House Republicans backed away from a battle over the US Govt's Debt Cap on Tuesday Feb 11,2014 and permitted President Barack Obama's Democratic allies to drive quick passage of a measure to increase the government's borrowing ability to pay its bills and avoid a default ahead of the November elections.
The 221-201 vote came hours after Republican House leader John Boehner announced that his fractured party would relent.
Just 28 Republicans voted for the measure, including Boehner. But 193 Democrats more than compensated for the low support among Republicans
The bill would permit the Treasury Department to borrow money to pay the government's bills normally for another 13 months, diffusing the chance of a debt crisis well past the November elections and providing time for a newly elected Congress to decide how to handle the issue.
The measure does not raise the debt limit by a set amount but would suspend it through March 15, 2015, to allow Treasury to borrow the money it needs to pay bills like pension benefits, payments on government debt, and checks for federal workers
The measure now goes to the Democratic-controlled Senate which is expected to easily approve it later in the week.
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