Clean bill on debt limit

From St. Petersburg Times, July 22, 2011

In his letter, Mr. Balmer of Seminole, Florida states that the debt ceiling should be a separate issue from the spending cuts due to the importance of raising the ceiling. He states, "The spending changes and any taxing changes are too complicated a subject to be subjected to such a limit. The action of our politicians connecting the two is ludicrous."

I agree the issue is complicated, but I suspect the GOP feels they have to strike while the iron is hot. You may recall the number of stories immediately after the mid-term elections that hit upon this very issue of tea-party swept Republicans having to come to terms with the debt ceiling. I suspect the GOP feels they have leverage now to hold the President's feet to the fire so to speak. It would be responsible to not hold the country's debt hostage, but just as with any negotiation, one has to leverage the best position; otherwise no one would listen to the House on the issue.