Editor's Note: 

Reports that the Senate will debate the Conrad Amendment to the legislation raising the debt ceiling are remarkable for their paucity in the mainstream press.  The amendment supports the creation of a bipartisan commission to study and recommend what to do about the nation's fiscal condition and  a poll conducted by the Peterson Foundation, finds the idea is very popular with voters.  As background, we are pointing to this story which ran last week and reports the politics controlling  the proposed  Bipartisan Commission on Fiscal Reform 

From The Hill:

Senior Democrats in Congress and the White House reached a deal Tuesday evening to create a fiscal commission and a pay-as-you-go budget enforcement bill.

The deal came out of discussions led by Vice President Joe Biden and senior Democrats that have been ongoing since last week. House Democrats involved in the discussions include Speaker Nancy Pelosi (Calif.), Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (Md.) and Budget Committee Chairman John Spratt (S.C.). Senators involved in the talks include Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) and Senate Budget Committee Chairman Kent Conrad (D-N.D.).

The deal is tentative, as Pelosi and Conrad have yet to approve it, according to the aide. Reid's office had no comment on the agreement.  More here.


Under the agreement, President Barack Obama would enact a commission via executive order to come up with a package of fiscal reform proposals, a senior congressional Democratic aide said. Congressional leaders have agreed to allow the package to come up for votes in their respective chambers, the aide said. Also under the deal, the Senate would pass a pay-go bill similar to one passed in the House. More here.