Raising the Roof

Increases in the huge U.S. debt limit --and there have been four of them in the past two years alone--seem to signal a riproaring, breast-beating debate in Congress on Government spending. But last week, when Treasury Secretary Douglas Dillon went before the House Ways and Means Committee to request a $9 billion boost that would lift the limit to an alltime high of $324 billion, there was hardly a protest to be heard. The committee did not even bother with a roll call, instead gave speedy voice-vote approval to Dillon's request.

The fact is that President Johnson has gone a long way toward taking the bite out of the spending issue. Two weeks ago, for example, he announced that spending in fiscal 1964 and 1965 would be $700 million under his January estimate, and that the overall deficits for the two years would be decreased by $300 million to a two-year total of $14.6 billion. And while such economizers as Virginia's Democratic Senator Harry Byrd, who wants to cut spending by $6.5 billion in fiscal 1965, are likely to have a lot more to say on the matter, the new limit is expected to breeze through Congress with less difficulty than in many a year.

Facing more resistance, however, is the Administration's request to extend for another year some $530 million in excise taxes that were first levied at the beginning of World War II. Led by Wisconsin's John Byrnes, the Republican members of Ways and Means sought to reduce the 10% levy on jewelry, furs, perfume, cosmetics, watches, luggage and other leather goods to 5% by July 1 and to nothing the following year. With one exception, the committee's Democrats lined up against Byrnes's proposal to defeat it by a party-line vote of 14 to 11. But that is not likely to be the last of it. Byrnes said he would try to excise the excise taxes when they reach the House floor, and a hot debate is in prospect.

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