The U.S. House of Representatives passed a debt ceiling deal Monday that will allow the government to avoid a default on the national debt.

The measure passed 269 to 161, and the Senate is expected to vote on it Tuesday.
U.S. Rep. Fred Upton, R-Mich., voted for the Budget Control Act that will cut more than $2 trillion in federal spending over the next decade, in exchange for increasing the debt ceiling by at least $2.1 trillion.
“After 31 consecutive months of double-digit unemployment, failure to act is not an option for Michigan families,” Upton said in a news release Monday. “This agreement begins to address our nation’s long-term debt with firm spending cuts and caps, now and in the future.”
Upton believes if the bipartisan agreement isn’t adopted, it would “drive our nation into default for the first time ever, harming families and job creators and causing untold economic damage.”
President Barack Obama expressed relief that an agreement has been reached.
“This process has been messy; it’s taken far too long,” Obama said Sunday. “Nevertheless, ultimately, the leaders of both parties have found their way toward compromise.”
Obama acknowledged the process isn’t over with the Senate yet to approve the measure.
“I want to urge members of both parties to do the right thing and support this deal with your votes,” he said. “It will allow us to avoid default. It will allow us to pay our bills. It will allow us to start reducing our deficit.”
If enacted, the agreement would also form a bipartisan committee that would be responsible for finding an additional $1.5 trillion in deficit reduction.