That the national debt limit needs to be raised because we are borrowing so much money is no great secret, but the Republican-led Congress wants to raise that limit with as little public notice as possible.

That would rule out a freestanding vote because that would highlight the record deficits the Republicans have run up over the last three years. The Democrats, retroactive converts to the cause of balanced budgets, would point out that, after taking office with the publicly held share of the national debt declining thanks to four years of surpluses, the Bush administration has had to twice ask that the borrowing cap be lifted, for a total of $1.4 trillion. Now it needs a third of about $690 billion - and soon. That would take the gross national debt to more than $8 trillion, an impressive number.

The leadership had hoped to slip the increase through as part of a congressional budget resolution, but for the second year in a row, House and Senate Republicans might not be able to agree on a budget.

So the House Republican leadership decided to attach the debt limit to a huge, $417 billion defense spending bill that was certain to pass, and did by 403 to 17 - although the vote to attach the debt limit provision was approved only 220-196.

The Senate is also inclined to include an increase to the debt limit as part of its defense spending bill, but the Senate moves at its own stately pace. The White House is anxious to get this issue settled and out of the way lest some Ross Perot type make it a political issue as happened to the first President Bush in 1992.

The Treasury will bump up against the $7.3 trillion debt limit later this summer. The White House has told congressional Republicans that Bush's Treasury secretary, John Snow, could stall for time, and maybe even get past the November election without lifting the cap, by juggling some government accounts and borrowing from others.

But there's a problem: When President Clinton's Treasury secretary Robert Rubin did that, these same congressional Republicans threatened to impeach him. It's so true in Washington: What goes around, comes around.

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An editorial opinion of Scripps Howard News Service, 1090 Vermont Ave. N.W., Suite 1000, Washington, DC 20005-4901.

Commentary:
When Bush became president the debt was $5.trillion. It's currently $7.2 trillion and we're expected to have one of the largest deficits in US history again this year (which ends October 31, 2004). Bush will easily create more debt than any president in history...beating the all time record of Reagan who created $1.6 trillion of debt in eight years. Bush will create about the same amount in less than four years.

The last Clinton budget was for fiscal year 2001, the last and only budget under Bush. There are no exceptions of balancing the budget in the next ten years. Both Houses of Congress have given up. It's time for a change.

Republicans used to say tax cuts increase revenue. After eight years of Reagan debt and four years of Bush only a fool would make such a comment. h