Isakson, Chambliss Split on Debt Ceiling Bill Approval

Despite a 'no' vote from Georgia Sen. Clarence Saxby Chambliss on the debt ceiling agreement, the U.S. Senate passed the measure Tuesday afternoon by a 74-26 vote.

President Barack Obama signed the bill about an hour after the final Senate vote.

Backing the bill were 45 Democrats, 28 Republicans, and one independent, with 6 Democrats, 19 Republicans, and one independent opposed.

Georgia's representatives in the Senate - both Republican - were split in their decision to support the bill. While the senior-seat senator voted against the measure, Sen. John H. 'Johnny' Isakson voted in favor of the bill saying in a statement that it was, "a step in the right direction."

“From now on, whenever the President asks for a debt ceiling increase, it will be demanded that there be spending cuts equal to any increase, which is an historic precedent and a first step in the right direction toward ending the reckless spending in Washington,” Isakson said in a press release.

On Monday evening, the House passed the legislation by a vote of 269-161. Congressmen Henry C. 'Hank' Johnson, (D-4)  and Thomas E. Price, (R-6), voted in favor of the measure, while U.S. Rep. John R. Lewis, (D-5), whose congressional district falls in Brookhaven, voted against the proposal.

The passage of the legislation before the deadline of midnight Tuesday night means that the government will avert defaulting on its obligations, Isakson said following the passing of the emergency legislation that could have led to the government's first-ever government default.

The vote caps a strenuous battle between Republican House leaders and the Democratic-controlled Senate. The compromise essentially raises the debt limit and establishes discretionary spending limits with the promise of more than $1.5 trillion in cuts over the next decade, Isakson said.

A special committee of six Democrats and six Republicans from the House and Senate will identify about the spending cuts by Nov. 23, 2011, with an expected vote by Dec. 23, 2011, according to Isakson's release.