Lacking votes, House Republicans postpone debt ceiling vote

Chris Moody
·Political Reporter

Just moments before a scheduled vote on House Speaker John Boehner's plan to raise the debt limit, GOP leaders pulled the bill from the floor and postponed the vote.

House Republican leaders spent the week lobbying the GOP caucus to support the measure, which would raise the debt ceiling by about $900 billion and reduce the growth of government spending by $918 over the next decade. The delayed vote is a sign that they were unable to convince enough Republicans to support the speaker's plan.

The vote will be delayed until later this evening, as Boehner continues his effort to bring the 217 Republicans needed to pass the bill.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid said today that the Republican measure will fail in the upper chamber; all 53 Senate Democrats have signed a letter pledging to vote against the bill.

In the meantime, the House will vote to name a Post Office in Peoria, Illinois.