How refreshing it is to see the actual lawmaking process finally proceeding — in the light of day — as the secretive closed-door meetings favored by this White House finally recede! This is how things are supposed to work in our republic.

Here’s where the debate stands: The Republican-controlled House and the Democratic-controlled Senate now seem to be singing from the same sheet of music on the following three points: the debt ceiling needs to be raised, taxes won’t be raised (thanks to the House GOP’s principled insistence on this point), and spending cuts must exceed the size of the debt-ceiling increase (again, thanks to the House GOP).