers, many of whom were unlikely to vote to extend the debt limit anyway. Even so, the move underscores fault lines between the GOP's most right-leaning segments and the rest of the party, even as Obama and congressional leaders see if they can salvage a compromise over the debt.
"It shows how typically weak most politicians can be when it comes to these sorts of issues," tea party-backed freshman Rep. Joe Walsh, R-Ill., said of the scant support for conditioning a debt limit extension to passage of a balanced budget amendment. "This is serious business. I don't think most Democrats understand how serious the spending crisis is, and unfortunately I don't think most people in my party yet do."
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Source: Huffington
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