Congressional leaders, White House reach tentative budget deal

Late Monday, the White House and Congressional leaders reached a tentative budget deal that would slightly increase spending over the next two years and raise the nation's debt limit through March 2017.

A 144-page bill labeled a "discussion draft" was posted online shortly before midnight, and the House and Senate still must approve the accord. The agreement would raise spending by $80 billion over two years, not including a $32 billion increase already included in an emergency war fund, The New York Times reports. Cuts would be made in spending on Social Security disability benefits and on Medicare, with payments to doctors and other health care providers being slashed. The Treasury Department had said if the statutory borrowing limit was not raised by Nov. 3, the government would default on its debt, and the temporary spending measure that kept the government from shutting down in early October is set to expire on Dec. 11. Under the tentative agreement, the government would be financed through Sept. 30, 2017.

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