New Bill Ties Balanced Budget Amendment to Second Debt Ceiling Hike

In order to win the votes of some Republican holdouts, John Boehner’s debt ceiling plan has been modified. The bill’s first step will remain the same: About $900 billion in discretionary spending cuts in exchange for $900 billion debt ceiling hike. But the second debt ceiling hike needed to get us past the 2012 election would now be contingent upon the passage of a balanced budget amendment (BBA) by the House and Senate (as well as another corresponding cut in spending).