Faced with defections from some of the chamber's more conservative members and unanimous opposition from Democrats, House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) is lobbying lawmakers to support his bill for raising the debt ceiling and cutting the deficit.
Boehner's plan, which cuts $917 billion in spending and adds $900 billion to the $14.3 trillion debt ceiling with additional cuts later this year, is scheduled for a vote tonight.
It sets up the likelihood of another vote on raising the debt ceiling next year, which is one of the reasons President Obama has said he will veto it.
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The measure also isn't likely to pass in the Democratic-controlled Senate.
"As soon as the House completes its vote, the Senate will move to take up that bill and it will be defeated tonight. No Democrat will vote for a short-term Band-Aid that would put our economy at risk and put the nation back in this untenable situation a few short months from now,'' Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) said on the Senate floor.
The 435-member House has 240 Republicans, 193 Democrats and two vacancies. That means Boehner needs 217 votes and can only afford to lose 23 Republican votes.
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