House votes to 'pay as you go'

WASHINGTON — Resurgent House Democrats voted Friday, their second day back in control, to block future tax cuts or benefit increases from being financed with dollars that swell the national deficit.

Republicans protested that the change would imperil GOP-sponsored tax cuts that expire in four years. The new rule also could make it more difficult for the Democrats to fulfill campaign promises to cut student loan rates and extend tax cuts for the middle class.

The drive to restore the "pay-as-you-go" rule has long been a priority for moderate-to-conservative Democrats, whose House ranks swelled on Election Day. It was adopted with a 280-152 vote.

Rep. Jim Matheson, D-Utah, said Congress has "taken a crucial step toward putting our fiscal house in order."

Matheson is a member of the Blue Dog Coalition, a group of fiscally conservative Democrats that has long advocated for PAY-GO.

"Both parties are guilty of spending beyond their means," Matheson said in a statement. "The result is the sea of red ink we're swimming in and a record federal budget deficit. It's morally wrong to create such debt for our children and grandchildren," he said.

Matheson would like to see Pay-Go become a law so the Senate would have to follow the same rule.

But Sen. Bob Bennett, R-Utah, called the idea a "Trojan horse for tax increases.

"It is not really a balancing act," Bennett said.

He said instead of taking money from one program to support another, the alternative would be to create more revenue, meaning raised taxes.

"Democrats are anxious to raise spending but to look fiscally responsible while doing it," Bennett said.

The measure also requires legislation that contains pet projects and narrowly targeted tax breaks — "earmarks" to Washington insiders — to include the names of the lawmakers who requested them. The idea is that openness will help prevent abuses like the earmark bribery scandal that forced former Rep. Randy "Duke" Cunningham, R-Calif., out of Congress and into prison. The new rules replace slightly weaker ones on earmarks approved last September by Republicans.

In the Senate, both parties held private strategy meetings. The chamber's first moves next week will largely mirror House steps to ban lawmakers from accepting gifts and free trips from lobbyists. The bipartisan Senate ethics and lobbying reform bill, the first legislation to reach floor debate under Democratic control, also requires disclosure of senators' earmarks.

Also Friday: